Former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie feels they need to buy experience this summer.
Hendrie wants those youngsters to given help if Villa are to break the cycle of scratching around the bottom of the league in an annual search of enough end-of-season points to stay up.
"Do we blame Lambert? I don't know. Do we need more money? The clubs at the top end of the market are slowly drifting away from us," he told the Birmingham Mail.
"Your Tottenhams are spending a few quid and trying to get into Europe. I think we are on par with the likes of those clubs it's just how much money you get to spend in the transfer window and whether Randy Lerner is willing to throw a few quid at it. Which doesn't seem to be the case.
"I think you have got some great young players, Ash [Westwood], Delph, Benteke, we have got some good players and if you add four or five to them we are back with a fighting chance of getting back into Europe.
"Without three or four players I think we are going to struggle again and each year teams are progressing and getting stronger and stronger.
"That's why we are ending up down the pecking order where we could end up finishing fourth or fifth from bottom. That's not Aston Villa.
"Aston Villa are mid-table-upwards and for whatever reason it just hasn't happened. I can see them getting caught short one year.
"I think if we don't do something for next season I think we are going to end up getting caught. Now teams are starting to win, which is a little bit too late for some of them. We have had a lucky escape. [And] Last year we did."
