What next for Villa after Martinez snub?

Roberto Martinez has opted to stay at Wigan after being courted by Aston Villa

Just 12 months ago, the Aston Villa manager's job looked like one of the most attractive in the country.

They had finished in the top six of the Premier League for three consecutive years, just reached the final of the Carling Cup and semi-final of the FA Cup and appeared to be going places under ambitious owner Randy Lerner.

Just a year on though and the club appears to be in a mess.

Martin O'Neill resigned as manager just before the start of last season to leave the club in limbo and was eventually succeeded by the aging Gerard Houllier, who proved to be out of touch with the modern game before he was forced to step down with health troubles.

Now, Villa are struggling to replace him.

First Mark Hughes was ruled out, then Carlo Ancelotti, Rafael Benitez and Steve McClaren were also said to be out of the running.

Lerner turned to Wigan's Roberto Martinez, 37, appearing to make the Spaniard Villa's new number one choice, but he declined the opportunity to discuss taking over at Villa Park.

Martinez has shown refreshing loyalty to his current employers at a time when money appears to mean everything in football, but Villa fans will be wondering how far their club has declined now the manager of, no disrespect, Wigan does not want to take charge of them.

The job was never offered to Martinez, but he did appear to be Lerner's preferred choice after other candidates ruled themselves out and the American must now be wondering why his club is so unattractive to potential new bosses.

Villa may not have hit the heights of last season in this campaign, but they still secured a top-half finish and boast talents such as Darren Bent, Stewart Downing and Marc Albrighton. Their fan-base and history remains, so on the face of it this job should be as attractive as ever.

Villa star Ashley Young looks set to join Manchester United in the near future

Villa's leading light, Ashley Young, will move on this summer but that will surely free up funds for transfers that ambitious managers should thrive on.

The big problem they now have is that any potential new manager will know they were not the first choice for the job. In fact, they will know they were not even second, perhaps third, maybe even fourth choice.

However, Villa must press on with their search for a new manager as they know from their experiences last year that the new boss will need a full pre-season campaign to have the best impact possible.

In an official club statement, Villa stated that Martinez's status as a "young and aspirational" manager attracted them to him, suggesting that is a criteria they will be using for the rest of their manager search.

Mark Hughes would probably fit into that category and has been reinstated as the favourite for the post.

Mark Hughes is a free agent after walking out on Fulham

The problem with Hughes is that Villa cannot approach him or his representatives until this month is over, meaning the Welshman would have limited time to look at transfer targets and evaluate his squad if appointed.

Hughes is clearly a very talented manager who has not done a bad job wherever he has been, but his reputation has been tainted somewhat by the way he left Fulham and that is another factor which may lead the Villa board to appoint someone else.

There are conspiracy theories that the whole Martinez episode is part of an elaborate smokescreen by Villa, so they can appoint Hughes without Fulham thinking they have poached him from them, but that seems highly unlikely as Lerner appears to be a man who has a tremendous amount of respect for his fellow owners and boards, something Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has touched upon in interviews regarding the conduct of Villa while they were chasing Martinez.

Hughes is a man destined to manage at the top of the game and Villa would be a great platform for him, and he is the most likely man to take charge at Villa Park at the moment.

Another man who fits the Villa blueprint is Bolton manager Owen Coyle.

Coyle has impressed in his managerial career at St Johnstone, Burnley and Bolton

Coyle is a terrific young manager very much in a similar mold to Martinez, as he likes his teams to get the ball down and play, but Villa could face the same problem if they were to go in for the Scot.

Coyle has a real affinity for Bolton and, like Martinez, he has a good working relationship with his chairman and played for his current employers in his playing days, so whether Villa could prise him away from the Reebok Stadium remains to be seen.

Everton's David Moyes is also said to be in the frame but it is difficult to see him leaving Everton for a club who finished below the Toffees last season.

Moyes is destined for bigger and better things but when he leaves Goodison Park, he will go to a top club probably in the Champions League.

Steve McClaren was thought to be high on Villa's shortlist and was reportedly set for an interview yesterday, only for it to be cancelled by the board.

Former England boss McClaren won the Eredivisie in charge of FC Twente

It is rumoured the interview was scrapped due to negative fan reaction to his potential appointment, but McClaren in reality would be a very good choice for Villa.

He served his apprenticeship at Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson, meaning he knows what it takes to work at the top, and did terrifically well at Middlesbrough, leading them to their first major trophy and to the UEFA Cup final.

Of course, his reputation took a massive battering after his time in charge of England, who failed to qualify for Euro 2008 under his leadership, but surely someone in England should be ready to give him a chance now.

His image as the "Wally with a brolly" should be shaken off by now after he rebuilt his reputation in Holland with FC Twente, winning the Dutch Championship during his time there.

He should be applauded for being one of very few English managers to venture abroad and although he had a short and unsuccessful time at Wolfsburg, the time is right for a Premier League club to give him the chance to fully rebuild his reputation in England in the same way Sven Goran Eriksson has done.

As for criticism from fans, Randy Lerner and the Villa board should pay attention to it but not allow it to shape their judgement.

