Let’s not be naive here. There are rules against tapping up and, with one or two exceptions, they’re generally observed (within reason), but that doesn’t mean that words aren’t said, glances exchanged and knowing nods made before a club puts in an official bid for a player. In fact, it’s highly unusual for a club to feed the paper into the fax machine and dial the number without feeling reasonably confident that it will be well received at the other end.

That’s not the case with Man City though.

Let’s also not waste any time pretending that we didn’t know that James Milner would have his suitors this summer. He’s just won the PFA Young Player of the Year, of course big clubs and those with new found wealth will be interested in acquiring his services. We heard speculation before the season had finished, it’s normal, nothing to be concerned about.

However, the general feeling seems to be that the recent bid Man City made for Milner came without any ground work being laid beforehand. I don’t want to stretch the point to claim that it came completely out of the blue, but it wasn’t expected so far as I know.

What exactly are Man City thinking? Didn’t they learn anything from their very public humiliation while attempting to lure Kaka to Eastlands? This just isn’t how it works: one does not simply fax unsolicited offers, just like one does not simply walk into Mordor.

It’s been no secret that MON intended to sit down with Milner to sort out a new contract this summer. Once it looked likely that he would be a strong candidate for South Africa, the talks were effectively postponed until after the World Cup. Again, common knowledge. By the way, that’s a smart move on James’ part so far as I know, he will be in a much better bargaining position after a strong showing in the World Cup. (I believe he’s still represented by the PFA, so this isn’t a case of greedy agents manufacturing the best conditions to feather their own nest.) So, assuming that someone at Man City was clued up enough to know this, they proceed with a bid that’s been reported consistently enough to believe is accurate at £20m.

Look, I know there’s been plenty of headlines about a “sell to buy policy” at Villa Park this summer, but that’s overstating it, it’s not that simple, not in black and white terms, and we certainly don’t need to sell any of the crown jewels. Milner has 2 years on his contract, we definitely want to sign him into a new deal as soon as possible, if Man City were seriously expecting anyone at Villa Park to be even remotely interested in their fax, they needed the numbers that followed the pound sign to be ridiculous.

I apologise in advance, but for want of a better description, they needed to send us an offer that was completely retarded. Something to cause the reader’s mouth to fall open and possibly a small amount of drool to form in the corner of their lips. An offer so audacious it would force the holder to pass the paper on to someone more senior, their hands shaking, as if just holding it could cause some medical reaction unknown.

That didn’t happen. Not interested. Now what?

Well, as I look at the wires at this precise moment I may be getting a glimpse of the future. I couldn’t speak for their accuracy – and since I’m positive nothing will happen this side of the World Cup in any case, I’m loathed to investigate further – but the headlines are now saying that Man City have upped their bid to £30m and Chelsea have “joined the race”. *sigh*

Who knows? Milner, for his part, has simply said that he intends to concentrate 100% on England and the World Cup. Quite right too. Some publications have chosen to spin that into ‘Milner refuses to commit future to Aston Villa’, but they’re the same ones who created headlines that read ‘O’Neill refuses to commit future to Aston Villa’ when he said he planned on doing the same thing this summer as every summer. You know, the rolling contract thing that he’s had since the beginning?

Ultimately, I suspect, Milner will decide his own future. I’m not sure if there is an amount that will be “retarded” enough that we’re not able to turn down. Similarly, I don’t see us forcing Milner to stay if he really wants to move on.

What would cause him to want to move on?

In his own words he has ambitions to win things – who doesn’t? Most of all, James Milner loves to play football. Martin O’Neill has talked about players, Milner in particular, being “apoplectic” at being left out of the starting XI. Then again, getting a few Champions League games could possibly make up for having to sit out the odd game now and again I suppose. Frankly, it’s a bit cliched to suggest that it’s better to play on our pitch than it is to sit on some “bigger” team’s bench in any case. Most don’t even have benches, they have those fancy Recaros.

There’s also that other cliche about being a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond of course. It’s clear that if persuaded to stay at Aston Villa that Milner would become the ticking heart quite literally at the centre of things.

One other thing to consider is stability. James is still young, but he’s been around for a while and before last season, I think he’s only had one season where he’s started and finished the season with the same manager. Maybe that’s one reason why he hasn’t quite reached the same heights as the other kid who burst onto the scene at the same time – Wayne Rooney. Until now.

And that possibly brings us to one of the most important factors – Martin O’Neill. Although he was never phased by the £12m transfer fee that we paid Newcastle, Milner was reported to be grateful that MON showed such belief in him to invest such an amount to bring him to Villa Park. He’s also benefited from his recent move into the middle, in much the same way as Gareth Barry did, and he might feel that the boss deserves at least another season from him to see what he can do.

At this point I’m speculating, but one thing I know for sure is that Milner is wise beyond his years and if there’s a young, talented player out there who is motivated by more than just money, it’s him. If he elects to go to pastures new it will be because he feels that the best solution for him as part of what is bound to be a long successful career.

What it will mean for us is different matter. OK, we might receive £30m odd perhaps, but that has to be spent in a market distorted by transfers like, oh I don’t know, maybe £30m for James Milner. Think about it; it wasn’t that long ago that City made their audacious swoop for Robinho from Madrid for £33m, now we’re talking about amounts approach that for James Milner. Who exactly are we looking to bring in and do we really expect them to fit into the hole left by Milner after 2 years at the club and just about to discover his true calling in the middle?

And then there’s the symbolism. We successfully held off Liverpool’s advances for Gareth Barry for an entire summer and then bit City’s arm off to the tune of £12m the following year. We stood up for ourselves and showed that we couldn’t be pushed around, we’re not a selling club, until such time as it suits us. I don’t think we need be concerned about being viewed as a small club to push around anymore. But we do have to wonder what hopes we seriously have about ever cracking the elusive top four if we allow our best players to be cherry picked by rivals and teams holding that position already.

Whatever happens, I hope it’s resolved as soon as possible as I simply couldn’t stomach another Gareth Barry style saga running all summer. You won’t hear a great deal more from me on the subject until there’s something substantial to say. There will be endless speculation from the tabloids and much wailing and gnashing of teeth from the fans, but none of that will have any real influence on the outcome. What will be, will be.

In the mean time, it’s all but certain that Milner will be part of Capello’s final 23 man squad for South Africa and it’s sounding more and more possible that he may well end up in his starting XI. Whatever happens during the World Cup, I’ve a feeling that if he gets enough time on the pitch, James Milner could become a huge star this summer.

Hopefully he’ll come back and make a few more headlines with Aston Villa next season. We shall see.