Five days before the start of the season and Martin O’Neill has left Aston Villa without a manager after sensationally resigning this afternoon.

Villa have offered this statement on their official site.

O’Neill thanked the club for his spell at Villa Park in his announcement and Villa have reciprocated; the decision is a major shock though and comes in the light of speculation surrounding the future of both James Milner and Ashley Young who are targets for Man City and Spurs respectively.

It’s only a presumption at this stage but it seems likely that Milner’s proposed move to Eastlands provided the catalyst for O’Neill’s decision. We must surely expect to see Milner paraded in a City shirt in the next 48-hours.

That will have major repercussions on our Fantasy lineups when it comes to Milner’s prospects. He will suddenly find himself competing for starts amongst City’s array of midfield talent and would see set to go from a 34+ start midfielder to a player who is more likely to earn around 25-30 starts in City colours. Milner’s potential as a Fantasy signing would therefore take a major hit.

Villa look set to start the season without their best player and their inspirational manager then. While their starting five fixtures (WHM new EVE stk BOL) hands them a platform for solid Fantasy returns at both ends, the impact of today’s announcement and Milner’s seemingly inevitable move could well be considerable. That will likely see the majority of Fantasy Managers scratching names like Brad Friedel, Richard Dunne and Ashley Young from the initial squad shortlist.

We’ve launched a poll in the middle column to capture your views on this very matter.