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Aston Villa are level on points with Manchester City, third and second respectively in the Premier League, but their January transfer window activity has been worlds apart.
Villa have signed two teenage attackers, albeit for not insignificant fees, while Man City were able to bring in the captain of another Premier League club.
The West Midlands club’s midfield has been decimated and they have one striker. These are matters that are likely to be addressed this month but football finance expert Stefan Borson has made clear the severity of their situation.
Could Villa be banned from Europe?
Speaking to talkSPORT chimera Jim White, Simon Jordan and Alex Crook, Borson got into the nitty gritty of Villa’s financial status.
Villa manager Unai Emery drew attention to the club’s situation after they were beaten by Everton, saying somewhat knowingly that they’re not top-five contenders.
“For Villa it’s not an excuse, it is the reality,” said Borson. “First of all, they are already under a settlement agreement with UEFA, so they are severely limited in what they can do under that settlement agreement.
“They could breach it, but they risk being banned from Europe which would be obviously counterproductive.
“Laid on top of that, you’ve obviously got the PSR situation. We think they only pass PSR 2024/25 – that’s the one that’s just been adjudicated by the Premier League – we think they only pass that because they sold the women’s team.
“So, they’re right on the edge of PSR. It’s not going to be much better this season because they’re in the Europa. They’ve got a very big wage bill relative to their turnover. They’re stuck.”
Figures released on Thursday revealed that Champions League participation last season led to record revenue for Villa and a subsequent reduction in wages-to-turnover ratio to 71 per cent. They missed out on Champions League football at the end of last season, however, so they're far from out of the woods.
In the context of Villa’s UEFA deal, that’s an important development. Yet it doesn’t unlock their ability to go big in the transfer market and the squad’s fragility is evident.
“The reality is losing against Everton is absolutely related to PSR because the squad’s not big enough for the burden that the players have,” Borson added.
“They then get some injuries. He’s overplayed his squad. It is an issue. There is very little they can do about it now.
“They’re boxed in. That’s just the nature of the rules. They are boxed in.”
Crook, White and Jordan discussed with Borson the idea that PSR and football’s financial controls in general are more about protecting the so-called Big Six clubs than acting as a safety net against financial oblivion.
Emery’s comments and demeanour are closely scrutinised after any defeat but his recent comments, the launchpad of the talkSPORT conversation, weren’t all that far away from his run-of-the-mill reaction. Nevertheless, there does seem to be a sense of frustration.
Villa’s squad will be tested even further when they take on Fenerbahce on Thursday in their penultimate league phase match in the Europa League.
Emery will be without Emiliano Martinez, Boubacar Kamara, John McGinn, Ross Barkley and possibly Amadou Onana in Istanbul, while a lack of depth means the likes of Ollie Watkins cannot be rested.
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