Arsenal: 3 reasons to sign Philippe Coutinho on loan

Arsenal are being linked with a loan move for Philippe Coutinho. Here are three reasons why the Gunners should make the move this summer.

As the summer transfer window looms and Arsenal’s rebuild under Mikel Arteta really begins to take shape in what will be his first summer as head coach, one name keeps reappearing as a reported target: on-loan Bayern Munich midfielder, Philippe Coutinho. This week, Le10Sport reports that the Gunners are set to step up their efforts to sign the Brazilian, likely on another season-long loan deal.

Here are three reasons why such a transfer might be a smart move.

3. He is not that expensive

I have written extensively about why Arsenal should plan for the long-term under Arteta, gearing all of their investments to a two or three-year-plus impact. Of course, signing Coutinho on a year-long loan is not a long-term investment. Usually, I would find myself rallying against this type of move, but as I thought about it more carefully, there are some reasons in favour.

It all starts with money. In reality, Coutinho would not be that expensive. His reported £250,000-per-week wages sound a lot, but they total just a £13 million investment across the year, and that is without Barcelona subsidising the wages at all, which, as Arsenal have done with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, is fairly common when major players move on loan.

Moreover, with the potential sales that the club can make this summer, there will be room in the wage bill. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang alone would cover for the majority of Coutinho’s wage. Throw in Shkodran Mustafi, Sokratis, Dani Ceballos, Mkhitaryan, Mohamed Elneny and other potential sales and it is easy to see how Arsenal can easily clear a good deal of room in the wage budget.

<p>Here are three reasons why such a transfer might be a smart move.</p> <div id="attachment_91047" class="wp-caption aligncenter"> <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-91047" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/05/26/arsenal-3-reasons-sign-philippe-coutinho-loan/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1143243184-850x560.jpeg" alt="" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img"> <p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">BARCELONA, SPAIN – APRIL 16: Philippe Coutinho of Barcelona controls the ball during the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final second leg match between FC Barcelona and Manchester United at Camp Nou on April 16, 2019 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)</p> </div> </div> <h4>3. He is not that expensive</h4> <p>I have written extensively about why Arsenal should plan for the long-term under Arteta, gearing all of their investments to a two or three-year-plus impact. Of course, signing Coutinho on a year-long loan is not a long-term investment. Usually, I would find myself rallying against this type of move, but as I thought about it more carefully, there are some reasons in favour.</p> <p>It all starts with money. In reality, Coutinho would not be that expensive. His reported £250,000-per-week wages sound a lot, but they total just a £13 million investment across the year, and that is without Barcelona subsidising the wages at all, which, as Arsenal have done with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, is fairly common when major players move on loan.</p> <p>Moreover, with the potential sales that the club can make this summer, there will be room in the wage bill. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang alone would cover for the majority of Coutinho’s wage. Throw in Shkodran Mustafi, Sokratis, Dani Ceballos, Mkhitaryan, Mohamed Elneny and other potential sales and it is easy to see how Arsenal can easily clear a good deal of room in the wage budget.</p> <div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/05/26/arsenal-3-reasons-sign-philippe-coutinho-loan/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 2. 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Provided the ideal role in which he would usually flourish, the German has the license to drift throughout the pitch, picking up pockets of space wherever he believes he can best influence the match. If Ozil could design a role for himself, it would be this one.</p> <p>And yet, despite this, he has largely failed. His overall play has been much-improved from his time under Unai Emery. He worked harder, he pressed, and he was smooth in possession, aiding Arsenal’s build-up play in deeper areas. But when it came to providing that cutting edge in the final third, he was invariably lacking. In 968 minutes in all competitions, Ozil provided one goal and one assist since Arteta took over.</p> <p>Even in what has been considered a down year, Coutinho has eight goals and six assists in 1,382 Bundesliga minutes. That blows Ozil out of the water. Add in the fact that Ozil is earning £100,000 per week more than Coutinho, and the cost-effectiveness is nowhere to be seen in persisting. 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(Photo by Harriet Lander/Copa/Getty Images)</p> </div> </div> <h4>1. He can be the difference between Champions League and not</h4> <p>While I have spoken at length about the importance of Arsenal planning for the long-term under Arteta, there is a vital hurdle that the team must clear before any dreams of major success down the road can even be conceived: Champions League football.</p> <p><a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/05/26/arsenal-3-reasons-sign-philippe-coutinho-loan/"https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=101581&amp;action=edit%22>As analysis from<em> Swiss Ramble </em>outlines</a>, Arsenal earned £34 million from reaching the Europa League final last year. He estimates that they will receive £15 million next year after they were dumped out of the competition by Olympiakos at the Round of 32 stage in February.</p> <p>In comparison, Manchester United and Manchester City earned £82 million each for reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League. Liverpool won the competition and earned £98 million, almost triple Arsenal’s European income, while Spurs, who lost in the final to Liverpool, earned £90 million. Arsenal would earn roughly £60 million more if they reached the same stage in the Champions League as they did the Europa League.</p> <div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="StoryLink" data-theme="dark" data-text="Arsenal: 3 reasons to execute youth experiment next season" data-url="https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/05/26/arsenal-3-reasons-execute-youth-experiment-next-season/" data-call-to-action="Next"> <div class="story-link-next"> <a class="story-link-next-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="story-link-next-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/05/26/arsenal-3-reasons-sign-philippe-coutinho-loan/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/05/26/arsenal-3-reasons-execute-youth-experiment-next-season/"> <span class="call_to_action">Next:</span> Arsenal: 3 reasons to execute youth experiment next season </a> </div> </div> <p>If Coutinho is the difference between Champions League football and no Champions League football — and given the upgrade he would provide a central midfield that has been nonexistent in the goals and assists department, he just might be — he is a smart investment to help kickstart the Arteta rebuild. It is not a long-term move, admittedly, but it might be a necessary short-term one.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">