Ex-Aston Villa employee slams ‘Ridiculous’ Premier League talks after £100million-plus reveal
Bryan King has blasted the Premier League’s “ridiculous” idea to abolish points deductions and introduce a “luxury tax” just weeks after Aston Villa reported losses of £119.6million.
As per the Daily Mail (4 April), there are talks of the Premier League undergoing a “radical reform” of their profit and sustainability rules.
Part of this reform would see points deductions abolished and replaced by a “luxury tax” which would mean clubs are punished financially, with that punishment increasing the more the club spends.
But ex-Villa scout King – speaking exclusively to Villa News– believes the new rules proposed by the Premier League would simply just benefit the bigger clubs in England.
“This idea is absolutely terrible. Once again we have a situation where they are trying to change football and make it more Americanised.
“What difference is a so-called ‘luxury tax’ going to make? It seems to be that this would benefit the more wealthy clubs.
“Either implement the first law and keep it, or don’t.”
Aston Villa will have a keen interest in PSR discussions among Premier League clubs
Villa will be one of the Premier League clubs keeping a close eye on these developments.
That is because reports of these talks have emerged just one month after the club reported losses of £119.6million in their accounts for the year ending 31 May 2023.
PSR rules permit losses of £105million over a three-year spell, although Villa insist their losses are in compliance with these rules, stating (via BBC Sport, 5 March), “The owners of Aston Villa remain committed to the long-term and sustainable development of the club, and we look forward to continued progress on the delivery of our strategic plan.
“Investments in infrastructure, the academy, charity foundation and women’s football can be deducted from PSR figures. Clubs are also allowed to claim back losses incurred during the two seasons impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.”
It sounds like Unai Emery’s side are financially safe for now, but they will still be keen to voice their opinion in any PSR discussions considering recent events.
In other Aston Villa news, King believes Emery would have had one player “in the office” after what he did recently.
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