Aston Villa are seeking to secure promotion from the Championship at the second attempt.
Shay Given has told The Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast on talkSPORT (broadcast on 15th August 2017; 8:28 am) that he is worried for Aston Villa’s future if they are unable to secure promotion to the Premier League this season.
Villa have begun their second consecutive season in the Championship. And while their first season in the second tier prompted a summer of heavy spending, the club have been a lot more reserved during this window.
In comments reported by the Daily Mirror, Steve Bruce has admitted that spending has to be restricted during this window, and the club’s former goalkeeper Given has suggested that that stance is concerning, especially given how they have begun the new season.
“It’s early doors in any league but my concern from a Villa point of view is John Terry’s come in, they’ve actually conceded three goals at the weekend away at Cardiff and Steve Bruce’s come out this morning and said he’s not got money to spend to make that big push to get to the Premier League so if they don’t do it this season then I do worry,” he told The Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast on talkSPORT.
As Given alluded to, Villa have not started the season particularly well, with their heavy defeat to Cardiff coming after a draw at home to Hull City over the opening weekend.
And the 41-year-old’s concerns may be similar to those held by the Villa supporters themselves, as if they are unable to get themselves promoted this term, they may perhaps be in a similar boat next summer.
Missing out on the riches of the top flight may perhaps mean that Bruce has to work with yet another heavily restricted budget where he would surely be relying on being luckier and the bargain deals paying off more than they would have this season – that is, if they fail to go up – to prevent the cycle continuing.
But as Given says, there is still an incredibly long way to go.
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