John McGinn sends Aston Villa message after major summer exits

Aston Villa captain John McGinn believes the club can continue competing with England's and Europe's elite despite another summer of significant squad changes.

Villa have already sanctioned the departures of Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans and Lucas Digne, with the latter joining Paris Saint-Germain ahead of Wednesday's UEFA Super Cup meeting between the two clubs.

Despite losing several experienced players, McGinn insists Villa's culture, leadership and ambition remain unchanged under Unai Emery.

Speaking ahead of the Super Cup final, the Scotland international acknowledged that Villa have undergone another period of transition but believes the club has repeatedly shown it can emerge stronger.

"A lot has changed, yeah, but a lot has changed in the eight years that I've been here.

"When we got promoted to the Premier League, there was a lot of change in the summer."

McGinn admitted that success naturally attracts interest from rival clubs, particularly when developing some of the country's best young talent.

"When you're signing the best young English talent, there's only going to be interest in them. When your players are performing at the highest level, there's going to be interest."

The midfielder believes Aston Villa's established structure will help new arrivals settle quickly.

"We've got a structure in place, we've got standards and rules which have made us successful over the past few seasons, and our job is just to integrate the new players and try and make them believe the same way the players in the last few seasons have believed."

McGinn insists expectations inside the club remain unchanged despite the departures.

After lifting the Europa League last season, Villa are determined to remain among the Premier League's strongest teams while continuing to compete in Europe.

"I think we've consistently competed with the best in England, I think we've consistently competed with the best in Europe no matter what the competition is.

"We will have our challenges, there's a lot of change, but when you look at other clubs around England there's a lot of changes there as well."

He also pointed to the stability provided by Emery and his coaching staff.

"What we have still is our main core; the same manager, the same methods, the same desire to achieve more.

"We've still got the same hunger and desire to go and achieve more, and as long as we've got the hunger and desire to do that you can expect as much as possible."

Villa will head into Wednesday's clash with Paris Saint-Germain without several key players.

Emery confirmed Ollie Watkins, Ezri Konsa and Emiliano Martinez will all miss the fixture after being granted extended breaks following their involvement at the World Cup.

The Spanish coach also acknowledged the challenge of preparing for the curtain-raising European final with a squad still building fitness.

"Of course tomorrow we are not going to be in our best moment.

"Tomorrow we are going to compete. We are preparing this game with the players we started with four weeks ago, even some young players, and tomorrow, I expect to compete."

Emery has previously managed in three UEFA Super Cup finals but is still searching for his first victory in the competition.

Aston Villa begin their competitive season against Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup, where Emery will rely on a squad still regaining full fitness after the summer. As the new signings continue to integrate into the team, Villa will aim to prove they can remain among England's leading clubs despite another significant rebuild.