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By joining Liverpool Downing will have made few friends at Aston Villa, who have lost four England midfielders in two years

It was April Fool’s Day, which, in hindsight, was a clue that it would be dangerous for the reporters gathered at Bodymoor Heath to take everything that Stewart Downing was saying at face value. “Yes, I am happy here,” replied Downing when asked whether he would stay at the club irrespective of what division they were in next season. “There is speculation that players are going to clubs all the time but I am happy here.”

Downing went on to talk about the debt of gratitude he felt towards Villa because they had paid Middlesbrough £12m for him, two years ago, when he was on crutches and had no chance of playing a game until four months into the season. “A lot of faith went into me when Martin [O'Neill, the former manager] paid a lot of money for me when I was injured,” he said. “It was a serious injury but I was over the moon.”

A little more than a month later, and on the back of a thoroughly deserved clean sweep of the club’s end-of-season player-of-the-year awards, Downing gave an interview to the Birmingham Mail, when he spoke with excitement about the prospect of signing a new contract at Villa. “I think there’s been a couple of conversations already with my agent,” Downing said. “I’ve already spoken to the manager who has said he’d like to keep me. I’m enjoying my stay here. I’ve enjoyed it since the first day I came. It’s a terrific football club. It’s fantastic they want me … The important thing in football is, if you’re happy, then why change it? I know it’s been a disappointing season, but I can see the bigger picture.”

Those Villa supporters who expressed their relief on various message boards, describing Downing, quite rightly, as the silver lining in a dreadful season, were in for a shock two weeks later. “My agent had a recent meeting with our chief executive,” said Downing in an interview with the Northern Echo. “However, I am 26, and at a major crossroads in my career, so I won’t be committing to a new deal at the moment.”

Downing might as well not have bothered uttering the last three words. He was never going to sign a new contract. The writing was on the wall and it also appeared on the paperwork submitted to Villa yesterday afternoon, when Downing submitted a formal transfer request. Neither Gareth Barry nor James Milner had felt the need to take that course of action. Villa were left with little option. After all, what is there to be gained from holding on to a player against his will?

Villa did that for 12 months with Barry, who also pined for the chance to move to Anfield, although the circumstances were very different back then. First, Liverpool failed to meet Villa’s asking price for Barry, which made it easier for the club to dig their heels in. Second, Villa were starting off the season with genuine ambitions of trying to qualify for the Champions League. Third, Barry had a long affinity with Villa and could be trusted to perform even if he was denied the move that he coveted. None of the above applies in relation to Downing.

It is, of course, easy to see why Downing is attracted to moving to Liverpool. As well as the chance to line his pocket, he is joining a club that appears resurgent under Kenny Dalglish. They have spent close to £100m since the start of the year and are genuine contenders for a top-four finish. Villa, on the other hand, are sliding in the opposite direction. The appointment of Alex McLeish as manager lacked imagination and top-six finishes are a thing of the past.

Whether Villa could have done anything about Downing’s departure or not, the reality is that the former Middlesbrough winger has become the fourth England midfielder to leave the club in the last two years. Villa, in other words, are a selling club that serve as a stepping stone for players with greater ambitions.

As long as that remains the case, players like Downing will continue to move on and it is difficult to criticise them for doing so provided they are honest about their position. Downing, however, was happy to lead supporters up the garden path, saying all the right things until the moment he left Villa Park on the final day of the season. It is something he might be reminded of when he returns with Liverpool in the middle of December.

Aston VillaTransfer windowLiverpoolStuart Jamesguardian.co.uk

Today’s jabber is going to have a steak

Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey-ey, goodbye. Arsenal fans had their own catchy ditty for Samir Nasri last season, but now it seems the wantaway Frenchman really does intend to leave this summer, maybe they should adopt the Mill’s suggestion. Nasri’s off to Manchester United for £10m or £20m depending on which paper you believe. Apparently Carl Jenkinson wasn’t quite the big name Nasri had in mind.

Poor old Carl Jenkinson. “But I got you Carl Jenkinson,” the Mill imagines a teary-eyed Arsène Wenger screaming at Nasri. “Carl Jenkinson! What more can I do for you? Fine! Go ahead and leave! We don’t need you anyway. It’s just me and Carl from now on. What? What’s that Cesc? OH SCREW THIS!!!!!”. Johan Djourou reckons Arsenal can do without Nasri and Cesc Fábregas though. Yeah, and the Mill can get by just fine without its looks.

Arsenal will console themselves by signing Southampton’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for £12m, Lille’s Gervinho for £10m and Bolton’s Gary Cahill for £17m. Karim Benzema’s available, you know. Wenger’s mood probably won’t improve once he hears that Liverpool have made a £5m offer for bumbling left-back Gaël Clichy, who’s quick and, er … well he’s quick, OK? Kenny Dalglish has also decided he wants Arsenal’s French defender instead of Newcastle’s José Enrique, although he’s going to have to keep Italian ornament, Alberto Aquilani, after Juventus opted not to sign the flint-boned midfielder. Still, anything that keeps Christian Poulsen away from the first team can only be a good thing. Meanwhile new signing Jordan Henderson thinks he has much to learn from Steven Gerrard. Well those Hollywood balls won’t hit themselves.

