Competition for promotion heats up

It’s been a very busy week for Aston Villa Football Club with Dr Tony Xia awaiting official approval of his bid to buy the club through the ‘owners and directors test’. Many believe Roberto Di Matteo is within days of signing a deal to become our new manager. We know that Xia wants us to be promoted in one season and that is our main aim. However, the 2016-2017 Sky Bet Championship will be as competitive and the news that Rafa Benitez is now staying at Newcastle United for the next three years may make the Villans’ job harder still.

Benitez, who joined the Magpies a little too late to save them from the drop, last season, has been known for historic trophy wins. He won the UEFA Champions League in 2005 with Liverpool and he has managed some of the biggest clubs in the world including Chelsea, Napoli and, more recently, Real Madrid. With a man of Benitez’s calibre managing their club, the Geordies will expect to be competing for the title next season. With Benitez having agreed to stay, the Magpies already have the upper hand on the Villans, who remain without a manager.

In terms of who our new manager will be, most believe the shortlist is now down to two people – Nigel Pearson and Roberto Di Matteo. Di Matteo is now considered to be the favourite, although we have learned from experience that the bookmakers don’t always get things right. Whoever the new manager is, he needs to have a good plan in place as soon as he steps into his new office because, as things stand, it will be a long, hard slog to gain promotion next season. There will be competition for the automatic promotion places and, if a new man is not in place soon and the squad revamped, I can envisage Aston Villa fielding the most unprepared side in the league. We may have transfer funds available soon but getting the players we need and ensuring the squad gels is going to be a tough task. If the new manager secures promotion at the first time of asking, he’ll be adored by fans.

Dr Xia seems like he will be a more hands-on owner than Randy Lerner. Xia’s willingness to speak to the press will hopefully prove to be a good sign rather than the attempt to cover up being as broke as a taxi driver in Venice as some believe. We have no choice but to let Xia and the football authorities do their jobs so, for now, we’ll just have to have a little more patience.

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1 comment

  1. Milton Keynes Dons / 51.92 Win %
    West Bromwich Albion 48.19 Win %
    Chelsea 57.14 Win %
    Schalke 04 /42.42 Win %
    Roberto_Di_Matteo not bad in my book will help villa get back

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