Philippe Coutinho facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Philippe Coutinho

Coutinho lining up for Brazil in 2018
Personal information
Date of birth	(1992-06-12) 12 June 1992 (age 33)
Place of birth	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Height	1.72 m
Playing position	Attacking midfielder, left winger
Club information
Current club	Vasco da Gama (on loan from Aston Villa)
Number	11
Youth career
0000–2008	Vasco da Gama
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2008–2013	Inter Milan	28	(3)
2008–2010	→ Vasco da Gama (loan)	36	(4)
2012	→ Espanyol (loan)	16	(5)
2013–2018	Liverpool	152	(41)
2018–2022	Barcelona	76	(17)
2019–2020	→ Bayern Munich (loan)	23	(8)
2022	→ Aston Villa (loan)	19	(5)
2022–	Aston Villa	22	(1)
2023–2024	→ Al-Duhail (loan)	16	(3)
2024–	→ Vasco da Gama (loan)	16	(2)
National team
2009	Brazil U17	3	(0)
2011	Brazil U20	7	(3)
2010–2022	Brazil	68	(21)
Honours Men's football Representing  Brazil Copa América Winner 2019 Brazil FIFA U-20 World Cup Winner 2011 Colombia South American U-17 Championship Winner 2009 Chile
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 02:17, 25 January 2025 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals).

Philippe Coutinho Correia (born 12 June 1992) is a Brazilian professional footballer. He plays as an attacking midfielder or left winger. Currently, he plays for Vasco da Gama on loan from Aston Villa. Coutinho is known for his amazing vision, great passes, and excellent dribbling skills. He can also score incredible curling long-range shots.

Coutinho showed incredible talent from a young age. He grew up in the youth system of Vasco da Gama. In 2008, Serie A club Inter Milan signed him. He was loaned back to Vasco, where he became a key player. He played his first game for Inter Milan in 2010. Later, he was loaned to La Liga club Espanyol in 2012.

In January 2013, Coutinho joined Premier League club Liverpool. He became a star player there. He was even named in the PFA Team of the Year in 2015. Liverpool fans and players voted him their best player in 2015 and 2016. In January 2018, Coutinho moved to Barcelona. He won two La Liga titles with them. He was then loaned to German club Bayern Munich for the 2019–20 season. There, he helped the team win a treble: the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, and UEFA Champions League. He returned to Aston Villa in 2022, first on loan, then permanently.

Coutinho first played for the senior Brazil team in 2010. He was part of the squads for the 2015 Copa América and the Copa América Centenario in 2016. He played in his first FIFA World Cup in 2018, scoring two goals. He also helped Brazil win the 2019 Copa América at home.

Early Life and Football Start

Philippe Coutinho was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on June 12, 1992. He is the youngest of three sons. He grew up in the Rocha district of Rio.

As a child, Coutinho was very shy. He started playing football after watching his older brothers. They played with friends on a local concrete pitch. He began with futsal, which he says helped him improve his skills. Coutinho became very good at playing football on the streets. A friend's grandmother encouraged him to join a local football academy. Soon, coaches from Vasco da Gama saw his talent. He joined their youth system after a trial.

Club Career Highlights

Starting at Vasco da Gama

Coutinho quickly became a top player in Vasco da Gama's youth teams. He was even called up to Brazil's under-14 national team. In July 2008, when he was 16, Serie A club Inter Milan signed him for €4 million.

Coutinho stayed at Vasco on loan for two years. This was because FIFA rules don't allow international transfers until players are 18. Even at a young age, he became a regular first-team player. In 2009, he played 12 league games. Vasco won the Série B title that year. This meant they moved up to Brazil's top league. In 2010, he played 31 games and scored 5 goals. He was a very important player for the team.

Time with Inter Milan

Coutinho with Inter Milan in 2011

Coutinho officially joined Inter Milan in July 2010, after turning 18. The new manager, Rafael Benítez, said Coutinho was "the future of Inter." On August 27, Coutinho played his first game for Inter. He came on as a substitute in a match against Atlético Madrid. He later helped Inter win a big game against Bayern Munich in the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League.

