The television presenter has criticised Aston Villa, not the midfielder himself or Manchester City.
Richard Keys does not blame Fabian Delph for joining Manchester City from Aston Villa – but has criticised the Midlands club for their part in not ensuring a better outcome for themselves once the 25-year-old left, according to his blog.
Delph was confirmed as a Manchester City player on Friday afternoon – receiving plenty of flak from Aston Villa fans for it, flak Keys plainly disagrees with.
Indeed, he wrote: “I don’t blame Delph for walking out on Villa. In any walk of life who isn’t going to take a better job for more money if it’s offered? I blame Villa’s hapless PR dept for the original daft statements in January and for jumping the gun last week.
“He was always going to leave – either opting to change his mind about City, or for another of the big clubs once they knew they could include a ‘home grown’ star in their C Lge squads for just £8m. And I said as much last week in one or two replies.
“If I was a Villa fan, who’d already bought a season ticket based largely on us keeping our two best players, I’d be furious. I’d also want to know what Villa knew about the impending departure of both – and when they knew it.”
Wealth of opinions
The wealth of opinions surrounding Delph’s move has more or less covered all bases. Some Aston Villa fans have made their feelings perfectly clear, posting a banner on the club’s gates accusing the midfielder of being a ‘snake.’
Others, such as pundit Martin Keown, have praised Delph for his ‘bravery’ in joining Manchester City
Keys’ verdict, though, is the most attacking of any to address Aston Villa’s role in the matter. While the likes of Rodney Marsh have goaded Villa fans on Twitter – more for fun and controversy – Keys (whether you are a fan of his or not) is having a right old go, so to speak, and sees no blame at all lying with the 25-year-old Manchester City signing at the centre of all this.
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