Gerard Houllier's Transfer Record Should Be Cause for Concern at Aston Villa

The recent appointment of Gerard Houllier as Aston Villa manager is unlikely to inspire confidence in either the players or the fans.

Houllier had a moderately successful spell at Liverpool but his record there was almost totally undermined by his disastrous dealings in the transfer market.

In six seasons at Anfield, the most significant piece of silverware which Houllier won was the UEFA Cup in 2001. His side triumphed in every single cup competition they entered that season, also winning the FA Cup and the League Cup.

Three trophies in in one campaign represented a very respectable haul for Houllier. Unfortunately for the Frenchman, he had nothing but an additional League Cup win to show for his other five seasons at the club.

Houllier is still best remembered on Merseyside for a transfer policy which consistently perplexed and frustrated the fans. He was given the financial resources with which to overtake Arsenal and Manchester United but consistently wasted money on overpriced, underperforming players.

Houllier embarked on a radical overhaul of the squad immediately after arriving at Liverpool. A number of players were sold, including goalkeeper David James while eight new players arrived: Sami Hyypiä, Dietmar Hamann, Stéphane Henchoz, Vladimír Šmicer, Sander Westerveld, Titi Camara, Eric Meijer and Djimi Traoré.

Of these eight only Hyypia, Henchoz, and Hamann would go on to enjoy sustained Anfield success. James, who was sold to Aston Villa for £1.8 million, actually spent another decade in the Premiership, establishing himself as England's number one in the process.

His replacement, Westerveld, was signed for £4 million, making him the most expensive goalkeeper in British football at the time. Despite being four years younger than James, he is now playing in the third tier of Italian football and even spent a season without a club.

In fairness to his manager, Weserveld's spell at Anfield was initially successful and the mistakes didn't start to creep in until the end of his second season. By this time, Houllier had won his treble with the aid of some preseason activity, which saw Markus Babbel, Nicky Barmby, Pegguy Arphexad, Grégory Vignal, Emile Heskey, Gary McAllister, Igor Bišćan, and Christian Ziege arrive and David Thompson, Phil Babb, Dominic Matteo, Steve Staunton, Brad Friedel and, Stig Inge Bjørnebye depart.

Neither Babbel, Ziege, nor Biscan were disastrous signings but none of them really enhanced their reputations at Anfield and all were sold for a loss. McAllister was 35 years old when he arrived on a free transfer but was a huge success and is widely regarded as being Houllier's best signing at the club. Barmy and Heskey arrived for a combined fee of  £17 million, an enormous amount of money in those days. Both enjoyed moderate success on Anfield before being sold at a substantial loss.

Houllier will actually be reunited with goalkeeper Brad Friedel at Aston Villa. The success which the American has had since leaving Liverpool makes a mockery of the manager's decision to allow him to leave on a free transfer. His replacement, Jerzy Dudek, who cost £4.8 million, will be fondly remembered on Merseyside but the club never recouped a penny of his transfer fee either.

It was the summer of 2003 that really put the nail in the coffin for Houllier: After failing to qualify for the Champions League, he was under pressure to turn the club around. Houllier's response was to splash out almost £20 million on El Hadji Diouf, Salif Diao, and Bruno Cheyrou. Seldom in the history of football can such a large sum of money have been so hopelessly squandered.

All three players ended up being loaned out to smaller clubs and the transfer fees they commanded when they eventually did leave Liverpool are shrouded in secrecy. The club are presumably unwilling to admit to just how much money was wasted.

The most damning indictment of Houllier's decision making in the transfer market was the piece of business which saw Diouf signed for £10 million while Nicolas Anelka was allowed to leave.

Anelka had been on loan at the club and was desperate to sign a permanent deal, but Houllier decided against it and the rest is history.

Diouf would go on to score three goals in 55 appearances for Liverpool while Anelka reluctantly joined Manchester City for £13 million and averaged a goal almost every other game.

The best Premiership managers tend to be shrewd operators in the transfer market. Alex Ferguson made over £60 million on Cristiano Ronaldo, Martin O' Neill made around £15 in the James Milner deal—which ultimately led to his departure.

Arsene Wenger has turned Arsenal into the most economical club in Europe by consistently picking up players like Kolo Toure, Patrick Vieira, Marc Overmars, Emmanuel Adebayor, and Anelka for a pittance and selling them on at an enormous profit.

Although Rafa Benitez never cashed in on Fernando Torres, had he chosen to do so, the Spanish striker would have been worth around £50 million more than the figure Liverpool initially paid for him. By contrast, Houllier barely made a profit on a single player at Liverpool. He was a little more prudent at Lyon and made a handful of astute signings but his transfer record in the Premiership remains poor.

Given Houllier's propensity for blowing enormous sums of money on mediocre players, the timing of his appointment appears somewhat prescient. With the transfer window now firmly shut, Houllier will have to wait at least a few months before he can spend any of the money, which Aston Villa presumably have at their disposal after the sale of James Milner.

Aston Villa are in a precarious position. O'Neill worked wonders to keep them near the top of the table but the Premiership is becoming an increasingly competitive place. Houllier's predecessor did make the odd mistake, with the £8.5 million spent on Nigel Reo Coker not looking a particularly smart piece of business. However, the presence in the Aston Villa side of the likes of James Collins, Richard Dunne, Ashley Young, and John Carew is testament to the fact that more often than not O'Neill got it right.

There are already three first team players at Aston Villa who were either sold, loaned out, or released by Houllier at previous clubs. Stephen Warnock and Brad Friedel are believed to be firmly opposed to his appointment while John Carew, who Houllier swapped for Milan Baros during his time at Lyon, might well have similar reservations.

The only consolation for Aston Villa fans is that the transfer window does not open again until January 1st. Houllier might have learned from his mistakes at Liverpool but letting him loose with the cheque book still constitutes a substantial risk.