‘Aston Villa have just pulled off a risky deal – it’s happening and it’s been approved’
Aston Villa’s financial issues could catch up with them despite their recent evasive measures.
The Midlands giants facilitated a number of last-ditch accounting moves to avoid breaching Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) for the 2024-25 campaign.
Villa have been in talks to agree the sale of their women’s side for £55million, which helped them raise funds before their accounting deadline at the end of last month (30 June).
The club also reportedly used the newly built music venue (The Warehouse) outside the ground to bring in some revenue.
However, Aston Villa’s former chief Keith Wyness– who served as CEO at Villa Park between 2016 and 2018 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes that his old side could face more financial problems down the line.
Aston Villa may suffer after matching Chelsea agreement
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, Wyness insisted that while Villa had “dodged a bullet” on this occasion, they may have just pushed their punishment further down the road.
As well as the Birmingham-based side, both Chelsea and Everton have maneuvered assets to avoid PSR issues in the past.
Wyness doesn’t think that this is a sustainable strategy for Premier League clubs, though.
He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “It’s an interesting time for Villa. They look to have dodged the bullet again, with the Chelsea loophole on the women’s team, and they’ve also copied the hotel sale from Chelsea as well in terms of ‘The Warehouse’.
“All clubs are climbing on the bandwagon. They were the ones that decided not to stop it or to vote it from not happening because they’ve all suddenly realised, well, hang on, we can do it too. I think it’s great for to have come up with this sort of innovative way forward if everybody else is doing it.
“If Everton are doing it, I’m sure we’re going to see a lot of valuations for women’s football now, but are they real valuations? That’s the real question. Both Villa and Chelsea have tried to back this up by selling minority stakes to other investors at the market valuation they’ve shown.
“I still find it very hard to believe that when you look at the turnover and the revenue streams coming in from those assets that those valuations can be sustained.
“I mean, you’re looking at Chelsea Women’s team at £200m, and I think Bournemouth were sold when they went up to the Premier League just a couple of years ago to Bill Foley at about £140m, so things don’t quite gel in my mind.
“While it may be a superb PSR accounting loophole, I think that is pushing things down the road and the chickens may come home to roost so I’m cautious about this whole maneuvering right now but nevertheless it’s happening and it’s being approved.”
Aston Villa open to Cash offers
Meanwhile, Aston Villa are planning to accept offers for Matty Cash and will use the funds to sign a replacement.
That is according to their former scout, Mick Brown, who claims that Unai Emery has given the green light for the 27-year-old’s exit.
Work has already begun behind the scenes to identify potential replacements at right-back, which has become a key target at Villa Park.
This comes after Football Insider exclusively revealed on 28 June that Aston Villa want to sell Cash, but his £100,000 weekly wages are putting clubs off.