TV Pundits deliver their Aston Villa verdicts ahead of the new season

Television football pundits Michael Owen, Roy Keane, Ian Wright and Richard Keys have provided their verdicts on Aston Villa's fortunes next season, with the two of them expressing very contrasting views.

Ex-Liverpool, Manchester United and England forward Owen has said he believes Villa will have a great season. He thinks that the Villans will better their fourth place finish of last season by coming third this time round. It is a bold prediction from the former Ballon d'Or winner as Villa will have both the Premier League and Champions League to contend with this season.

Meanwhile, Former Manchester United captain and current Stick to Football presenter Roy Keane has also agreed that Villa will have another successful season. Keane has predicted that Liverpool are going to fall out of the top four altogether and those four places will be taken up by Manchester City, Arsenal, Manchester United and Villa themselves. Another former pro and Stick to Football presenter Ian Wright has also said he expects Villa to make the top four once more.

In contrast, former Sky Sports presenter Richard Keys has said that he believes Villa will struggle to balance the commitment of playing in the Champions League alongside the normal league campaign. He has predicted that Villa finish outside of the European places altogether as the European efforts will take its toll on the league form as it did for Newcastle United last season.

Aston Villa will begin their new Premier League season on Saturday away at West Ham United and will discover who their Champions League opponents will be on Thursday 29th August. The draw for the opening league phase of the competition will take place on that day and Villa will discover their first eight opponents.

Let us know where you see the club finishing in the Premier League next season!

UTV