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Dean Smith warns Premier League clubs are not immune to financial troubles

:Headline: Dean Smith warns Premier League clubs are not immune to financial troubles: ID:369870: from db_amp
Villa were close to administration after losing the Championship play-off final in 2018.

Aston Villa boss Dean Smith has warned no club is too big to suffer financial problems.

Villa go to Crystal Palace on Saturday following a £130million summer spending spree.

It came just a year after the club almost slipped into administration following their failure to win promotion back to the Premier League in 2018 under former owner Tony Xia.

Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens' buy out saved Villa before they went up via the play-offs last season but Bury's collapse this week and Bolton's plight has put football finances into sharper focus.

Smith managed Walsall in Sky Bet League One on a strict budget and knows how difficult it is to balance the books but insisted any club could be at risk if they overspend.

He said: "There are an awful lot of big football clubs in the Championship who are pushing the boat out trying to get back into the Premier League because of the financial rewards that are in there.

"Tread that path with caution because not every team can be successful and the ones that aren't are the ones who can get caught out.

"I followed it, it was scary times for a club like Aston Villa to potentially go into liquidation. Fortunately, the owners came in at the right time."

Despite their outlay, including spending a record £22million on striker Wesley, Smith also confirmed for the first time Villa cooled their interest in Neal Maupay because of his price tag.

The striker, who Smith worked with at Brentford, joined Brighton from the Bees for £20million but the money talked about was too high for Villa.

"Maupay, for instance, I personally thought at that time was a little bit too much," said Smith.

"I love him as a player but the numbers that were getting talked about for me were too much.

"There are a lot of players out there you would obviously like.

"What you want if you are going to bring a player in is you want to increase that value.

"What you don't want is to decrease it because otherwise, you are not doing a very good job."

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1Arsenal28204470244664
2Liverpool28197265263964
3Manchester CityMan City28196363283563
4Aston Villa29175760421856
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs28165759421753
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd28152113939047
7West Ham UnitedWest Ham2912894650-444
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2811985044642
9Wolverhampton WanderersWolves28125114244-241
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle281241259481140
11Chelsea27116104745239
12Fulham29115134344-138
13Bournemouth2898114152-1135
14Crystal Palace2878133348-1529
15Brentford2975174154-1326
16Everton2887132939-1025
17Luton TownLuton2957174260-1822
18Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest2967163551-1621
19Burnley2945202963-3417
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd2835202474-5014
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