Alex McLeish admits Aston Villa need more strength in depth in the wake of their 3-0 defeat to Arsenal.
Villa manager keen to bolster his numbers
Alex McLeish admits Aston Villa need more strength in depth in the wake of their 3-0 defeat to Arsenal.
Villa only had 11 fit senior players available for the trip to Emirates Stadium following injuries to winger Charles N'Zogbia and Alan Hutton.
McLeish had an inexperienced bench for the game in north London and the club's manager concedes that it was always going to be a tough ask for his troops to garner a positive result against the Gunners.
The former Birmingham City tactician believes the gulf in spending power between the teams was there for all to see and going forward Villa need to bolster their numbers.
Kids
"I had six kids on the bench at Arsenal, the guys that have come through the Academy and one goalkeeper (Brad Guzan) who is over 25," explained McLeish.
"It was a big ask going down to the last 11 senior players that we have and now we've lost Alan Hutton as well while Charles N'Zogbia's knee means he will be out for three to four weeks.
"Arsenal were able to throw on a couple of players worth £30 million. Don't forget the disparity between us, in terms of quality and the strength of squad.
"Longer term we need more depth, absolutely."
Prudent
However, McLeish has admitted first and foremost the club need to reduce their wage bill before they can begin building the squad.
"There'll be a bit of prudence. We've still got to get to a level where Randy Lerner (Villa owner) and the club want the wages," McLeish added.
"We've have to get to that level and then build from there. But I believe that there are players out there who can enhance the quality of the squad."
