Lerner lifts lid on reason for O’Neill’s shock exit
O’Neill had often spoken of his desire to bring Champions League football to Villa Park during his four-year reign.
He had spent freely in guiding Villa to a trio of top-six finishes in the Barclays Premier League but Lerner, whilst also remaining ambitious, is also clearly aware of the need for Villa not to spend beyond their financial means.
He backed O’Neill fully in the transfer market the previous three summers but had stressed in May that a “sell to buy” policy had to be adopted during the current close season.
It is understood the reluctance to make available all the funds from James Milner’s expected move to Manchester City for new players led to O’Neill deciding to walk away.
Lerner is always reluctant to make public statements and his only contact with the media is usually in an end-of-season briefing.
But he decided to issue a short statement yesterday explaining why O’Neill had quit and how his stance on building the club and remaining competitive had not altered.
Lerner said: “Having had some time to reflect on Martin leaving, I can say that our most immediate focus is supporting Kevin MacDonald (care-taker manager) and resolving the situation with Manchester City and James Milner.
“As for explaining why Martin left, I can say only that we no longer shared a common view as to how to move forward.
“To deal in greater detail would do little but cause additional distraction for the club as it faces imminent games and the clear priority of hiring a permanent manager.
“Finally, there have been no changes in our approach to building the club, aiming always to be as competitive as possible given our size and resources.”
The Milner deal is expected to be completed when he returns from international duty with England with City midfielder Stephen Ireland likely to move in the opposite direction.
Ireland moved a step closer to the exit door yesterday when he and Craig Bellamy were left out of Manchester City’s squad for next week’s Europa League qualifier against Timisoara.
City have to submit a list of names to UEFA in line with new guidelines about home-grown players and even though there are spaces in that squad for them — only 23 of a possible 25 names were registered – neither Bellamy nor Ireland has made it.
Meanwhile Everton manager David Moyes has quashed speculation linking him with the Villa job.
The Scot had been linked with the job at Villa Park following O’Neill’s exit.
Moyes has been touted as a possible successor to O’Neill but the 47-year-old coach, who has been at Goodison Park for more than eight years, has reaffirmed his loyalty to Everton and dismissed the link.
“I am loyal to Everton, I’ve always said that,’’ Moyes said.
“It is a really good club and this year we have a really good team and we have a good chance of doing well.’’
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