Reunited! Coutinho joins Neymar

Philippe Coutinho is set for a return to the Brazilian football stage.

The 34-year-old attacking player is said to have agreed a short-term contract with FC Santos until the end of the year. His good friend Neymar is believed to have been the decisive factor for the move. The Santos star had recently publicly advocated for the signing of his former national team colleague.

Coutinho is scheduled to undergo a medical examination this Friday. If successful, nothing stands in the way of a signing with the traditional Brazilian club.

Neymar wants to play with Coutinho again

Coutinho and Neymar have known each other since their youth days and have also played together for the Brazilian national team. At the 2018 World Cup, both were key players in the Seleção squad.

Now, a renewed collaboration could occur at Santos. According to reports, the initiative for the transfer largely came from him and his entourage.

Coutinho has been without a club since February. He was most recently under contract with league rival Vasco da Gama before the collaboration was ended. He played his last competitive match on February 15 against Volta Redonda.

Santos needs reinforcements

At Santos, Coutinho is now expected to help in the league's final sprint. The club is currently only in 13th place in the Brazilian championship and aims to move further up the table.

Santos is also still competing internationally. The club is in the quarter-finals of the Copa Sudamericana and is thus still fighting for a title.

For Coutinho, the move would be a return to his home country. The attacking player had left Brazil in 2010 with high expectations. In January 2018, he moved from FC Liverpool to FC Barcelona for a transfer fee of 135 million Euros as Neymar's designated successor.

This makes the transfer one of the most expensive in football history to this day.