Gallagher, Barkley, Iling-Junior and McKennie transfers will cause huge Champions League problem

Aston Villa head coach Unai Emery will have to make some important decisions to meet the squad rules of both the Premier League and Champions League.

Each Premier League club must submit a squad list after each transfer window closes. Teams are allowed to name a squad of 25 players, with a minimum of eight that are classed as homegrown players. A homegrown player is a player who, irrespective of nationality or age, has been registered with any club affiliated to The FA or the FA of Wales for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons before his 21st birthday.

In the Premier League, a player counts as homegrown when they have been registered to an English or Welsh club for a period of three seasons (or years) before his 21st birthday. Last season, Villa submitted a 23-man squad with seven homegrown players, while Tim Iroegbunam was listed as an under-21 player.

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January signing Morgan Rogers will turn 22 next month and will have to be registered in the 25-man squad rather than as an under-21 as he was back in February. Cameron Archer, who is returning to the club following Sheffield United's relegation, would also be registered in the 25-man squad if he remains at the club, although unlikely. Viljami Sinisalo also qualifies as a homegrown player, but a decision on his future will be made this summer too.

Meanwhile, Calum Chambers will be allowed to leave the club this summer given his lack of game time under Emery last season. Matty Cash, another homegrown player, is of interest to AC Milan this summer.

Ross Barkley and Samuel Iling-Junior are both expected to sign for Villa this summer, adding at least two more homegrown players to Emery's squad. Conor Gallagher is of interest to Villa and could be targeted once the club raises funds.

Currently, Villa have 10 players who would be included in their 25-man Premier League squad and also fit the homegrown quota. They are: Emi Martinez, Sinisalo, Cash, Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Rogers, Jacob Ramsey, Ollie Watkins, Archer and Chambers. Barkley and Iling-Junior would take the number up to 12, but if Archer, Sinisalo, Chambers and Cash were all to leave, the number would drop to eight.

Iroegbunam also fits the homegrown quota, but if he remains at the club this summer, it's unlikely they will be named amongst the 25-man squad given that he is still classed as an under-21 player.

Here's where things get a little more complicated. UEFA have their own squad rules which Villa will have to comply with when they compete in the Champions League. Each club playing in the competition must submit two lists of players to UEFA; list A and list B. In list A, no club can have more than 25 players. However, a club can register an unlimited number of players on list B. Each club must also have at least two goalkeepers on list A, and three after combining list A and B.

In the Champions League, eight squad places in list A are reserved for "locally trained players" or homegrown players, which are either: club-trained players on a club’s books for three years between the ages of 15 and 21, or association-trained players, who are on another club’s books in the same association for three years between the ages of 15 and 21.

No club can have more than four association-trained players among their eight locally trained players, meaning there must be at least four club-trained players. Essentially, four players in the 25-man squad must be club-trained and four more association-trained, leaving 17 places for players without any 'restrictions' as such.

Amongst Villa's homegrown players, only Ramsey, Iroegbunam and Archer class as club-trained players. However, 20-year-old Iroegbunam could be named on List B because when Villa submit their squad he would qualify as a club-trained player as he has been with Villa for 36 months, after joining the club on July 29, 2021, and has only had one loan move to Queens Park Rangers which lasted for one season.

If a club has fewer than eight locally trained players in its squad, then the maximum number of players on list A is reduced accordingly. For example, if Villa only name Ramsey as a club-trained player, plus a further four association-trained players, then Villa's squad size will be cut by three, which is the amount of club-trained slots they failed to fill.

Last February, the squad (homegrown in bold) which Villa submitted for the Europa Conference League knockout stages was...

Emiliano Martinez, Joe Gauci, Robin Olsen.

Matty Cash, Diego Carlos, Ezri Konsa, Lucas Digne, Pau Torres, Alex Moreno, Clement Lenglet.

Douglas Luiz, John McGinn, Youri Tielemans, Jacob Ramsey, Tim Iroegbunam, Boubacar Kamara.

Ollie Watkins, Moussa Diaby, Nicolo Zaniolo, Jhon Duran, Morgan Rogers, Leon Bailey

Next season, Tyrone Mings and Emi Buendia are expected to replace Clement Lenglet and Nicolo Zaniolo, while Barkley, Iling-Junior and Weston McKennie should also come in as Luiz drops out. Those deals alone would push Villa above the allowed limit, given that they can only name a squad of 22 if indeed Ramsey is the only club-trained player named.

If Duran departs, then another striker could replace him and the same goes for Cash, a right-back could be signed if AC Milan meet Villa's valuation. However, if Villa were to add Conor Gallagher to their squad without him replacing anyone directly, then Emery could have to make a tough call.

The additions of Gallagher - or another midfielder - plus Barkley, Iling-Junior and McKennie, but minus Luiz and Iroegbunam (List B) would take the squad up to 24 players, two more than the permitted amount considering Ramsey will likely be the only cub-trained player named. Villa must name at least two goalkeepers in List A, but could take out either Robin Olsen or Joe Gauci in a bid to make more room, leaving Emery with a tough call to take out another player in the team.

Here's what the squad would then look like with the possible addition of Gallagher, plus Barkley, Iling-Junior and McKennie, with Luiz, Gauci and Iroegbunam taken out. It leaves Emery facing the decision to take one of the below players out to reach 22 in total. While the futures of some players are uncertain, it's likely any exit would be replaced as Villa need strength in depth.

Emiliano Martinez, Robin Olsen.

Matty Cash, Diego Carlos, Ezri Konsa, Lucas Digne, Pau Torres, Alex Moreno, Tyrone Mings.

John McGinn, Youri Tielemans, Jacob Ramsey, Boubacar Kamara, Weston McKennie, Ross Barkley, Samuel Iling-Junior, Conor Gallagher

Ollie Watkins, Moussa Diaby, Emi Buendia, Jhon Duran, Morgan Rogers, Leon Bailey

List A squad has to be submitted on September 3 for all matches from the first match in the league phase up to and including the final.

After the completion of the league phase and before the start of the knockout phase, Villa may register a maximum of three new eligible players for the remaining matches in the current competition. Such registrations must be completed by 6 February 2025 (24:00 CET) at the latest.

If the registration of such new players causes the number of players on List A to exceed 25, Villa must remove the necessary number of currently registered players to reduce the List A to 25 players again. The quota of locally trained players must be respected when registering new players.

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