On May 8, 2011, Coutinho scored his first goal for Inter. It was a fantastic free kick against Fiorentina. His second goal came in November 2011 against Cagliari.

Loan to Espanyol and Return

During the 2011–12 season, Coutinho found it hard to get regular playing time at Inter. So, he joined La Liga club Espanyol on loan in January 2012. He played his first game for Espanyol on February 4. The next month, he scored two goals in a 5–1 win against Rayo Vallecano. He scored 5 goals in 16 games during his loan. After this, he returned to Inter.

Back at Inter, he still struggled to play often. He made only 10 league appearances in the 2012–13 season, scoring one goal.

Shining at Liverpool

Coutinho playing for Liverpool in 2013

On January 26, 2013, Premier League club Liverpool agreed to sign Coutinho. The transfer fee was £8.5 million. Coutinho chose Liverpool over other clubs. On January 30, Liverpool officially signed him. Rafael Benítez, his former manager at Inter, had told Liverpool that Coutinho would be "world class."

Coutinho played his first game for Liverpool on February 11, 2013. He scored his first goal for the club on February 17 in a 5–0 win against Swansea City. He quickly became a key player, setting up goals and scoring. He was named Liverpool's Player of the Month for March. He finished his first half-season with three goals in 13 league games.

Key Player for Liverpool

Coutinho started the 2013–14 season well. He scored the first goal in the Merseyside derby against Everton. On April 13, 2014, he scored the winning goal against Manchester City. This result put Liverpool at the top of the league. He made 37 appearances and scored 5 goals that season.

Coutinho playing for Liverpool in 2015

In the 2014–15 season, Coutinho continued to impress. He signed a new contract with Liverpool in February 2015. He was the only Liverpool player named in the PFA Team of the Year. He also won Liverpool's Player of the Season award.

On August 9, 2015, Coutinho scored a winning goal from 25 yards against Stoke City. He scored two goals against Chelsea on October 31. He also scored in three straight Premier League matches.

In January 2016, Coutinho got a hamstring injury. He returned in February, scoring against West Ham United. He also scored in the 2016 League Cup final against Manchester City. He helped Liverpool reach the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League quarter-finals.

Coutinho playing for Liverpool in 2017

Coutinho scored twice in Liverpool's first game of the 2016–17 season against Arsenal. He was named man of the match in three games in a row. He helped Liverpool reach the top of the league table. In January 2017, he signed a new five-year contract with Liverpool. He became the Brazilian player with the most goals in Premier League history.

In August 2017, Barcelona tried to buy Coutinho. Liverpool rejected their offers. Coutinho played his first game of the 2017–18 season for Liverpool on September 13. He scored his first goal of the season on September 23. On December 6, Coutinho was captain for the first time. He scored his first hat-trick for the club in a 7–0 win against Spartak Moscow. This was his 50th goal for Liverpool. He played his last game for Liverpool on December 30, 2017.

Moving to Barcelona

On January 6, 2018, Liverpool confirmed Coutinho's transfer to Barcelona. The fee was reported to be around £105 million. He had a thigh injury when he joined, so he was out for three weeks. Coutinho made his debut on January 25. He scored his first Barcelona goal on February 8 against Valencia.

Coutinho playing for Barcelona in 2018

On October 28, 2018, Coutinho scored his first goal in the famous El Clásico match. This was in a 5–1 win against Real Madrid. He scored his first Champions League goal for Barcelona on October 4 against Tottenham Hotspur. He won his second La Liga title with Barcelona in the 2018–19 season. He played 54 games and scored 11 goals that season.

Loan to Bayern Munich and Return

On August 19, 2019, Coutinho joined Bundesliga club Bayern Munich on loan. Bayern paid €8.5 million for the loan. He made his debut on August 24. On September 21, he scored his first goal for Bayern. Coutinho scored his first hat-trick for Bayern on December 14. On August 14, 2020, he played against his parent club Barcelona in the Champions League. He assisted one goal and scored two goals in an amazing 8–2 victory. Coutinho helped Bayern win the Champions League final. This completed a treble for Bayern: Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, and Champions League.

