Even the red card was Paul Lambert’s fault, said one supporter
Despite the growing confidence from Villa’s five-game unbeaten run—form that saw them entering Saturday’s game as arguable favorites, even if they only scored five goals in those five games—Villa was well beaten by the home team when forced to play most of the game with only ten men. Kieran Richardson was sent off for a studs-up tackle on Stephane Sessegnon that manager Paul Lambert later conceded was a clear red card.
On Facebook, I saw one supporter lay the blame for the sending-off squarely at Lambert’s feet, for not having prepared Richardson well enough for the crackling derby atmosphere. First of all, it was hardly crackling. Secondly, when players make game-changing mistakes, it is extraordinarily frustrating, but shouldn’t a large portion of the blame lie with the players? Never mind that Lambert has so few to choose from.
Other than the weariness that comes from watching a loss against a beatable team, knowing you’re up against an expensively assembled side in a week, it was a pleasant enough morning at the Globe. Brian brought his two charming daughters (who were welcomed into the Chicago Lions Club by Simon) and I managed to score some good reading recommendations from Nick. And now I’m off to finally listen to that Tom Fox interview to see what everyone else is arguing about. Any two Villans have three opinions among them, and perhaps I’ll add a fourth.
Time stood still, and so did Hutton, until he finally got the shot off
A quiet Sunday at the Globe and only one Villan, a Brummie named Peter, was present as I walked through the doors with Bob Kemp and my father, Tom, visiting from Montana. Soon, however, we were joined by Simon, Kristen, Andrew, Nick, and Greg, plus a large handful of faces new to me (Ashley is the only name I can recall at the moment), possibly even shifting the usual yank-to-expat ratio in favor of the expats.
The Chicago Villans Facebook group, now numbering over 1,000 and outpacing even the Aston Villa America group, includes so many England-based Villans that Bob’s question on Friday (“Who’s going on Sunday?”) received just as many responses from Birmingham-area supporters with tickets to Villa Park as it did Chicagoland fans heading down to the pub. As much as I love hearing from random Villans worldwide, I can’t help but think we’ve lost a tiny bit of our identity as a local group.
Anyway: we won! Three beautiful points saw us reach the heady heights of 11th place! Granted, the table is congested, with teams you’d expect to do better not doing well at all (Liverpool, Tottenham, Everton), and teams you wouldn’t have expected to do very well surpassing expectations (West Ham, Southampton), with the end result that Villa are currently just as far from 5th place and European competition as they are from 18th place and relegation.
We’re 11th in the table and 8th in the form table but
we are continuing to climb the injury table as well.
But with a very winnable game against West Brom coming up next—they’re in 16th place and 18th in the form table—we could well be top half before we face Man United just before Christmas.
Villa started well and certainly looked most likely to take the lead until Leonardo Ulloa did just that for the visitors in the 13th minute, slotting home a ball that came off Guzan’s hand in a save attempt. Replays showed that the initial shot might have taken a deflection, making Guzan less culpable than he appeared to be. Still, while the pride of suburban Chicago remains an excellent shot stopper, he hasn’t been holding on to the ball very well lately, which only adds to our already frayed nerves.
Ciaran Clark, of all people, equalized just four minutes later, on a superb sliding header from an Ashley Westwood free kick. But when Westwood was stretchered off before halftime, taken out by a tardy tackle by James Vardy, I started to lose my conviction that Villa would score again. Our midfield can look shockingly lightweight, and without Delph, Westwood, or Cole, a one-one draw against the league’s worst team seemed a likely result.
I wasn’t counting on Alan Hutton, who completed his cycle of rebirth with his first competitive goal in FOUR YEARS. In the 71st minute, Gabby passed to Benteke who passed to Hutton, who seemed to stop time, or just stop, as he gathered the ball, thought about it, calculated the angle and trajectory and possibility that, yes, he might actually be able to take a shot on goal—before firing and, yes, SCORING A GOAL!
You just can’t rush some things.
