Blog: The chips fall where they may for Villa

The weeks ahead, including matches against some of the biggest clubs in the country, are going to be trying.

Of course, that doesn't mean that Villa are dead in the water and to be expecting nil points, but there's more of a challenge against the likes of Liverpool and Manchester City than there is against Stoke City or Hull City.

The aforementioned statement isn't meant to disrespect fans of the Potters or Tigers, but Villa have had a (comparatively) easy start to the season.

Yes, there are no easy games in the Premier League, but you can bet that a team would rather play Hull City instead of Manchester City.

Part of what will make the team have the best chance going forwards means tying down players to longer term deals.

Gabriel Agbonlahor - Villa's all-time highest Premier League scorer - signed up this week, leaving many fans feverishly wondering when Ron Vlaar and Fabian Delph will be signing on the dotted line.

In an ideal world, both would be signed up tomorrow, but Villa live in a less than ideal world.

Between financial restrictions that have been affecting the club for numerous years, and the somewhat unfashionable nature of Villa's brand in 2014, there are plenty of options out there for good footballers.

After all, Agbonlahor signing a new contract is almost obvious - the lad supports the club - but Vlaar and Delph are different stories.

Neither of them are local, and neither of them have a massive link to Villa in the same way Agbonlahor does.

Of course, that doesn't preclude either or both from agreeing new deals, but it does illustrate how - to most - football is just a job.

In that sense, loyalty is understandably a rare thing. Ask the average person whether they are loyal to their employers and you'll hear largely ambivalence.

Offer most people double their wages to jump ship from Acme Co to Widget Brothers and they would be gone like a shot - they don't care what company names are on their payslip so long as they pay.

What does this mean for the weekend though? Cohesion - and the loyalty that is infered from such a stance - is the key for Villa.

After years of aimless meandering due to changing personnel and changing circumstances, Villa have started to put together the foundations of a good side.

No, Villa aren't likely to be trailblazers this season, but keeping hold of their best players is certainly a good step towards a brighter future. Can Villa do well at Anfield? We'll find out this Saturday.

You can follow Matt Turvey's regular opinions at his own site, Aston Villa Life at http://www.astonvillalife.com, via the site's Twitter account @astonvillalife, or via his own Twitter account @mturvey_star.