Spurs set to make second Barry bid

Jul 31 2006 By Bill Howell, Birmingham Mail

DOUG Ellis is bracing himself for a second bid from Tottenham for Player-of-the-Year Gareth Barry.

The Birmingham Mail exclusively revealed Spurs boss Martin Jol's interest in the player on May 23.

Spurs have already had one bid for the 24-year-old knocked back this summer, as well as Portsmouth, who were told in no uncertain terms by chairman Ellis that the player was not for sale.

Villa, in fact, tried to negotiate a swap deal involving 25-year-old centre-half Anthony Gardner while David O'Leary was still in charge.

Now flush with cash following today's £18.6million sale of Michael Carrick to Manchester United, Tottenham are likely to come back again for boyhood supporter Barry.

Villa will ask for around £5million as Barry still has two seasons left on his contract and was strongly fancied by Graeme Souness at Newcastle last season.

Barry has not handed in a transfer request, as was reported over the weekend.

But like a number of senior professionals at Villa he is understood to hold concerns about the ambition of the club as they enter into a new season without a manager and without any new players.

Talks between his agent and the board should take place this week to try to allay the player's fears as Villa search for new investment and a new manager.

Barry made his 300th appearance for Villa against Newcastle in February, and went on to register another 13 appearances.

He ended the season on a high with goals in successive games against Liverpool and Sunderland, although he missed a penalty in front of the Holte End on the final day.

Barry signed his first professional contract on the very day Brian Little resigned as manager in February 1998 and made his debut as a substitute at Sheffield Wednesday three months later in a 3-1 win.

Despite his good form and record-breaking 27 appearances for England Under-21s, it is now over three years since Barry last pulled on a senior shirt at international level when Sven-Goran Eriksson used him as an 84th-minute sub against Serbia & Montenegro at Leicester in June 2003, for his eighth cap.

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