Hutton was later yellow-carded for shoving Paul Konchesky, who apparently deemed his ankle-stomp insufficient and barked at Hutton with the seeming intent of making him pull a Benteke and get sent off. Instead it was the English-born player with the Russian-sounding name who was sent off, shown a straight red, although it was unclear whether the red was for the tackle or his provocative conversational style. Leicester fans will think it harsh, although for Villa fans it somehow balanced Benteke’s sending off against Tottenham.
Benteke himself was unlucky not to have scored on a couple of on-target headers and a breakaway. Though the final ten minutes provided sheer, nail-biting agony for the fifteen or so Villans on their feet at the Globe, that the game wasn’t closer was due mainly to Leicester’s man of the match, Kasper “Son of Schmeichel” Schmeichel.
As much as I’m buoyed by Villa’s recent form—we’re 11th in the table and 8th in the form table—we are continuing to climb the injury table as well. We’re now 3rd in those rankings, behind only Newcastle and Arsenal. And with more winnable games coming in the busy holiday-season schedule, if we play without Delph, Cole, Westwood, Cleverley, Vlaar, Senderos, and Baker, we could still struggle against beatable teams.
Although I’m much more worried about the midfield: clearly we can win without our first- or even second-choice defense!
I know something about losing. I know what it’s like to come to the field week after week, hoping for a win, a draw, or even an honorable loss—and, week after week, to go home disappointed. I know what it’s like to sift through shit looking for the gleam of a coin that was swallowed long ago. I know what it’s like to say, “We’ll get ’em next week” so often that no one believes it, no one even pretends to believe it, but you say it, because you have to say something. And, when you’re losing, any senseless noise is better than silence.
And I’m not even talking about Aston Villa here. I’m talking about the AYSO teams I’m coaching, teams with players capable of kicking the ball backward, teams with goalkeepers whose attempts to catch the ball sometimes resemble an attempt to throw the ball into their own net. I have coached 10 different AYSO teams and always before managed to shape even the most rag-tag teams into a unit capable of a balanced season.
But this year is different. This year, I have some players who cannot run, dribble, pass, catch, bend at the waist, or understand the simplest instructions: play the ball out wide, don’t pass in front of your own goal, don’t reach for the ball if you are not a goalkeeper.
And yet my U10 team, the team that has won one game in eight, has STILL MANAGED TO SCORE EIGHT GOALS AGAINST SUPERIOR OPPOSITION.
As opposed to Villa, who have managed four.
* * *
During Villa’s rough run of form against last year’s top teams, I had been content to count positives and bide my time. Weather this storm, I reasoned, and we’ll be sitting pretty—bottom half of the top half of the table, easy. Villa were defending well, passing better, and at times even showed a little swagger. However, with playing Villa away at last-place QPR, yesterday marked the day when we could no longer look for silver linings.
The 10 points from our flying start was now good enough only for 15th place—hell, even Newcastle had 10, courtesy of their weekend win over Tottenham. Villa supporters found themselves doing some familiar math: counting the teams that seem certain to be lousier than ours.
With playing Villa away at last-place QPR,
yesterday marked the day when we could
no longer look for silver linings.
Villa started brightly, as they often do, and seemed to have a shaky QPR back on their heels. Checking the mood of the supporters on Facebook (I confess to watching from work), I found them optimistic. It was only a matter of time before we scored!
But, as luck would have it, it was Charlie Austin who scored first for the other team, completely against the run of play in the 17th minute. It was early, though, and Villans still believed we would break through. Not just one goal, but two, or more!
As the game went on, and Villa still seemed to have the better of the play, they couldn’t break through. And when Austin struck again in the 68th minute—cruelly, off a poor pass from Sanchez, who was previously having a man-of-the-match performance—reality set in. The announcers did their best not to call the game over (being down by two goals was said to be, in the Premier League, “a not insurmountable problem”) but it was over. I did something I never do: I stopped watching ten minutes from the end.
For the day, I had had enough.