Coutinho returned to Barcelona after his loan. On October 4, 2020, he scored his first goal of the 2020–21 season. In December, he got a knee injury. This made him miss the rest of the season.

Time at Aston Villa

On January 7, 2022, Coutinho joined Premier League club Aston Villa on loan. He reunited with his former Liverpool teammate, Steven Gerrard, who was Aston Villa's manager. Coutinho made his debut on January 15. He scored the equalizing goal in a 2–2 draw against Manchester United. On May 12, 2022, Aston Villa signed Coutinho permanently for £17 million.

Loan to Al-Duhail

On September 8, 2023, Coutinho joined Qatar Stars League club Al-Duhail on loan. He scored on his debut on September 28, 2023, in a 2–1 win.

Return to Vasco da Gama

On July 10, 2024, Coutinho returned to his boyhood club, Vasco da Gama, on a season-long loan.

International Career

Coutinho with the Brazil national under-15 team in 2007

Coutinho played for Brazil's youth teams from under-14 upwards. He was a key player when Brazil won the 2009 South American U-17 Championship. He scored three goals in that tournament.

Coutinho made his debut for the senior Brazil national team on October 7, 2010. This was in a friendly match against Iran. He was not chosen for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In August 2014, new Brazil manager Dunga called him up. On March 29, 2015, he started in a friendly win against Chile. He scored his first international goal on June 7, 2015, against Mexico.

In May 2016, Coutinho was in Brazil's squad for the Copa América Centenario. On June 8, he scored three goals in a 7–1 win against Haiti. On March 28, 2017, Coutinho scored in a 3–0 win against Paraguay. This win helped Brazil qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Coutinho was part of Brazil's squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. On June 17, 2018, he scored on his World Cup debut. It was a curling shot from outside the penalty area against Switzerland. In the next game against Costa Rica, he scored the first goal. He was named man of the match. Brazil won 2–0. On July 6, Brazil was knocked out of the World Cup by Belgium.

In May 2019, Coutinho was in Brazil's squad for the 2019 Copa América. He played his 50th game for Brazil on June 14. He scored twice in a 3–0 win against Bolivia. He played in Brazil's 3–1 win over Peru in the final. This helped Brazil win their first major trophy in 12 years.

Coutinho missed the 2021 Copa América due to a knee injury. He returned to the national team in early 2022. He scored in World Cup qualifiers against Paraguay and Chile. However, he suffered another injury in November. This ruled him out of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Playing Style

Coutinho is seen as a classic Brazilian number 10, an advanced playmaker. He can play as an attacking midfielder, a second striker, or even a central midfielder. He is also good as a winger, where he creates many chances for his teammates.

Because of his dribbling skills, speed, and quickness, he has been compared to famous players like Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho. His former manager, Mauricio Pochettino, said Coutinho "has a special magic in his feet." Former Brazilian striker Careca compared him to Zico for his creativity.

Liverpool fans gave Coutinho the nickname "Little Magician." They also called him "The Kid" because of his early talent. Even though he is naturally right-footed, Coutinho can play well with both feet. He is especially good at shooting from far away. He often scores with curling shots from outside the penalty area. He likes to cut inside from the left side and place the ball into the top corner. His former Liverpool manager, Jürgen Klopp, compared him to Alessandro Del Piero because of this. He is also very accurate when taking free kicks.

Personal Life

When Coutinho moved to Italy at age 18, his parents and girlfriend Ainê joined him. He had met Ainê at a friend's party. When he moved to Espanyol, his parents went back to Brazil. He married Ainê in 2012 in Brazil. They have two daughters and one son. Coutinho has tattoos on his arms that honor his family and wife. He is a Christian.

In August 2018, Coutinho got a Portuguese passport through his wife. This meant he was no longer considered a non-EU player in European football.

