‘The rules’. Two little words that continue to dog Aston Villa as they try to make sense of financial regulations that seem to reward performance off the field more than on it.
For the second time in three seasons, Villa will play in the Champions League. They face Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup in August, hoping to collect a second European trophy in four months after winning the Europa League in May. Villa have not finished outside the top seven in the Premier League since Unai Emery took charge nearly four years ago and were fourth in 2024 and 2026.
Yet while Tottenham (17th in the Premier League in each of the last two seasons) can merrily bid £75million for Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali because of the huge revenue they generate off the field, Villa are forever walking a tightrope.
UEFA stipulate that a club can spend no more than 70 per cent of revenue on football costs such as salaries and transfer fees. Villa were fined £9.5m for breaching last year’s 80 per cent cap and given their current high wage bill they may struggle to avoid further fines.
Villa are understandably miffed. Yes, their recruitment needs to be better: under Emery, there have been more misses than hits and some of last year’s work (nearly £45m on deals for Evann Guessand and Tammy Abraham plus huge wages on loan failures Jadon Sancho and Harvey Elliott) was poor.
Then again, Spurs had a similarly fruitless time in the market and avoided relegation only on the final day. But former chairman Daniel Levy turned the club into a money-generating monster whose revenue was £582.6m last year, nearly £200m more than Villa’s £390m. Their transfer budget this summer reflects success off the field, while Villa feel punished for excellence on it.
Despite Aston Villa’s excellence on the field – including winning the Europa League last season – they are struggling with UEFA’s spending rules
The loan addition of Harvey Elliott (right) was one of several missteps in the transfer window last campaign – Villa cannot afford many more expensive mistakes
For the third summer in a row, Villa will have to be extremely creative to improve their squad – with sell-to-buy the most likely policy. Daily Mail Sport takes a close look at how they might do it.
Morgan Rogers – keep or sell?
Presumably Villa owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens did not become billionaires without barging a few people out of their way on the route up. They will not be pushed around by clubs wanting to take away their star asset for less than his worth.
Daily Mail Sport can reveal that Sawiris is determined to ignore all interest in Rogers unless he receives offers well above £100million. He looks at the fee of about £120m Manchester City might pay for Elliot Anderson, and the £100m-plus price tag for Liverpool target Yan Diomande, and sees no reason why he should offer a discount on Rogers.
Though Anderson is a different type of player, the Nottingham Forest midfielder produced four goals and five assists last season, while Rogers managed 14 goals and 12 assists. Diomande delivered 13 goals and 10 assists and is untested in the Premier League.
Arsenal and Chelsea admire Rogers and believe he is gettable, but it would surely stick in the throat for Villa to sell to Chelsea, who will not even compete in Europe next term.
But then those pesky UEFA rules come back to haunt Villa. Last year’s settlement agreement with UEFA states that under the ‘football earnings’ column, Villa cannot spend more than they bring in. So unless the club can negotiate more favourable terms with European football chiefs, it is difficult to see how they hang on to Rogers without making drastic cutbacks elsewhere.
Aston Villa will hold out for north of £100m for their star midfielder Morgan Rogers
Rogers is away with England at the World Cup but Arsenal and Chelsea are interested in signing him
Where does Emery want to strengthen?
Emery is rarely easy to please. Whatever the Villa manager may say publicly, he runs this club and has a big say in transfer policy. If he pushes for a particular signing and then has a change of heart when they arrive, that is a problem.
However, Emery has long wanted to strengthen in wide areas. During the second half of last season, Villa spoke extensively about signing Harry Wilson, who is out of contract and had an outstanding campaign for Fulham.
Leeds are also interested in the Wales international and can offer him a regular starting spot, which would not be guaranteed at Villa. As a free agent, though, Wilson’s wage demands would be high.
There are others, too. Daily Mail Sport revealed that Villa like Harvey Barnes, who scored 16 times for Newcastle last season. It is thought Barnes would be open to the move yet as with other targets, the cost – about £40m – could be too big an obstacle.
Emery also rates Ibrahim Mbaye, the Paris Saint-Germain winger currently on duty with Senegal at the World Cup. Again, a permanent transfer may be out of the question but the clubs have a good relationship, having negotiated Marco Asensio’s loan to Villa in winter 2025.
Arsenal are willing to let Gabriel Martinelli go and Emery was a huge fan of the Brazilian when they worked together in north London during his 18-month spell there in 2018-19.
