Philippe Coutinho(oblation)

Philippe Coutinho Correia born 12 June 1992 is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays for English club Liverpool and the Brazil national team as an attacking midfielder.

Club career
Liverpool
On 26 January 2013, Liverpool reportedly agreed a £8.5m fee with Internazionale for Coutinho, pending a medical exam and a work permit from the Home Office as he did not have enough international appearances to qualify automatically. Southampton had also expressed an interest in Coutinho, who had played under Southampton managerMauricio Pochettino at Espanyol, but Coutinho said he would prefer to join Liverpool. On 30 January, Liverpool confirmed the signing of Coutinho on a long-term contract after he was successful in his work permit application, and was given the number 10 shirt.

2012–13
He made his debut on 11 February 2013, replacing Stewart Downing in the 78th minute of a 2–0 defeat against West Bromwich Albion at Anfield. Less than a week later, on 17 February he scored his first goal for Liverpool on his full debut in a 5–0 victory over Swansea City, 16 seconds into the second half, after an exquisite through ball from Luis Suárez On 2 March, he set up Liverpool's first and second goals of the game in a 4–0 win against Wigan Athletic. Coutinho scored his second goal for Liverpool in a 3–1 away loss to Southampton. On 31 March, he set up Liverpool's first goal in a 2–1 away win against Aston Villa. On 27 April, he won the Man of the Match award in Liverpool's 6–0 away victory of Newcastle United. Coutinho ran the game for Liverpool, claiming two assists, being heavily involved in another, and winning the free-kick from which Jordan Hendersonadded Liverpool's sixth. Coutinho won Player of the Month for Liverpool in March. On 12 May he assisted Daniel Sturridge for his second and third goals, helping Sturridge claim his first Premier League hat-trick, in a 1–3 victory over Fulham at Craven Cottage. Coutinho scored Liverpool's final goal of the season against Queens Park Rangers in Jamie Carragher's final match for the club. Jordon Ibe began a twisting run before setting the ball off to the Brazilian, who executed a fine driven shot into the bottom left corner from 30 yards out; Ibe was credited with the assist on his Liverpool debut.

2013–14
On 16 September 2013, Coutinho injured his shoulder against Swansea City after a clash with Ashley Williams . He was restored to the starting line-up for the 4–0 victory over Fulham at Anfield on 9 November. On 23 November, Coutinho scored the opening goal of theMerseyside derby in the 5th minute. Coutinho created his first assist of the season with a corner in the 5–1 thrashing of Norwich City at Anfield. On 26 December, he scored the first half opening goal at Manchester City from a tight angle before City scored twice in the same half to win the game. On 30 March, Coutinho scored the third goal of a 4–0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield. On 13 April 2014, Coutinho scored the winning goal in a 3–2 win against Manchester City. The result put Liverpool seven points ahead of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table with four matches remaining. Manchester City, however, had six matches remaining (two games in hand) and went on to win the title.

Coutinho has been mainly playing in central midfield and has earned praised for many pundits due to his long and accurate passing from midfield.

2014–15
On August 17, Coutinho started Liverpool's first game of the 2014–15 season in a 2–1 win against Southampton. He created his first assist of the season in a 2–1 win against Swansea City in the fourth round of the Football League Cup, where he supplied the ball for Dejan Lovren to head the winning goal. On October 19, Coutinho scored his first goal of the season in a 3–2 away win against Queens Park Rangers after coming off the bench. On December 21, Coutinho scored Liverpool's first goal in a 2–2 draw against Arsenal at Anfield.

On 3 February 2015, Coutinho signed a new long-term deal with the club until 2020. On 4 February, just a day after extending his contract, Coutinho scored the winning goal in the FA Cup fourth round match against Bolton Wanderers for a 2–1 win. On 22 February, Coutinho scored the opening goal in Liverpool's 2–0 victory over Southampton.In the next game against Manchester City on 1 March, Coutinho scored the winning goal for Liverpool.

International career
A key player in the Brazilian squad that won the 2009 South American Under-17 Football Championship scoring three goals, Coutinho made his first senior appearance in a Brazilshirt on 7 October 2010, starting in a friendly match against Iran. On 19 August 2014 Coutinho was called to the national squad by the new coach Dunga for the friendly matches against Colombia and Ecuador in September.

Style of play
Considered to be an archetypal Brazilian number 10, he has been used as an offensive midfielder (trequartista), second striker and on the flanks. He has been compared toLionel Messi and Ronaldinho by former Espanyol manager Mauricio Pochettino, and has been highly praised by fellow Liverpool teammates. His vision and passing ability have earned him the nickname Little Magician by Liverpool fans.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/