Matt Maher: High ticket prices put more pressure on Aston Villa rebuild

One of those is VAR, after the inevitable first major blunder of the football season sparks a week-long debate about its use.

Another is Villa’s ticket prices.

Confirmation of the sale dates for upcoming Champions League group stage fixtures also reminded those supporters, who might have forgotten since the ticket prices were first announced in late May, how much they must pay to attend.

For adult non-season ticket holders, or those season ticket holders who opted not to take advantage of the bundled discount, it will cost a minimum of £89.50. The most expensive ticket, meanwhile, comes in at £99.

That probably won’t matter for matches against Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund.

But it will be interesting to see how much appetite supporters have to watch Villa play Viking, a team, with all due respect, who most will not have known even existed before the clubs were paired together in last month’s draw (they’re the Norwegian champions, based in Stavanger, before you go Googling it).

Among Villa’s excuses for the pricing strategy, in addition to the usual line about financial fair play rules (someone has to fund Alejandro Garnacho’s salary), is the fact this season they have severely limited supply due to the closure of the North Stand.

Yet even with a three-sided ground, you might not be too confident on the Viking match selling out.

The construction at that end of the stadium is also a reminder of just how much is at stake this season and the importance of Unai Emery pulling off his large-scale squad rebuild.

Next term Villa Park’s capacity will exceed 50,000 and the club would surely like European football of some description, in order to help fill it.

There’s something even bigger at play too. Through several years of price rises, supporters have been placated and continued to pay up chiefly because of the team’s success on the pitch. Under Emery, Villa have been a side which wins pretty much every other week.

The moment that rate begins to slow, dissenting voices can surface all the more quickly.

Right now there is patience, an acknowledgement of the huge summer change and a confidence Emery will deliver on the revamp.

But if Villa continue to stumble, that understanding mood won’t last forever.