One player Liverpool won’t be getting is Ashley Young. With United basing their entire transfer strategy on signing whoever Liverpool show a fleeting interest in – which probably wouldn’t have been so clever during the Gérard Houllier or Rafa Benítez era – it means they’ll be signing the Aston Villa winger for £20m. According to the Mirror, Young will sign a five-year deal worth £130,000-a-week, although getting Young doesn’t actually solve that great gaping hole in the centre of United’s midfield. Just sign as many fleet-footed tricksters as you want, Sir Alex, and no one will notice. It’s always worked for Arsenal. Meanwhile Tomasz Kuszczak has told Ferguson to pick him or he’ll leave United. As far as ultimatums go, it’s up there with the BBC threatening to destroy every episode of My Family.

Young’s exit will mean Roberto Martínez will have a tricky job on his hands if he does opt to leave Wigan Athletic for Villa. The Spaniard had better get scouring in the Concacaf market sharpish. It’s still not clear whether Martínez will join Villa, but Randy Lerner is ready to double his wages and Dave Whelan won’t stand in his way, which is nice of him. So Villa’s big push for eighth place is on. Martínez won’t be the only one out the Wigan door either, with Everton sniffing around Charles Insomnia, who’s valued at £9m.

Jérôme Boateng says he wants to leave Manchester City for Bayern Munich. Jérôme Boateng plays for Manchester City? Martin Jol wants to make chicken-dancing Kevin Nolan his first signing for Fulham. Newcastle will replace him with Lille’s £4.3m-rated midfielder Yohan Cabaye, who runs a taxi company on the side. Sunderland’s bid for Peter Crouch from Tottenham has hit a stumbling block after that crafty Harry Redknapp demanded Asamoah Gyan in return.

The Mirror says Venky’s have given Blackburn’s ‘manager’ Steve Kean £26m to spend. Look, just play along, OK? Let them have their fun. With this ‘money’, Kean hopes to sign Roger Johnson, Scott Dann, James Collins, Sebastian Larsson, Jermaine Jones and Roque Santa Cruz. Real Madrid are planning a £3.5m bid for QPR’s Alejandro Faurlín, who’ll be playing for Getafe by January.

Ryan Giggs is on the front pages again. This country wants to grow up.

Manchester CityManchester UnitedArsenalSunderlandLilleBlackburn RoversAston VillaEvertonReal MadridFulhamNewcastle UnitedLiverpoolTottenham HotspurBayern MunichJacob Steinbergguardian.co.uk

• Villa fans aggrieved at manager’s affection for Liverpool
• Houllier claims comments misconstrued after Anfield defeat

The bitter fallout from Gérard Houllier’s controversial post-match comments at Anfield on Monday night continued today when Randy Lerner’s right-hand man said the Aston Villa supporters that have called for the manager to be sacked “have the right to feel that way”.

General Charles C Krulak, who is a non-executive director at the club and has a close relationship with Lerner, the Villa chairman, insisted the board remained behind Houllier but also acknowledged the Frenchman made an error of judgment with his remarks. Houllier, who was returning to Liverpool for the first time in a competitive fixture since he left the club as manager in 2004, said: “If I have got to lose 3-0, I would prefer it to be to them as I like Liverpool.”

The comment went down badly with Villa supporters, many of whom were already angry with Houllier for waving to the Liverpool fans that chanted his name at the end of a defeat that leaves the Midlands club two points above the relegation zone. Houllier sought to defuse the row when he moved to clarify his remarks on the club website 24 hours later. The Villa manager said his comments had been “misconstrued” and that he had “intended to be humorous”. There was, however, no apology.

With fans on message boards and forums still irate at Houllier’s behaviour, Krulak, who regularly communicates with supporters, responded to their concerns. “I am unable to get into GH’s mind nor am I able to truly understand what he was feeling before, during and after the game,” wrote Krulak. “Equally, I am not going to try to minimise what he said, make excuses or anything else… What I do know is what he put forth in his statement is far closer to the reality of how he feels about our club and our fans.”

Krulak continued: “Those who are looking for GH’s head, who are asking that he be fired, have the right to feel that way – they buy the tickets and can say what they want. At the same time, Randy and the board need to keep focused on the overall goal and we believe that GH plays a key role in achieving that goal.”

In relation to the absence of an apology, Krulak wrote: “I believe we are ALL SORRY about what happened. To think that no one is sorry is just crazy. Perhaps his statement should have used the ’sorry’ word…but I doubt if that would have made any difference to many of the fans.”

Houllier said in his statement: “No one likes to lose 3-0 against any team and, if comments I made in the immediate aftermath of our defeat by Liverpool have been misconstrued – comments which were intended to be humorous, by the way – let me put them into context. The experiences I enjoyed with Liverpool some years ago will always stay with me, as will many experiences I have had in football both before and since, and I have taken all these experiences into my job as manager of Aston Villa.

“I understand the fans’ feelings of hurt and disappointment at the moment – I am hurting as much as anybody, believe me – and I say emphatically that we will battle through. Building lasting success at Aston Villa is my focus and my commitment to this challenge is resolute.”

Gérard HoullierAston VillaLiverpoolStuart Jamesguardian.co.uk