Guest
Exactly a year to the day since Martin O'Neill breezed through the doors at Aston Villa, the Northern Irishman received another reminder of the sizeable expectations in these parts. Empty seats have often been conspicuous during Premiership matches at Villa Park, but a 36,229 crowd for a friendly is emblematic of the optimism now enveloping the club. Many more performances like this and Villa will not have any fears about the supporters coming back. The rest of the Premier League might not yet be quaking, but Randy Lerner, Villa's owner, could be forgiven for wondering whether a cheque-book that has been surprisingly underused in the summer needs to make any more appearances before the transfer window closes. O'Neill, Villa's manager, confirmed afterwards that there will be further acquisitions, but the side who comprehensively outplayed the Serie A winners here did not look like ones in need of reinforcements. There was a competitive edge to proceedings, with six players booked,
