O'Leary: Villa's not a stepping stone
Aston Villa manager David O’Leary has insisted there will be no “get-out” clause in his new three-and-a-half-year contract.
The Villa board of directors are understood to be keen to include a compensation clause should O’Leary become a target for a bigger club.
But the former Leeds boss, who has been linked with the Newcastle and Tottenham managerial posts in recent months, is not looking for a way out should he again be in demand.
O’Leary is expected to put pen to paper on the new deal, which will take him through to the summer of 2008, when chairman Doug Ellis returns from Premier League business in Wales at the end of the week.
“I hope the fact that there will be no get-out clause will be an indication to people that I am not just hovering here at Aston Villa for a big job to go to,” O’Leary said.
“I’m flattered that the club are looking to protect their interest by getting me to sign. Quite right of them.
“But equally I’m going into this without any get-out clauses. I don’t believe in that. I’ll be signing and there’ll be no get out clause for me.”
O’Leary added: “I cannot control if other people link me with other jobs. I can’t control that the club thinks I’m going to be linked with other jobs.
“That’s why they are trying to put a big get-out clause into the contract. But I’m not after a get-out.
“That would be like putting pen to paper until something else came along and then I cleared off.”
O’Leary has 18 months to run of his current contract and is confident that the couple of issues have still to be sorted out in the new deal will not prove to be a stumbling block.