Villa owner Lerner reportedly cancelled an interview with McClaren after negativity from fans

They should sit down with him and learn about his philosophy and potential plans for Villa, and if Lerner and the board then feel McClaren is the right man for the job they must be strong and vow to prove fans wrong.

Sadly, it appears there is nothing McClaren can do to get a job in England at the moment due to his reign in charge of the national team but the England job clearly came too early for him and should not affect his potential appointments at clubs now. He has a league championship to his name, albeit in Holland, and in no other country than England would a manager like him be sidelined due to one sour reign in charge of the national team.

Going back to Villa's plan of appointing a "young and aspirational manager", there are many others who would fit into that category.

Gianfranco Zola and Roberto Di Matteo are both out of work at the moment and although they have limited experience as managers in the Premier League, they deserve to be given another chance at it. Both look to play football the right way, similarly to Martinez, but would present a large gamble if either was to be appointed.

Gus Poyet and Paul Lambert also play attractive football and have achieved success in the lower leagues, but neither have Premier League experience as managers and both may find it difficult to leave their current clubs as both have just won promotion. Both are an outside bet to succeed Houllier but it is clear they will have long careers in management.

Blackpool manager Ian Holloway has not been mentioned in connection to the vacant post at Villa but he too could be in the running.

It is not yet known whether Ian Holloway will leave Blackpool this summer

His Blackpool side were a joy to watch this season despite being relegated, and it is thought Holloway is not certain to remain in charge at Bloomfield Road next season.

He would be an interesting choice the Villa board may not be ready to make, but he at least deserves a mention.

If Villa are looking for a big name, the likes of Carlo Ancelotti, Rafael Benitez, Frank Rijkaard and Louis van Gaal have all been linked but it would seem unlikely any of them are realistic candidates.

Rijkaard and van Gaal have never worked in England while Ancelotti wants to take a one-year sabbatical from the game and Benitez was reportedly approached by Villa but had reservations with the transfer budget.

Looking at the names already mentioned, there are not too many who Villa would realistically appoint as manager so it may be a name from left field that takes charge.

USA national team manager Bob Bradley was the heavy favourite for the job last year due to his links with compatriot Lerner, but has not really been mentioned this time around.

Former Birmingham manager Steve Bruce may be disillusioned with life at Sunderland after the losses of Darren Bent and Jordan Henderson and potential sale of Asamoah Gyan, so his potential availability may be something Villa have been alerted to.

Steve Bruce had a six-year spell in charge of Villa's fierce rivals Birmingham

Bruce was doing a fine job at the Stadium of Light last season before a collapse late in the campaign, while he did decent jobs at Wigan and Birmingham, so may not be such an unlikely candidate for the Villa job as it seems.

If Villa were to consider a former Birmingham manager for the job, then how about the current Blues boss?

Alex McLeish has been linked with several Premier League jobs in the past and his odds for the Villa post are shortening, but it remains to be seen what Villa fans would think of such a move.

Martin Jol has only just been appointed Fulham manager but could he potentially be in the frame for the Villa job? Stranger things have happened in football.

It is extremely unlikely Jol would walk out on a club who have shown great faith in him before even taking charge of a game, but Villa were said to be interested in him last year and Jol did a good job at Tottenham, a club of a similar stature to Villa.

Croatia boss Slaven Bilic always seems to be linked with Premier League jobs but he has not really been linked with Villa yet. He still appears committed to his country though so he is not a realistic candidate.

A final unlikely candidate for the job to look at is Villa's former manager Martin O'Neill.

O'Neill left Villa on bitter terms so a return is highly unlikely

O'Neill took his former club to the courts earlier this year over his resignation and clearly had a major falling out with owner Randy Lerner, but could they resolve their differences and rekindle their relationship? Probably not, but it is a very interesting possibility.

Whoever takes over, they will inherit a healthy squad who should be aiming for European qualification next season.

Of course, they will take charge against a backdrop of uncertainty surrounding the current playing squad, with Ashley Young and Stewart Downing heavily linked with moves, but any ambitious manager would not fail to be excited by the prospect of taking over at Villa Park.

The likes of Darren Bent will certainly be there this season and his signing in January showed the ambition the club has, so in theory managers should be queuing up for the Villa job.

In reality, that does not appear to be the case but Aston Villa is a big club with a strong fan-base and good history. They deserve a big manager and they deserve success.

Villa fans have very high expectations but that should be attractive to potential managers as they would be taking charge of an ambitious club who are ready to take the next step.

New signings will need to be made but the funds are there to do it so a new manager will be able to shape the squad the way he wants to.

Gerard Houllier's appointment last September did not work out for Villa

Whoever takes over will know they were not the board's ideal choice to take over, something which has reportedly put Owen Coyle off the idea of succeeding Houllier, but they will have the chance to create something special at Villa Park.

Villa need to get this choice right as the Houllier appointment did not work out - the only managerial appointment Lerner has had to make in his time at the club - and they need to ensure the gap between them and the top four, which was not too wide under Martin O'Neill, does not become an irreversible margin.

Hughes is the favourite and I think he is the most likely to take charge.

However, this job could go to anyone now Martinez has ruled himself out and Villa must make the right decision to avoid falling even further back.