Villa order captain Barry not to come back as Liverpool transfer row deepens
Liverpool target Gareth Barry looks to have played his last game for Aston Villa after the club disciplined their captain and ordered him not to report for pre-season training.
Villa took action after Barry criticised manager Martin O’Neill during a newspaper interview in which the England midfielder reaffirmed his desire to leave the club for Champions League football at Anfield. Liverpool have failed with a series of bids for the versatile 27-yearold, who can also operate in defence, but Villa yesterday refuted reports that they had received a £17m offer.
However, with player and club now openly at war, there appears no way back for Barry, and O’Neill yesterday told him not to join the rest of the squad as they begin pre-season preparations today.
“Gareth will not be returning to training tomorrow and he has been disciplined after giving an unauthorised interview,” said O’Neill. “There is no truth in this morning’s reports and the situation remains the same.”
A Villa statement added: “The report in today’s paper of a £17m offer for Gareth Barry is inaccurate. The club have received a renewed offer from Liverpool for the player but that still falls well short of Aston Villa’s evaluation, and has subsequently been rejected.”