November 3: Aston Villa do not take legal action against Jamie Carragher, swiftly ending what turned out to be a tempest in a teacup.
Villa had threatened legal action after the Sky Sports pundit told Villa fans to “cut the crap” on the Stick to Football podcast, following criticism of his suggestion that Unai Emery should consider the Manchester United job if Michael Carrick is sacked.
In a statement on Friday night, co-owner Nassef Sawiris said: “Aston Villa will take legal action against Jamie Carragher for his unacceptable insults about the Club and its fans. Aston Villa will not allow anyone to stop our ascent in English and European football.”
Carragher, a former Liverpool player, apologized the following day. “I would like to apologize to Aston Villa, the owners and their fans,” he posted. “My language this week was clumsy and wrong. I can assure the Villa fans that it was tongue-in-cheek, but I can understand that it didn’t come across that way, so I apologize.”
Sources have told the Press Association that Villa will now take no further action.
The episode said a lot about where Villa thinks they are now. Having qualified for the Champions League twice in three seasons and won the Europa League, the club see themselves as a challenger to the traditional Big Six and are increasingly unwilling to accept being described as anything else. Sawiris has been outspoken about the rules and attitudes he believes protect established clubs.
Some within the club questioned whether threatening legal action against an expert sent the right message. Others suggested that the real target was Manchester United, making it clear that Emery is not available.
