BELLAMY SNUBS VILLA AS HE SIGNS ON FOR BLACKBURN

By Ryan Ghee
July 19 2005

Craig Bellamy caused a surprise today by snubbing Aston Villa and signing for Blackburn Rovers in a £4 million deal. As well as turning his back on Villa he also rejected the chance to play Champions League football with Premiership rivals Everton or SPL side Celtic.

Craig Bellamy's shock move to Blackburn Rovers has left Aston Villa with a big problem on their hands. By missing out on Bellamy's signature, Villa have seen their top transfer target slip out of their grasp and must now decide who they can bring in to score goals for the club next season. The major problem for Aston Villa is that they don't have anybody upfront who can score goals week in, week out. Had the club signed Bellamy, this problem would have certainly been solved. However, he is now a Blackburn Rovers player and Villa must get over this massive loss and concentrate on bringing in other new signings who can lead the team to European football.
With the recent arrival of Kevin Phillips, Villa fans have reason to hope that the club will score more goals next season. However, Phillips is now 31 years old and you can't help but ask the question 'Can he still cut it in the premiership?' If Phiilips doesn't perform, who can Villa rely on to score their goals? Darius Vassell doesn't fit the bill as he has never scored more than 12 in a season and Angel looks like he doesn't even want to play for the club anymore.
Having missed out on the signing of Bellamy, Villa must now make a prolific striker their ultimate priority otherwise next season could simply be another season of mid-table meandering.