Steve Bruce says Aston Villa's key players are no longer for sale
Saturday 28 July 2018 18:53, UK
Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce is confident of holding onto his best players following talks with the club's new owners.
Bruce met majority shareholders Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens on Wednesday, where he received assurances over his future.
While Bruce is looking to bring players in, his priority remains holding onto Jack Grealish, James Chester and Jonathan Kodija as Villa chase Premier League promotion.
"The one thing that the pair of them have said is that nobody is for sale," Bruce told the club's website. "That's music to my ears.
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"We don't want to lose our best players. We all know in football that unfortunately these things happen
"But we will now be doing our utmost to make sure these things do not happen and not let them go anywhere.
"The new owners coming in has helped. I appreciate what Dr Tony did, too. He had a tough time but there's no doubting his commitment to the club.
"Let's just hope the new owners can help get Villa back to where they should be. It's going to take time but hopefully we can now look forward."
The one thing that the pair of them have said is that nobody is for sale. That's music to my ears.
Villa were 2-1 winners over Dynamo Dresden on Saturday, Andre Green scoring twice in a comeback win in Germany.
But Bruce's injury problems in attack are mounting and he hopes to bring in a striker before the transfer window closes.
"Scott Hogan has got a bad groin - he hasn't joined in pre-season at all," said Bruce.
"Keinan Davis has got an awful groin injury that has haunted him for a few months now.
"The other one is Jonathan Kodjia. He's sore. He took a whack. It's more precaution. I expect him to be okay for the first game of the season.
"Rushian Hepburn-Murphy went over his ankle in training three weeks ago.
"Two of our strikers are young boys. Even Andre Green is only 20, who was a makeshift [against Dresden], but he's proved to me today that he can score goals.
"In adversity, there's always something. He's give us something to think about."
