John Gregory Says Villa Need To Get Buying!

Former Villa boss John Gregory says Villa could become one dimensional unless they add to the midfield unit saying we need a player like Croatian Luka Modric who joined Tottenham for £16.5 million from Dinamo Zagreb. In other words MON, get on with it!!

He told the Birmingham Mail: 'Martin O'Neill's teams have always been dangerous at set-pieces and I think I'm right in saying they were highest goalscorers from set-pieces last season. I think what they're really lacking is a playmaker. What they really need next season is somebody who can pull the strings in midfield. Modric has just gone to Tottenham but someone of that ilk is what Villa are really crying out for. Without that they could be one-dimensional.'

'Ashley Young can go past people and provide good quality set-pieces but take that away from Villa's play and there has to be something else. I'd love to see a playmaker in midfield who can create something from nothing and show that little bit of guile in the last third.' Warning 'They've got plenty of strength and pace but I don't want Villa to be one-dimensional. It needs to change if they're to seriously break into the top four.'

He also says that Nigel Hokey-Cokey is not that sort of player and adds that Stiliyan Petrov is not the answer labelling him as no more than a squad player.

He also talks of Randy and says the fact he is 'almost anonymous' is a good thing, certainly good compared to his constant wrangles with old Dougy Boy!

And implying that MON isn't the most decisive of people he joked: 'Randy Lerner's taken a back seat and provided money at the right times. I hope in the summer he'll make a lot of money available to Martin and if he does then Martin's not one to waste it. It must take him an hour and a half in the morning to get dressed! I don't know what he must be like buying players, he must be a nightmare! He barely buys a bad one. In the summer I hope Randy Lerner gives him the right money to make the right purchases.'

As for today's transfer gossip, not much doing I'm afraid! The link we mentioned to Cardiff starlet Aaron Ramsey has been repeated with links to us, Arsenal and Manchester United and the only other one is Sheffield United striker James Beattie being pursued by Villa, Nottingham Forest, Sunderland and Middlesbrough.

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