We’re delighted to welcome football finance expert Dr Daniel Plumley as our exclusive columnist, he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Aston Villa.
Dan Plumley has insisted that Aston Villa still need to be careful financially despite qualifying for the UEFA Europa Conference League next season.
Unai Emery arrived at Villa Park in October and managed to turn the club’s fortunes around, pushing them all the way up the table to a seventh-placed finish.
And the club have been active during the transfer window so far, bringing in Pau Torres, Youri Tielemans and Moussa Diaby. However, Plumley has reiterated that Villa must be careful financially and make sure to maintain a “balance.”
I think you’ve still got to look at that balancing act even if you are in the Premier League,” he exclusively told Villa News.
“Villa have had a fantastic season, qualified for Europe, which I think was beyond many people’s expectations in the early part of last season, and that does bring with it the opportunity to invest
“But there is a balance there and I think (Philippe) Coutinho probably is the obvious one because of the wage situation. I don’t think you can just spend recklessly even if you are Aston Villa and you have just qualified for Europe, I think you have to strike a balance because you’ve got to sustain it if you are going to commit to those levels of spending.
“It is okay for the big clubs to do that who are almost guaranteed Champions League football every year but that is not a guarantee for Aston Villa so you have to balance that in my opinion.”
While it might feel like Plumley is raining on Aston Villa’s parade, the finance expert does raise some good points. The Villains qualified for Europe this year which of course brings with it more revenue and the chance to spend, but balance is important.
There is no guarantee Emery’s men will be there again next season and if they can’t maintain these levels, they might find themselves in some financial bother if they continue to spend big this summer.
In other Aston Villa news, the club could still sign another winger after Moussa Diaby deal.
