CATS ARE IN CRISIS
ASTON VILLA crashed out of the Premier League with barely a whimper 12 months ago.
The former European Champions then went through a change of ownership, spent £50million... and still failed even to get into the play-offs.
Boss Steve Bruce pointed out the club had won just four league matches in 50 before he took over.
Sunderland won six of 38 last season but bowed out of the top-flight without leaving a mark on anyone, after years of desperate struggle.
As we speak, the Wearsiders have lost their two stand-out performers: Jermain Defoe and Jordan Pickford.
Owner Ellis Short is likely to offset the £30million transfer fee for the young goalkeeper against the losses he has already racked up. A takeover hangs in the balance, there is no manager and no one knows the financial credentials of the prospective new owners...
And the bookies have them priced at 11-2 to win the Championship title next season!
No wonder that they rarely go out of business. Anyone taking on that wager needs help. ISS it pure coincidence that now the English public has come to expect so little from its national football teams that there is a sudden upsurge in results. Free from the shackles of expectancy, the Under-20s win the World Cup and the Under-21s breeze into the last four of the European Championship. . The only problem with such success is that it breeds exexpectancyctan – and so the vicious cycle starts all over again...