Aston Villa: Player sales on cards at Villa Park with UEFA development ahead
Dan Plumley has insisted that Aston Villa will need to work closely with UEFA next season as new European competition regulations come into place.
Clubs in UEFA competitions will need an 80% wage-to-revenue ratio from next season, with Villa’s latest sitting at 92% in 2023 [iNews].
The football finance expert admitted that as well as working with UEFA, player sales and reduced wages are on the cards over the summer to make things work at Villa Park.
“That is one way to do it,” he exclusively told Villa News.
“Reducing the wage bill likely means people taking a pay cut. We’ve also got to factor in that ratio now that UEFA are looking at also includes transfer fees, agent fees and manager fees, so it’s kind of a catch-all for the football transfer side of the business.
“You’ve got some adjustments there in terms of, you may not be able to spend as much because transfer fees are included in that ratio.
“You’d have to do it on a net-spend where you may have to shift some players on to bring some in, so it is a little more complex than it was.
“If you do get into European competition, and you’ve got to get that ratio down, you’re going to have to work with UEFA on your plan to do that, there is a little bit of conversational leeway perhaps that Villa have not been in Europe for a long time so that might play into your negotiations with UEFA about your business plan to get that figure down.
“It is still a 12% figure that they have got to find to conform with the regulations if you make it into Europe again, so it will be on the club’s radar and you’re looking at players out, wage reductions or trying to shave a bit off to get that wage bill down.”
Bad transfer news for Aston Villa
The Villans and NSWE have been aggressive in their pursuit of European football and could take the club from the Conference League to the Champions League in the space of one season.
What is frustrating is that the club look set to be punished for that in terms of their ability to spend over the summer, with money ready to go again.
The likes of Jacob Ramsey have already been linked with exits and the likes of Douglas Luiz and Ollie Watkins have been named, let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.
In other Aston Villa news, Emery is understood to be ready to take Villa to the “next level” with his transfer plans at Villa Park
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