The news went down like a lead balloon with Aston Villa supporters looking ahead to their team’s first game of the season.
Daily Mail Sport reported on Thursday morning that even if Jacob Ramsey moves to Newcastle – Villa’s opponents on Saturday – the initial £39million fee is unlikely to be used to strengthen the squad in the remaining two weeks of the window.
Despite having three hugely impressive seasons under Unai Emery, Villa feel like they have been playing a never-ending game of financial whack-a-mole.
No sooner had they avoided a breach of Premier League spending rules 12 months ago, thanks to the sale of Douglas Luiz to Juventus, along came UEFA’s financial rules to give them another headache.
When they were fined £9.5m in July for breaking UEFA’s spending regulations, Villa were told they would face possible exclusion from future European campaigns if they could not comply in future seasons.
In simple terms, Villa need to reduce their wage bill or generate a great deal more revenue to avoid these sanctions. Unfortunately for boss Unai Emery, the former puzzle is easier to solve than the latter.
Jacob Ramsey looks set to sign for Newcastle United, who Aston Villa will host on the opening day on Saturday
Villa fans will be demoralised after hearing the news that the club are unable to spend big despite Ramsey’s departure
The rules seem particularly harsh. Seven years ago, Villa had lost the Championship play-off final and were on the brink of oblivion when Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens bought the club.
Since then, they have regained their spot among the top echelons of English football, reaching the Champions League quarter-finals last season – an astonishing achievement given their plight when Sawiris and Edens arrived.
Yet Villa are not Manchester United or Liverpool. Villa Park holds a little less than 43,000 and they do not have the commercial appeal of those giants. As quickly as Villa were moving on the pitch, they could not boost their bank balance at the same rate.
There will be those who argue, with some merit, that the current rules simply make the wealthiest clubs stronger and leave everyone else struggling to catch up. Under Emery, Villa have been one of the most exciting stories in English football.
If it is their struggle to get richer that halts their rise, rather than their performance on the pitch, it should concern anyone who values competition and unpredictability.
On the eve of the 2025-26 season, Daily Mail Sport examines the implications of the current situation and what could still happen.
Will there be more sales?
Villa had always been open to selling Ramsey this summer. Whenever clubs would call to ask about available players, the 24-year-old and Leon Bailey were quoted back at them.
The transfer would probably have happened earlier than this, but Ramsey did not fancy joining West Ham or Nottingham Forest.
Leon Bailey (right) and Ramsey (centre) are heading for the exit but Youri Tielemans (left) is one player who Villa are trying to tie down to a new deal
Villa would love to do a permanent deal for Leon Bailey but the winger is reluctant to leave Europe’s ‘top five’ leagues and Italian club Roma have offered only a loan with an option to buy – hardly likely to change the financial picture substantially.
Villa insist they do not have to sell any of their star players this summer as they have in years past, but it will be interesting to see whether an exception would be made for Emi Martinez. Cast your mind back to May, when Villa beat Tottenham in their final home fixture of the campaign and a tearful Martinez appeared to be waving goodbye as he left the pitch.
Martinez is understood to have held talks with super-agent Jorge Mendes as he tried to secure a move and Villa would have listened to offers but so far, nobody has taken the bait – aside from a loan bid from Manchester United that did not appeal to Villa.
The World Cup winner is among Villa’s highest earners on about £150,000 a week and is one of the top goalkeepers on the planet. His wish to leave has been an open secret. But nobody – yet – has tried to buy him outright.
Atletico Madrid might have done so had they sold Jan Oblak to the Saudi Pro League, but the Slovenian was not keen on that. Nor did Martinez fancy the Pro League at this stage of his career, despite interest.
Martinez’s sale could have given Villa greater room for manoeuvre but as things stand, he will start the season still Emery’s No 1.
What about the other key players?
Villa are adamant they do not have to sell any of their star men, with Morgan Rogers and John McGinn among those currently deemed off limits. That has not quelled interest in Rogers, though, and Daily Mail Sport can reveal Tottenham are the latest club to be showing interest in the 23-year-old attacker.
Given Villa’s insistence that Rogers cannot leave in this window, it is unclear whether Spurs will bid if they are given no encouragement, but Rogers – who is in line for the PFA Young Player of the Year award – remains hugely admired across Europe.
Tottenham are the latest club to show an interest in Villa star Morgan Rogers
The likeliest outcome at this stage, though, is that both he and McGinn are offered improved contracts and, in the case of Rogers, stay for at least one more year.
Boubacar Kamara and Lucas Digne have already committed themselves to Villa and there are expected to be negotiations with midfielder Youri Tielemans. It would be no surprise if defenders Pau Torres and Matty Cash were added to the list of players Villa tie to new deals after the window has closed.
How about signings?
Without a major sale, it is tricky. Villa may have to explore the loan market, as they did last January when they brought in Marcus Rashford, Marco Asensio and Axel Disasi to boost them in the second half of the season.
Rashford has since joined Barcelona and while Villa continue to explore another move for Asensio, the Spaniard is a high earner and any deal would have to fall in line with UEFA’s financial regulations.
Villa need cover in defence and attack: a right-sided defender who can also play either in the centre or at full back plus a wide forward who can operate across the front line.
Evann Guessand has arrived from Nice for £28m but Villa need more. Whether they can deliver them to Emery, however, is another matter entirely.
They could also do with big seasons from two of last summer’s major signings – Amadou Onana and Ian Maatsen.
Maatsen had an outstanding end to the campaign and should have an influential role this term and as for Onana, everyone can see the potential. The Belgian just needs to fulfil it consistently.
Evann Guessand has arrived from Nice for £28m but Villa need more reinforcements
What does the future look like?
Villa’s financial constraints make the Europa League this season look vital. Luckily, they have a man in the dugout who has won the competition four times and is an expert at managing a European campaign.
Though none of those victories was with Villa, Emery reached the semi-finals of the Europa Conference League in 2024 and the last eight of the Champions League last year, when they came within a whisker of eliminating eventual winners PSG.
Unai Emery knows better than anyone how to win the Europa League – and bring Champions League football back to Villa Park
The Europa League offers direct access to the Champions League and the revenue that would make the skies look brighter for Villa again.
A top-five finish in the league looks trickier, especially given the financial power of some of Villa’s rivals and the money they have spent this summer.
It looks like a watershed season for Villa. Reach the Champions League, and they can flex their muscles again. Miss out, and it will be more difficult to retain key players, Rogers foremost among them.
A good start to the season is crucial to calm the nerves and if anything can make Villa fans smile, at least they do not have an Alexander Isak saga on their hands.
