Stevie’s gee up at Villa will take time, patience and a LOT more money
SOMEWHERE at Aston Villa’s Bodymoor Heath training ground, news Jurgen Klopp had extended his stay at Anfield would have brought a wry smile.
Not because Steven Gerrard has anything other than his eyes firmly on Aston Villa, you understand.
But Villa’s boss would have known the announcement would have put to bed thoughts Liverpool minus Jurgen equals Stevie G.
Given the quality of his squad, age profile and potential, Klopp may well have created a dynasty by the time he leaves in 2026.
Quite where Villa’s boss will be by then is anyone’s guess.
For however big Gerrard believed the job to be after taking over from Dean Smith, he knows now that it’s far, far in excess of those thoughts.
Yes, Villa boast monied owners and a compliant chief executive in Christian Purslow, who has staked his reputation on the ex-liverpool midfielder. But the crop Gerrard inherited from Smith is way short.
Indeed, there is a growing feeling with supporters the £100million windfall generated by the sale of golden boy Jack Grealish (below) has been wasted.
And that Villa are no better off than they were 12 months ago. In fact, the situation may be worse.
Armed with cash and set against the backdrop of an anguished fanbase, the club blew £40m on Emi
Buendia from Norwich, splashed £30m on
Danny Ings from Southampton and paid
£25m for Bayer Leverkusen’s Leon Bailey.
Gerrard sourced Philippe Coutinho in his first window – seemingly to take Buendia’s place. He can’t get a tune out of Ings and the club’s physios have seen more of Bailey than anyone else.
It’s not as if Villa weren’t spending before Grealish departed. They were. Gerrard’s desire to bring in £25m left-back Lucas Digne at the expense of Newcastle
success story Matt Targett has not brought significant improvement, either.
Villa only avoided chalking up a fifth successive league defeat for the second time this season with a shutout at Leicester last week. The first one ended with Smith getting the sack.
The players are clearly not up to the required standard for where Gerrard wants to go.
He does have options.
There is some serious talent among Villa’s Under-23s. Jacob Ramsey is an outside bet for Gareth Southgate’s World Cup squad.
Carney Chukwuemeka is a starin-waiting and Tim Iroegbunam is another attracting rave reviews.
But can Gerrard gamble these youngsters will come good?
Does he go to market again? How does he sell players on good contracts, bought for good money – players such as Morgan Sanson and Bertrand Traore?
How much of a financial hit is the club prepared to take and how deep are the owners’ pockets?
It took Gerrard two years to make sense of Rangers.
To do likewise at Villa, he needs money, time and patience.
But the clock is already ticking – and whether he will get until 2026 to deliver it is another question altogether.