O'Neill Resignation A Worry At Newcastle And Sunderland?

Neither Steve Bruce or Chris Hughton's jobs are under sort of threat at the moment, but that might well change if things don't go to plan at the start of the season.

It will be the same for every top flight boss outside of the top four or five and I include Manchester City's Roberto Mancini in the group who will be sitting a little less comfortably now.

It seems ludicrous to me that Villa would allow themselves to get into a situation where O'Neill walked. He has utterly transformed the club in his time in Birmingham and how many top flight clubs would kill for three European qualifications in as many seasons, as well as a place in the Carling Cup Final and the FA Cup semi-final last season.

From where I'm sitting (at Old Trafford for Durham's Championship game against Lancashire), it seems Villa owner Randy Lerner has felt the financial squeeze and suddenly realised what a money pit football can be.

Like so many new owners who have leapt blindly into the game - just look at Mike Ashley and Ellis Short - Lerner thought he could pump in a bit of cash, improve the team, and watch the millions roll back in once the club reached the Champions League, won a trophy or whatever else constitutes success these days.

He has backed O'Neill in the transfer market and he has backed him well, but the purse strings have been pulled tight and, rather than strengthen the squad, Lerner has indicated they need to sell to buy.

O'Neill might have been able to cope with the sale of James Milner - just as Kevin Keegan was two years ago - as long as he got to spend the money as he wanted. But he could not sanction the sale of Ashley Young, who is thought to also be on the way to Tottenham Hostpur.

It is also far certain he would even receive all the money from these deals to rebuild, hence the dramatic walkout, and suddenly Villa have lost the man who not only signed these players and doubled their market value, they have also lost the man who took them back up into the upper echelons of the English game after more than a decade in the doldrums.

This raises interesting points regarding Newcastle's future. Mike Ashley's grand plan is to rebuild the club gradually with young players, who can then, in theory be sold on for a profit. Well what will the manager who builds the club back up feel about that?

What if, say, Andy Carroll becomes one of the best strikers in the Premier League over the next two or three years and Ashley punts him on to, say Tottenham for £20m. Good return on an Academy graduate, but what about the damage to the team and the manager's plans?

This is precisely what has annoyed O'Neill, the man who should have replaced Sir Bobby Robson as Newcastle manager, or even Graeme Souness. Maybe the sell on thing has been exaggerated a little because, as the team improves, better players will be brought in to replace the old ones. But if these are relatively young, they can be moved on for a fee, but still it is a long term worry if you ask me.

And what about Ellis Short at Sunderland? He has sensibly urged Bruce to trim the wage bill before he allows him to spend heavily in the transfer market again because he covered losses of more than £25m last season at the Stadium of Light.

Bruce has had some money to spend, but not a lot of it, which helps explain why the sale of Kenwyne Jones - who he has a difficult relationship with - has suddenly become so attractive. He's one of the top earners and £9m is a lot to spend in today's deflated market.

As things stand, there is no reason to believe Short's commitment or intentions have changed, but he is looking for more prudence in the club's financial dealings and if Lerner can change so rapidly from Mr Ambitious to Mr Cautious, why can't he?

Food for thought for everyone in a summer in which only Manchester City's billionaire oil Sheikhs are still willing to spend silly money in the pursuit of glory.