AVFC Transfer News: Young, Hogg out; Makoun may be leaving

Well, even aside from the single most boring match that has ever been played in the history of soccer ever and the 3rd round League Cup draw, Aston Villa have been busy today. What was merely rumor yesterday has been confirmed now. Luke Young and Jonathan Hogg are both on their way out of Villa Park. Young is headed to London to join Queens Park Rangers, while Hogg is off to Watford to join the Hornets. The fee for Young was undisclosed, while Hogg has brought £300,000 back to Birmingham.

Luke Young looked to be Alex McLeish's first choice for the right-back position this year, but given the past two games we've seen from Eric Lichaj and Chris Herd, I doubt many fans will miss him. Lichaj has oodles of potential, and Herd turned in a worth Man of the Match performance today, supplying Villa with a little creativity, some presence in the air, and decent defense. Young is a solid player, of that there is no doubt, but with Lichaj, Herd, and Carlos Cuellar in the fold, I doubt we'll miss him much.

And Jonathan Hogg did not look to figure prominently in the plan for Aston Villa at all this season. He was young, and it was nice to have him signed for two more years, but given Villa's youth depth in the midfield, the loss is minimal. If either transfer helps Villa bring in one or two more players at key positions, they will be worth it.

Finally, the Jean Makoun to Olympiakos rumors just won't go away. Sky Sports is reporting that the Greek club have shown renewed interest in the Cameroon international, and if he wanted to go, I don't think we could blame him. He has yet to see the pitch in a premier league match this season even though he is likely better than Stiliyan Petrov. Additionally, Olympiakos will be competing in the Champions League. That said, I still think Makoun has a ton to offer us, and I sincerely hope he sticks around and that Big Eck sees that he should play more often.

So are these moves good for Villa? Let me know what you think in the comments below.