Even after the last ball had been kicked of the 2017/18 season, Villa kept their fans on their toes with a summer of barrel-scraping lows and intense euphoria.

The financial problems that plagued them in the aftermath of their play off final defeat looked to have sunk the club without a trace. Vultures circled looking to pick off the best players cheap as financial realities hit home.

A failure to earn promotion had cost the club more than it could afford and there wasn't a Villa fan in the country who could see any sort of future for the side.

Then, just last week, salvation came in the form of an Egyptian and American businessman, rescuing the ailing club and becoming majority shareholders. The good times are not back, the club are not out of the woods, but there's a clear path now and a shot at a future once more.

The new faces in the boardroom will likely bring new faces on the pitch, but one or two of the old players might now struggle to get a look in. Where just three weeks ago the club were going to have to make do, now the misfits might be pushed to one side.

Here's the Villa players likely never to play for the club again.

Takeover or no takeover, Ross McCormack was never going to play for Villa again. His transfer from Fulham turned into a nightmare very quickly as his clash with Steve Bruce derailed any chance of a future with the club.

They want rid, soon. What the player wants isn't known, but we imagine not having to see Steve Bruce every day would be the starting point.

Richards is another big earner who hasn't featured for the club in recent months and is another likely never to be seen again.

The 30-year old was once an England prospect, but his career faltered and now he can't even get a cut price move away from Villa Park.

Lansbury was offered an olive branch earlier this summer, but the new owners might see things differently. Whilst they couldn't attract a bid for the struggling midfielder, they might now want to just clear the decks.

Lansbury only just makes the list because there has been talk of an improved role at the club, but all bets are off now there's new owners in town.

It's not often a player comes back to his club from a World Cup and is out on his ear, but Bjarnsson appears to have kicked his last ball for Villa.

He struggled to nail down a place last season and even the input of new cash won't stop his desire to leave, nor the club's non-existent attempts to stop it happening.