Martin O’Neill has broken his silence on the Gareth Barry transfer saga by insisting Villa can still break into the top four without their skipper.

A third Liverpool bid for the England international, this time of £13m, was put on the table on Wednesday night but the Northern Irishman slammed the offer, describing it as “just not acceptable”.

He is keen to hold out for at least £18m for Barry, who has told him the lure of Champions League football is too great an opportunity to turn down.

But O’Neill believes that is a dream Barry could eventually achieve at Villa Park – and he insisted that is what he will continue to work towards even if the midfielder moves to Merseyside as expected.

O’Neill said: “Gareth and I had a little chat when he got back from holiday and he has said he would fancy going to Liverpool.   

“That’s obviously a big setback to us, but the offer from Liverpool is just not acceptable. 

“It’s very frustrating. We finished sixth last year, he was a major part of that and he has been a splendid player for us for some considerable time.” 

“If Manchester United are having a struggle keeping hold of (Cristiano) Ronaldo, I guess the rest of us have a bit of trouble,” he added. 

“It’s difficult (to break into the top four) but that’s what you’re in the game for. If it’s without Gareth Barry, we’ll still have a go.”

Reds boss Rafa Benitez is keen to bring the transfer to a conclusion as quickly as possible but with the clubs are still some way off reaching a compromise with no agreement expected before next week at the earliest.