Bayern Munich: Philippe Coutinho's Loan Option To Stay Expires, Set For Premier League Return

Philippe Coutinho's future hangs in the balance as Bayern Munich did not activate the option to make his loan contract permanent which has now expired. He is spellbound to return to Barcelona or sort a new adventure in the summer transfer window.

Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge explained the club's position on the attacking midfielder's situation, telling a German magazine Der Spiegel that the club at the moment is considering if there is a role for him or not in the squad for the season.

"The option expired and we haven't activated it," Karl-Heinz told Der Spiegel. Mind you, he joined the club last summer in a season-long contract which happened to be interrupted by the coronavirus lockdown break. The German Bundesliga reopened just a week ago after suspension for two months.

Karl-Heinz explained further that Bayern is working on his squad for next season and in their consideration, the club will "see if he still has a role to play with us or not" in the new season.

Coutinho failed to impress the club during his loan spell and what Barcelona hoped for was that the German would trigger the option to keep him when the loan deal runs out. That expectation fell flat on its face, now they might have to look elsewhere for the Brazilian's transfer.

The former Liverpool player, 27, could be set for a Premier League return as Chelsea and Arsenal are rumoured to be amongst clubs monitoring him. He left Reds to join Barcelona in a club-record transfer sale of £142m in January 2018.