When Randy Lerner bought Aston Villa, supporters thought they’d hit the jackpot. A billionaire owner meant good times were surely to follow. In a league where championships are now bought, the only path to glory lies in the lines of ledgers spelling out excesses of cash with nowhere useful to go. So when an American billionaire took the reins from Deadly Doug, it had to mean happy days, right?
Lerner did nice things. The atmosphere surrounding the club was positive. It even seemed for a brief moment like Villa were poised to field England’s nucleus for years to come.
But it turns out Lerner wasn’t rich enough. He pumped in a respectable sum, Martin O’Neill went and spent it, and, well, we all know the rest. Pistols at twenty paces, sometime around dawn, for anyone who wants to go through all that again. Bottom line, the club ended up losing money. Economies were enforced. And somewhere along the line Lerner’s honeymoon ended, while Manchester City’s had just begun.
Some will point to O’Neill and Milner. Others to Kevin MacDonald or Gerard Houllier (or both). The remainder point toward Ashley Young and Stewart Downing. Most everyone seems to agree on Alex McLeish. Perhaps the majority says “All of the above.” Whatever the turning point, a left turn seems to have been made. The only way back is success. But success…well, Lerner’s not rich enough for the kind of success Villa supporters are after.
At the end of the day, results are all that count. I don’t buy into style points much unless they’re part of the scoring. Yes, they’re wonderful, but at the end of the day, 15 1-0 results in a season would quickly be bought into because winning isn’t everything—it’s the only thing.
But Villa aren’t going to be winning much for a while. Which, whatever he’s done right or wrong, isn’t really Lerner’s fault. It’s the state of the game.
I don’t pretend to know whether there’s a buyer out there who can satisfy Villans’ ambitions. And even then, I don’t pretend to know whether it can be done under FFP. I’m not an accountant, nor do I wish to be.
For my part, the unrelenting negativity surrounding this season seems overblown, if only because I didn’t expect much when the financial picture came to the fore. I can accept a season of retrenchment if it’s in the service of laying a better foundation. It doesn’t seem like insanity or betrayal to me. The numbers are just the numbers.
But if I were Randy Lerner, I might very well be thinking, “Who needs this?” Give the people what they want. And if they want someone, anyone, with enough money to make a run at buying a top-four finish, you might as well give them what they want, wash your hands of the business, and let the chips fall where they may. I can’t say I see much reward in all this for him, whether it’s measured by the books or the pitch.
The only way for Villa fans to know whether they really want what it is they’re asking for is to give it to them. And if Lerner does stick it out, I can only hope results do follow. I’m not expecting much this year, as I’ve said. But if he’s going to stick around, Lerner has to either find more money or take a flyer on a different model and invest in that. If he doesn’t, it seems apparent that there’s not going to be much fun in owning Aston Villa Football Club.
The Author