Again, though, Martinelli would be easily Villa’s top earner, at a time when they have to keep a careful eye on spending. That is why Marcus Rashford, who earns about £325,000 a week at Manchester United, would also surely be off the market.
Villa boss Unai Emery was a huge fan of Brazilian winger Gabriel Martinelli when they worked together at Arsenal during Emery’s 18-month spell there in 2018-19
Emery wants to strengthen in wide areas and Harry Wilson, now out of contract, had a superb season for Fulham last term
Who else could go?
Juventus are strongly interested in Emi Martinez who, along with Youri Tielemans, is the club’s top earner on about £150,000 a week. Yet Martinez turns 34 in September and Villa will struggle to generate a big fee for him.
The Serie A club are unwilling to go too far beyond a package of about £10m, to include transfer fees and wages. That would ease the wage bill but would also leave Villa needing a new No 1 goalkeeper, unless Emery decides to place his faith in Marco Bizot, who did well when stepping in for Martinez last season, but played only 14 times.
As first revealed by Daily Mail Sport, Villa admire Manchester City goalkeeper James Trafford, yet the cost of signing him would almost certainly exceed whatever they could bring in for Martinez, even though the respective costs can be written down differently on the balance sheet. While the entire fee for a player sale can be banked instantly, the cost of an incoming transfer can be spread across the life of a player’s contract.
It must still feel to Villa executives as though they are playing chess, with a grandmaster like Garry Kasparov representing UEFA.
Similarly, Tielemans joined Villa on a free transfer in 2023 and selling him would deliver an instant, unmitigated profit. Good luck replacing him, though.
The Belgian is one of the best midfielders in the Premier League, trains brilliantly, is rarely injured and is exactly the sort of mature, serious professional Emery adores. Those are hard to come by and generally cost more than £50m.
Goalkeeper Emi Martinez could be sold by Villa but he turns 34 in September and the club will struggle to generate a big fee for him
Youri Tielemans joined Villa on a free transfer in 2023 and selling him would deliver an instant, unmitigated profit. Good luck replacing him, though
It would be the same story if Villa cashed in on Ezri Konsa, one of the top centre backs in England. Easy enough to find suitors, less so a player just as good at the right price.
This may sound unlikely, but don’t be surprised if Villa are discreetly open to offers for Abraham. The former Chelsea man only joined in January to replace Donyell Malen but started just four times and Emery has not always been impressed. It is the same with Guessand, back at Villa now after spending the second half of last season on loan at Crystal Palace.
The other route is to allow fringe players like Tyrone Mings, Ross Barkley, Leon Bailey, Andres Garcia and Lamare Bogarde to move on.
Then there are loan players who are unlikely ever to be key men for Emery but remain on the books – Lewis Dobbin, Samuel Iling-Junior, Kosta Nedeljkovic, Yasin Ozcan, Louie Barry, Josh Feeney, Tommi O’Reilly. When UEFA’s parameters are so tight, it all adds up.
Stick or twist?
Last summer, Villa prioritised giving new deals to their top performers, and there is work to do on that front this year, too. First choice centre-back pairing Konsa and Pau Torres have only two years remaining on their contracts though in each case the club is likely to hold an option for a further year.
Emi Buendia scores a beauty in the Europa League final. The playmaker is line for a pay rise as his Villa contract has only 12 months to run
Villa and England defender Ezri Konsa only has two years left on his current contract
After his stellar end to the 2025-26 season, crowned by a brilliant goal in the Europa League final, Emi Buendia is also in line for a pay rise as his contract has 12 months to run.
Emery would love to refresh the squad and must rue some of the hasty transfer deals that have tied his hands. The rules are harsh, though, and add to the suspicion that UEFA are more interested in protecting the wealthiest clubs than allowing those from outside that clique to compete on an equal footing.
A year ago, Villa’s only key departure was Jacob Ramsey to Newcastle and none of those who arrived made a serious impact on the first team. They still had one of their best seasons of modern times though.
The key is to qualify for the Champions League again next season. Two years’ unbroken revenue from Europe’s main club competition should finally allow Villa the room for manoeuvre they crave – and arguably deserve – in the market.
Don’t be surprised if they attempt it with the vast majority of this squad. Emery trusts them, they trust him, and they know their way around domestic and European football. It may be time for one last dance for this team.
