Stewart Downing, 12th May 2011 ‘I’m enjoying my stay here. I’ve enjoyed it since the first day I came. it’s a terrific club, its fantastic they want me’.
Paul Faulkner Aston Villa CEO, 14th July 2011 ‘I can confirm we have reached an agreement with Liverpool following an improved offer received earlier today and the submission of a formal transfer request by Stewart Downing’.
What a different 63 days make…
Villa now face the challenge of rebuilding a depleted squad, whilst hoping some of their expensive flops including the likes of Stephen Ireland and Stephen Warnock finally step up to the mark and show their worth. It’s a troubling introduction to life at Aston Villa for new manager Alex McLeish.
Last season”s 9th place finish papered over the cracks of what was a very underwhelming term, where at times the threat of relegation was a real possibility. Whether it was stories of unrest in the dressing room, manager Gerard Houllier’s health or the 6-0 thumping by Newcastle, it was certainly a season to forget for the Villa faithful.
Now as we face the dawn of a new season, Alex McLeish faces the prospect of losing arguably two of his best players in such a short period of time. Though the departure of Ashley Young to Manchester United was inevitable, Downing’s sale to Kenny Dalglish’s Liverpool is a surprise.
Now a knee jerk reaction would be to say Villa have become a selling club with Randy Lerner simply trying to balance the books. However I see this as a great bit of business for Aston villa. If the reported £20 million received is invested back into the squad for McLeish, I feel we will see a far more balanced team. The likes of N’Zogbia, Parker and Given would be a great start to what is hopefully a busy summer at Villa park.
I must admit as I wave goodbye to Downing, I begin to think ‘What if?’ What if we were able to keep hold of our exciting young England stars? We would possibly we looking at a front three of Young, Downing and Bent for Villa and England for years to come.
Despite the discontent surrounding Villa park, I look forward to the new season and seeing how the manager will make his mark on the team. He needs the support of the chairman, the players and most importantly the fans.
Do you think McLeish will be able to reinvest the money from the Downing sale?
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This article is spot on, really hits the nail on the head and poses some very interesting questions.
Villa always seem to be at team that take a giant step forward and then two steps back!