Season preview

Steven Davis also fits O’Neill’s identikit for a midfield player, but the young Northern Ireland schemer has had his pre-season disrupted by a thigh injury.

It is not only in the manager’s chair and in the boardroom that Villa have endured the kind of summer fit for a soap opera: the futures of Gareth Barry, Juan Pablo Ángel, Milan Baros and, to a lesser extent, Lee Hendrie and Olof Mellberg remain uncertain.

O’Neill, after 15 months out of the game, wants to embroil himself in all the old-fashioned machinations of a manager’s job, from sitting disenchanted players down to talk through their concerns to involving himself in transfer negotiations with possible new signings. By the time O’Neill has finished on the coaching field, watched all of last season’s Villa games on video and assessed the walking wounded, there will not be too much time to assess approaching opponents. Still, at least the occasional BBC pundit will have been able to see Thierry Henry, Tomas Rosicky and Co in close proximity during the World Cup finals. Season-ticket sales increased by 6 per cent in the five days after O’Neill was appointed as David O’Leary’s successor and the roof could yet come off Villa Park by the time Reading visit a week on Wednesday.

The likes of Martin Laursen, injured since the first day of last season, Baros and Ángel should be desperate to be in O’Neill’s first starting line-ups as, given time and money, Villa could well be on their way back towards competing for a top-six berth. That is quite a given, of course. Takeover talks have never previously proceeded quite as far as in the past month, with four consortiums jostling to buy the club, and the news yesterday that Randy Lerner is to table a firm bid could end all the to-ing and fro-ing.

Doug Ellis, the 82-year-old chairman, will be granted something of a respite from fans grateful for O’Neill’s appointment, but in the medium term, only fresh and sizeable investment will enable Villa fans to shout from the rooftops for long.

Manager No manager is impregnable, but Martin O’Neill has already raised the hopes and expectations of Villa supporters after his return to the game. Doug Ellis has made 14 appointments in his 30-odd years as chairman, but, with the club for sale, it appears Deadly will go sooner than O’Neill

Player to watch Steven Davis, the hardworking midfield player who has come through from the youth ranks, became a mainstay in the side last season. Could become a key player, in much the same way as his fellow Northern Irishman Neil Lennon was for O’Neill at Leicester and Celtic

In an ideal world A takeover, wresting control of the club from Ellis, would go through to make available a substantial transfer kitty for the new manager. His enthusiasm and inspiration could launch Villa into the kind of overachievement that marked his years at Leicester

INJURIES AND SUSPENSIONS Gary Cahill (knee, days), Steven Davis (thigh, one week), Mark Delaney (back, days), Luke Moore (ankle, days), Patrik Berger (knee and calf, two weeks).

PRE-SEASON

Dogged by uncertainty, takeover talk and average results, although the arrival of Martin O’Neill cheered up everyone.

TICKET SALES

Season-ticket sales are down more than 3,500 to 14,500 compared with this time last year, although there has been a 6 per cent increase since the arrival of O’Neill.

If they were a historical figure they would be ...Chairman Mao

Ruled with iron hand by a chairman who knows what’s right (him) and who’s boss (ditto)