The repetition of being an Aston Villa fan and the positives to be gleaned from it

Being a Villa fan is akin to riding a merry-go-round. There is obviously the joy of the ride, but of late there is also a nauseating repetition and at the moment it is the latter that is lingering.

Once again the club is managerless after Gerard Houllier’s reign lasted a mere nine months due to his recurring illness and seemingly the seasons star player is heading for a new challenge.

Last time it was James Milner who moved on to City and the season before that saw the protracted transfer of Gareth Barry in the same direction. This time around it appears that Ashley Young has had enough of doggedly trying to hoist his side towards the summit and he seems destined to move on to either United or Liverpool, if reports are to be believed.

Stewart Downing could also be packing his bags after hinting at a desire for greater things at club level by admitting his career is at a “major crossroads” giving the coming season a feeling of Groundhog Day, except without the acerbic wit of Bill Murray to ease the frustration.

The repeated sale of key players is an annoyance that seems to suggest Villa are in danger of becoming a feeder club to those whose wallets and ambitions outweigh theirs, and another season of stabilisation seemingly awaits fans.

However, the sale of star players for a princely sum doesn’t necessarily terminate the clubs aspirations for the following season, as Udinese have proved in Serie A. This is obviously optimistic, but there are positives to be gleaned from the seeming repetition of close/pre-season activities.

The emergence of youthful prospects Marc Albrighton, Barry Bannan and Ciaran Clark have ensured that in fact Villa do have reason to be optimistic for the future and the money earned from upcoming sales will help bolster a team that is looking increasingly threadbare in the wake of the departure of players like John Carew, Brad Friedel and Nigel Reo-Coker.

Young’s exit seems inevitable and if United did make an offer I wouldn’t begrudge him a move to further himself and to test his abilities at a higher level, particularly after his recent performances in an England shirt.

Last summer the lengthened rumblings between Martin O’Neill and Randy Lerner ensured a difficult start to the season, but with time on the clubs side during this year’s sunny season there is hope that the cycle of repetition won’t rollover into 2011/12.

Added to this is the fact that the club possesses a movie legend in its band of supporters, even if it’s for slightly romanticised reasons: “I fell in love with Aston Villa because I thought the name sounded like an island off Sardinia. A lovely place to go.’ I am going to go on holiday to Aston Villa. We’ll take the kids, play on the beach, get a lovely cabana overlooking the football field’. I try to pay attention to how they do and they do OK” said a smitten Tom Hanks.

When asked who should replace Houlier, the star of Big was less than sure though: “Is Brian Clough still alive? Can he take over? Then I am sorry, I don’t know.”

Despite a Hollywood endorsement then the echo of previous season’s events looks set to continue, but hopefully the merry-go-round at Villa won’t continue to spin in a downward spiral.

Tags: Aston Villa, Gerard Houllier, Premier League