Aston Villa transfer window condemned as ‘underwhelming’ by former England striker

Former Arsenal and England striker Alan Smith has given a damning assessment of Aston Villa’s summer transfer window.

Villa are close to completing the signing of Nice forward Evann Guessand but business has been slow up to this point.

While the crucial aim of holding on to key players has remained intact, Villa have only been added veteran goalkeeper Marco Bizot, young striker Zépiqueno Redmond and a pre-contract agreement with 20-year-old Modou Kéba Cissé.

With the top Premier League teams and Manchester United spending massive amounts of money to strengthen their hand for the 2025/26 season, Villa’s limitations have been a source of frustration for supporters.

Guessand’s transfer offers a big lift but Smith, who played more than 450 league matches for Leicester City and Arsenal but grew up supporting Villa, says it all feels a little flat.

“It’s been an underwhelming transfer window so far, and they’re dancing close to PSR rules and all of it – high wage bill compared to turnover,” Smith told BestBettingSites.co.uk

“They’ve lost [Marcus] Rashford and [Marco] Asensio, so they need to bolster that attack. It’s all a bit flat there at the moment, so the fans would be hoping things can happen in August, because they do need a boost, I think, particularly in the final third of the pitch.”

Transfer progress at last for Villa

President of football operations Monchi and manager Unai Emery appear to have had a tricky summer but are keeping their cards close to theirs chests as they work through their transfer plans.

As the new season and the end of the transfer window get closer, Villa’s decision-makers could shift their focus to prioritise stability and continuity, relying on a small number of permanent additions and even a loan or two towards the end of the window.

Smith is right to acknowledge the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules and the threat of Villa’s wage bill, which is a central factor in the club’s compliance with UEFA squad cost ratio rules as a Europa League participant in 2025/25.

Villa are working with the governing body to meet their requirements in good faith and will therefore look to sustainably lower the wage bill of their European squad. While that doesn’t necessarily force an unwanted player sale or prevent Villa from bringing in new players, it certainly defines the parameters within which they must remain.

Smith played for Leicester and Arsenal before the inaugural Premier League season and spent the new division’s first three seasons at Highbury before retiring in 1995. He scored twice for England in 13 caps and was included in former Villa manager Graham Taylor’s squad for the European Championship in 1992.

The ex-Alvechurch striker is a prominent television pundit and co-commentator.

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