Aston Villa were thrashed by League 2’s Luton Town in the EFL Cup last night following promises by Dr Tony Xia that the club would be the biggest in Europe in five years.
Talking to fans on Twitter in a #AskTheChairman forum he said the club could be up there with the likes of Manchester United, Real Madrid and Barcelona in a few years, with the “highest number of fans all over the world”.
But his optimism may have been subdued following back-to-back defeats in the opening games of the season, with Villa crashing out of the EFL Cup and losing their Championship opener to Sheffield Wednesday.
Social media erupted following the result, with Birmingham City director Panos Pavlakis one of the first to take a cheeky pop at the club.
Before the bookies stuck the boot in:
