A question remains over whether manager Gerard Houllier will return despite making encouraging progress after his recent heart problems.

There are also key decisions to be made on the future of several players including Ashley Young, Brad Friedel and Nigel Reo-Coker.

Luke Young said: "It is going to be another summer of no one knowing what's really going on for a while.

"I would hope the manager, first and foremost, is healthy and he comes through the trouble he has been having with his heart.

"I think also we need to know what we are doing, who is going to be taking the club forward, who is going to be making the decision on what players stay and go and who is going to be in charge for next season.

"Hopefully Gerard is fine and he can carry on but at the minute, let's be honest, no one really knows what is going on.

"We've discussed it ourselves as players, who is going to be making the decisions to keep and sell. No one knows again."

Villa have had four managers since the end of last season in Martin O'Neill, care-taker Kevin MacDonald, Houllier and now his stand-in Gary McAllister.

But Young refuses to use that as an excuse for a season of under-achievement.

He said: "That's our job, to do a lot better than we have this year. We are not going to make loads of excuses.

"It is not ideal (having different managers) but, as a group of players, we know where we are in the league is not good enough and we are honest enough as a group to know we haven't done enough.

"I don't feel we should be struggling with the squad we've got and next year let's hope we fly out the blocks a little bit better than we did this year and we really move on."