Career Statistics

Here are Philippe Coutinho's football statistics for clubs and national teams.

Club

International

Scores and results list Brazil's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Coutinho goal

List of international goals scored by Philippe Coutinho

No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	7 June 2015	Allianz Parque, São Paulo, Brazil	7	Mexico	1–0	2–0	Friendly
2	8 June 2016	Camping World Stadium, Orlando, United States	16	Haiti	1–0	7–1	Copa América Centenario
3					2–0
4					7–1
5	6 October 2016	Arena das Dunas, Natal, Brazil	20	Bolivia	2–0	5–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
6	10 November 2016	Mineirão, Belo Horizonte, Brazil	22	Argentina	1–0	3–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
7	28 March 2017	Arena Corinthians, São Paulo, Brazil	25	Paraguay	1–0	3–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
8	31 August 2017	Arena do Grêmio, Porto Alegre, Brazil	28	Ecuador	2–0	2–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
9	23 March 2018	Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia	33	Russia	2–0	3–0	Friendly
10	10 June 2018	Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria	36	Austria	3–0	3–0	Friendly
11	17 June 2018	Rostov Arena, Rostov-on-Don, Russia	37	Switzerland	1–0	1–1	2018 FIFA World Cup
12	22 June 2018	Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg, Russia	38	Costa Rica	1–0	2–0	2018 FIFA World Cup
13	11 September 2018	FedExField, Landover, United States	43	El Salvador	3–0	5–0	Friendly
14	9 June 2019	Estádio Beira-Rio, Porto Alegre, Brazil	49	Honduras	3–0	7–0	Friendly
15	14 June 2019	Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, Brazil	50	Bolivia	1–0	3–0	2019 Copa América
16					2–0
17	19 November 2019	Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	61	South Korea	2–0	3–0	Friendly
18	9 October 2020	Arena Corinthians, São Paulo, Brazil	62	Bolivia	5–0	5–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
19	1 February 2022	Mineirão, Belo Horizonte, Brazil	65	Paraguay	2–0	4–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
20	24 March 2022	Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	66	Chile	3–0	4–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
21	2 June 2022	Seoul World Cup Stadium, Seoul, South Korea	68	South Korea	4–1	5–1	Friendly

Honours and Awards

Philippe Coutinho has won many awards and trophies throughout his career:

Vasco da Gama

• Campeonato Brasileiro Série B: 2009

Inter Milan

• Supercoppa Italiana: 2010

Liverpool

• Football League Cup runner-up: 2015–16
• UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2015–16

Barcelona

• La Liga: 2017–18, 2018–19
• Copa del Rey: 2017–18; runner-up: 2018–19
• Supercopa de España: 2018

Bayern Munich

• Bundesliga: 2019–20
• DFB-Pokal: 2019–20
• UEFA Champions League: 2019–20

Brazil U17

• South American U-17 Championship: 2009

Brazil U20

• FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2011

Brazil

• Copa América: 2019

Individual Awards

• PFA Team of the Year: 2014–15 Premier League
• UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2015–16
• Liverpool Fans' Player of the Season Award: 2014–15, 2015–16
• Liverpool Players' Player of the Season Award: 2014–15, 2015–16
• Liverpool Goal of the Season: 2014–15, 2015–16
• Liverpool Performance of the Season: 2014–15, 2015–16
• Premier League Player of the Year by Northwest Football Awards: 2016
• Samba Gold Award (Samba d'Or): 2016
• Football Supporters' Federation Player of the Year: 2016
• FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 2018
• FIFA World Cup Dream Team: 2018
• Bundesliga Goal of the Month: December 2019

Images for kids

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  Coutinho playing for Brazil in 2018.

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  Coutinho with Inter Milan in 2011.

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  Coutinho playing for Liverpool in 2013.

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  Coutinho playing for Liverpool in 2015.

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  Coutinho playing for Liverpool in 2017.

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  Coutinho playing for Barcelona in 2018.

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  Coutinho with the Brazil national under-15 team in 2007.

See also

In Spanish: Philippe Coutinho para niños