Aston Villa’s 2-0 defeat to West Ham on Wednesday morning (AEDT) was the last straw in the club’s bid to pull off a remarkable recovery.
Mathematically it is still possible to survive relegation from the English Premier League.
However, when one of the only shining lights for the season and the club’s highest goalscorer, Jordan Ayew, got red-carded early on in the game, any hope left seemed to disappear.
Villa have never previously been relegated from the EPL since its restructure in 1992, but it’s looking clearer as the weeks go by that they won’t participate next season.
This means they will miss out on the massive financial boost given to teams next season, which is a result of the new TV sponsorship deal. Even if they come straight back up for 2017-18, it’s hard to see them compete with teams benefitting from the significant incoming funds.
Villa did not sign a single player in the January transfer window, much to the disgust of manager Remi Garde.
“The situation of a team at the bottom of the table was not easy for players but that was not the only reason,” said Garde.
“It was also a financial problem. As a new manager I would have expected new faces to support my changes.”
However, it wasn’t meant to be as American owner Randy Lerner, chairman Steve Hollis and CEO Tom Fox have made clear they are already focussing on Championship football.
It is certainly not the worst idea Lerner has had since he took over the club. At least Villa are prepared to face the consequences and have a vision to come straight back up into the top division.
For Villa fans, the rest of this season will be torture, and the Championship will be a totally new prospect.
They don’t want to do a Wigan Athletic, sitting in League One after being relegated in 2012-13. Instead, they will want to come straight back up to the world’s biggest league.
The Championship is said to be one of the toughest and most unpredictable leagues in the world, and Villa will have to be clever both on and off the field to gain promotion. It could be a short and successful spell in the Championship or a struggle, where mid-table ignomity is possible.
Only time will tell, as one of England’s most successful and famous football clubs is in dire straits.
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