Doug Ellis says the future is bright for Aston Villa

Jun 25 2009 by Bill Howell, Birmingham Mail

FORMER Villa chairman Doug Ellis believes there is much reason for the club’s supporters to be optimistic about the coming season.

Three years after selling the club for what now appears a drop in the ocean at £63 million, the 85-year-old still maintains he sold to the right man in Randy Lerner.

And he believes Martin O’Neill, who he appointed as one of the last acts of his 31 years at the helm, can deliver a successful season, although Ellis admits the Irishman is faced with a tricky hurdle in trying to replace Martin Laursen and Gareth Barry. Ellis has kept a dignified silence almost without exception throughout his period out of the boardroom.

But he has chosen to lend his support to the new regime at a time when Villa are facing steep expectations despite competing in a Premier League that at the top end at least appears to be fast losing its grasp on reality.

“There are grounds for optimism. I certainly don’t think anyone should be negative about the future of Aston Villa,” he said.

“It is on a stable footing. It has a good manager and good coaching staff and in addition they have some good youngsters coming through.

“They need to replace Martin Laursen, in particular, and Gareth Barry because they were two of the most important players we have had in the last year or two. I’m sure they will replace them.

“I don’t want to appear to be giving any advice to Martin or Randy because they know what they are doing.

“I’m sure they know the most important players to replace are Laursen and Barry.

“They may be up against it next season but as I have said so many times, money itself does not guarantee success. I don’t have to tell Martin or Randy what the opposition is, they know it already.”

Ellis believes the coming season will see even more progress from some exciting Academy players like Gary Gardner and Marc Albrighton to add to last year’s emergence of Nathan Delfouneso.

“I believe Gary Gardner will be an even better player than his brother Craig,” he said.

“A number of the youngsters are showing they could make it and they will get the opportunity, I’m sure.

“Martin O’Neill has shown he won’t shy away from putting them in.

“His usual method is of putting them in for a match or two and then pulling them out. Giving them a smell of the first team.”

Ellis believes a reliance on Bryan Jones’ youth system can only pay dividends in the long run.

“Can Villa break the top four? There is no specific answer but money and money alone cannot bring success,” he said.

“In 1968 we were broke. We could not afford to buy. We had to breed.