West Ham United have been offered the chance to sign Philippe Coutinho this month...

What's the word?

According to the Sunday Mirror (August 15th, page 74), the Barcelona attacking midfielder has been offered in a cut-price deal to a trio of Premier League teams, including the Irons.

Arsenal and Everton are the other two teams listed as the cash-strapped La Liga giants desperately try to get the Brazilian off the wage bill after his failed £142m transfer from Liverpool in January 2018.

It's claimed that any interested club would only have to pay around 60% of his £7.7m-per-year salary, which is around £96k-per-week. The Hammers' top earner is currently Andriy Yarmolenko, who is thought to be on around £115k-per-week at the London Stadium.

Creative outlet

West Ham still remain interested in Jesse Lingard, as revealed by assistant manager Stuart Pearce to talkSPORT earlier this week, but should any move for him fall through, then Coutinho must absolutely be considered.

He's had a tough time at the Nou Camp, struggling with injuries and form, on top of the pressure of that whopping fee.

However, his stint at Liverpool was one to remember, so if David Moyes can get him back to that level, then the east Londoners would be getting one hell of a player. Across 201 appearances for the Reds, the creative midfielder delivered 54 goals and 45 assists at a rate of one every 150 minutes, via Transfermarkt.

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At his best, Coutinho is clearly a world-class talent who possesses skills that very few have. He did show a glimpse of returning to such form during a loan spell at Bayern Munich, where he won the treble and contributed towards that with 11 goals and nine assists. That was only two seasons ago.

During his time in Germany, the former Liverpool star averaged 2.2 key passes every 90 minutes - a feat which would see him sit top of the charts at the London Stadium last season, managing more than the likes of Lingard (1.1), Vladimir Coufal (1.3) and even assist-leader Aaron Cresswell (1.6), via WhoScored.

Evidently, Moyes somewhat lacks a playmaker who can cut open defences with a perfectly-timed pass or a deft piece of skill. That's where Coutinho can help fill a void.

Speaking about such an ability, the 29-year-old's fellow countryman Roberto Firmino waxed lyrical. He said (via Goal): "He’s phenomenal. You simply can’t say that he’s not a magician. He has magical powers. He produces plays that don’t exist, that you couldn’t make up."

Valued at £27m and capped 63 times at international level, there's no doubt that Coutinho has something special about him. He may well have struggled in Spain but a fresh start in the English capital could be exactly what he and West Ham need this season.

Moyes and co must consider a swoop for him before August 31st.

AND in other news, Forget Antonio and Benrahma: £27m-rated machine stole the show for West Ham at Newcastle...