Brendan McLoughlin discusses all things claret and blue with former Villa boss Graham Taylor.

As crazy as it sounds, Graham Taylor admits to being relieved at seeing Villa’s Champions League mission end in failure.

It’s not a case of sour grapes from the two-time Villa manager, quite the contrary.

He simply believes Villa’s current squad would have struggled to stay afloat, in the perilous continental waters patrolled by the likes of newly-crowned champions Barcelona, Real Madrid and AC Milan -  as well as our own ‘big four’.

But having flirted with the top four this term, as current chief Martin O’Neill likes to refer to it, Taylor is confident the claret and blues can mount a fresh and even more potent challenge next year.

Speaking at the launch of Grass Roots Football Live, which runs from June 12-14 at the NEC, he said: “In a strange kind of way – and Villa supporters might not like me saying this – I’m relatively pleased they didn’t crack the top four.

“I think the first XI was probably good enough to do it, but the squad wasn’t strong enough.

“I’m all for a manager being given three years (which O’Neill has now reached) because I think he can then say ‘that is now my squad’.

“By not cracking the top four, going into his fourth year he has something to go for.

“If he had cracked it, yes it would have been great, yes the money would have been there, but would they have been good enough?

“I expect them to be knocking on the door again next year, but this time it could have been too soon.”

It’s not who’ll be in Villa’s first team next season which really interests Taylor, more who’ll be sat on their bench.

With the exception of a replacement for retired skipper Martin Laursen, he expects O’Neill to stick with virtually the same side which earned sixth for a second successive season.

Instead he is eager to see which players are brought in, to reinforce a bench which too often looked lightweight over the course of the campaign.

Taylor said: “Laursen is going to be a massive miss for them. He will be very difficult to replace and that will interest me.

“I’m more interested in seeing who else he signs that doesn’t go straight into the first team.

“People will be looking for signings to improve the team but I felt the team was good enough. I just didn’t think the squad was.

“You can only play 11 in the team so you are going to sign some people that actually don’t go straight into your first team but, when they come in, they are good enough.

“What is difficult for supporters to understand is you sign players and don’t play them in the first team – yet people say you want a strong squad.

“(Steve) Sidwell and (Nigel) Reo Coker came from Chelsea and West Ham and now find themselves squad players themselves, so it’s handling them that is crucial.”

According to Taylor, Villa need another five additions if they are to mount a sustainable challenge.

He said: “Martin has chosen to operate with the Premier League’s smallest squad and he might learn from that.

“I think if we can see Villa going into the top four, that figure’s going to have to be somewhere around 28.

“He will have to find around five players – some who will go straight in the first team and improve it and others who won’t go in it, but will improve the squad.

“You will spend some money on average players, you will make mistakes. All managers do.

“You have all this money to spend but the problem is there is still a limit on great players, so your judgement is vital.”