Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan is confident that increased competition for places at the club will see them perform better next season.
The Villans have struggled in recent years and, after being involved in relegation battles, have managed to finish 15th under Paul Lambert for the past two seasons.
The Midlands outfit have struggled with a smaller squad compared to most of their Premier League rivals and owner Randy Lerner put the club up for sale in May.
Lambert has managed to add some players to his squad this summer but they have all arrived on free transfers. Joe Cole, Kieran Richardson and Philippe Senderos have all joined but it remains to be seen if Lambert can add any more players to his squad.
The former Norwich manager will be without Christian Benteke until at least October due to an Achilles injury but Guzan believes the team can rally and improve this season.
He told The Sun: “The last few seasons haven’t been easy because we haven’t had the same resources as other clubs with bigger squads.
“But when we are on top of our game we’re exciting to watch and capable of beating anyone.
“We have the basis of a team our fans can be proud of again. Competition raises the bar for a club and I can see that happening to us next season.”
With a lack of funds once again set to cause problems, Villa can be backed at odds of 4.00 to be relegated this season.
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