COMMENT: It can't be over. Not with that buyout clause.

Aston Villa fans are celebrating today. And Fabian Delph is being applauded. But so long as that £8 million buyout clause remains in his contract, Villa will be susceptible to losing Delph to clubs of the size of Manchester City.

Villa fans claim it was loyalty. City support reckons he bottled it. Either way, at eight million quid, Villa remain wide open to hostile bids.

If not City, then why not Arsenal?

It's claimed Delph, after frantic calls put into teammates Micah Richards and Scott Sinclair, had heard enough to pull out of Saturday's scheduled medical at the Etihad. Both Richards and Sinclair arrived at Villa Park this year, full of horror stories about their treatment at City as English players.

Richards didn't get along with Manuel Pellegrini, the City manager. And Sinclair simply didn't get a look in at all. You can just imagine how their conversations went with Delph on that frantic Friday.

But Arsenal would be a different story.

Arsene Wenger, the Gunners manager, needs a defensive lynchpin for his midfield. Francois Coquelin was a success last season, but he's no Delph. And the chance to bring in a senior England player, though still only 25, at a cut-price £8 million would be tempting for Wenger.

Having had Petr Cech fall into his arms for a bargain £11 million from Chelsea, to land a £25-30 million-rated Delph for £8 million is the type of deal Wenger would love to pull off. And in contrast to City, Delph would arrive to play alongside England colleagues like Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - and not to replace them.

Another Champions League qualifier could come into the equation if intermediaries make it clear that there's more to the City rejection than loyalty to Villa.

Manchester United aim to complete the signing of Bayern Munich veteran Bastian Schweinsteiger in the next 24 hours. Yet, United manager Louis van Gaal is still in the market for another midfield signing.

Morgan Schneiderlin is waiting for United to open negotiations with Southampton and ferry him to Old Trafford. But who presents the better option for Old Trafford's directors? A £25 million-rated Schneiderlin? Or Delph and his buyout clause? Both 25. Both internationals. Both have worked their way up from the lower leagues of England. It's difficult to split them, though Delph would be regarded as the superior talent - and he's available for less than a third of his French rival's price.

Then there's those clubs aspiring to break into the top four. Tottenham are still shopping for a ball-winning midfielder. While Liverpool, having brought in James Milner from City, may still put the question to Delph's minders. Two clubs happy to take advantage of a bargain and also with the spending power to tempt Delph with terms far greater than what he's on at Villa.

Should Delph still leave Villa Park before the transfer window shuts, it would be slap in the face for City and turn up the heat on their token approach to local talent. However, they wouldn't be the only losers. Delph's transfer would also leave former clubs Bradford City and Leeds United out of pocket.

The training compensation due would be very welcome - and needed - by both the Bantams and Leeds. But that's at market rate. Leaving for less than a third of his genuine value would be blow and one of the drawbacks for such low-ball fees being written into players' contracts.

Then again, the decision could already be made: Delph wants to stay. If we take Saturday's events on face-value, then it's a credit to Delph and a triumph to Tim Sherwood. If Sherwood has managed to convince Delph to resist a Champions League move and buy into what he has planned for the club, then Villa fans must be excited.

And the one action from Delph that would remove all doubt would be to scrap that clause from his AVFC contract.