* * *
On paper, we don’t look bad. Unfortunately, as a man once observed, games are played on grass.
But it’s still hard to believe that a team with internationals such as Benteke, Vlaar, Senderos, Delph, Guzan, and Hutton can be so utterly woeful. (Yes, I’m including Hutton; and little of this is Guzan’s fault.) And I really don’t know what to think. The team have played good, attacking soccer at times this year. They defended brilliantly in the first bunch of games. I don’t think they’re even that badly managed. But they are shit, and we once again must take the threat of relegation seriously. If they don’t start scoring some goals, they’re going to be setting some records it will take years to live down.
In yesterday’s game, Villa had 65% of the ball to QPR’s 35%, outshot them 15 to 11, had more shots on target (6 to 4), and had twice as many corners (4 to 2). Hell, they even committed more fouls! And yet . . .
We have now lost five games in a row.
We have not scored in any of those five losses, the first team since Derby County to manage that (however, we are not in danger of breaking their lowest-total-points record).
We have conceded 13 unanswered goals.
Have played 8 hours and 51 minutes without scoring.
Villa may be in 15th place in the league, but are 20th in number of goals scored, 20th in shots (56), 20th in shots on target (18), 19th in possession (38%), and 19th in conversion (7.1%).
Just 14% of our crosses are on target, 19th in the league. (Only pattern-weavers Arsenal are worse.)
Here are some other stats you may find interesting:
There have been babies born into Villa families who have lived their entire lives without Villa scoring a goal or earning a point.
You have a slightly higher chance of contracting ebola from a hug than Villa scoring from a crossed ball.
If you do contract ebola, you still have a better chance of surviving it than Villa has of converting a cross.
Tom Hanks was overheard at a posh Hollywood eatery saying he fancies a team called “West Sandwich Albion.”
Gabby Agbonlahor bought his blazing speed in a deal with the devil. The price was his ability to score goals.
Everything that has happened over the past three years is part of a minutely detailed rebuilding plan by Paul Lambert. The plan is proceeding perfectly and will come to fruition in the fourth year of his contract, when we will finish seventh, and he will be rewarded with an eight-year contract.
Up the Villa, and as Lambert said, we’ll pick ourselves up and go again next week.
“This claret-and-blue Birmingham native is a professor at University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law.”
“Who is Anthony Niblett?”
Correct! Yes, you’ll find Villans everywhere, even in the groves of academe (where, rumor has it, Professor Niblett is quite popular with the students). A lifelong supporter of the Villa, Niblett found a big moment of fame on the small screen in late 2013, when he became a bona fide (note my use of the Latin) Jeopardy! champion! (Apologies, but to comply with trademark law we had to use that second exclamation point.) Read to the end for a tasty bit of trivia, and test your wits with a quiz question provided by our Villan of the Week himself.
The Starting Eleven
Where were you born, where do you live now, and what do you do for a living?
A gift from his students
I was born in Birmingham, but now—after living in a few different countries—I’m in Toronto, Canada. I work as a law professor. It’s the best job in the world.
How and when did you choose Villa?
My family are Villa fans, my dad in particular. I started following Villa in the mid 1980s. My first season was when we were back in the old Second Division (1987–88). My first game on the Holte terraces was against Sheffield United. A dull 1-1 draw.
With Martin O’Neill in Columbus, Ohio (2007)
What was your happiest moment as a Villa supporter?
Lots to choose from. One of my earliest games was a 5-0 over Hull City on New Year’s Day 1988. The two League Cup final wins in the 1990s were great, especially the 1994 win against Man United. The 5-1 win against Birmingham in late 2007–08 was a cracker. But, probably the happiest moment was back in summer 2007 in Columbus, Ohio. Meeting Martin O’Neill and the squad at a reception in the Statehouse. The feeling around the club was fantastic at the time. Good times.
As the season is all but over, which team did you most enjoy beating this year—or which team do you most wish we had beaten?
The first game was pretty good. Beating Arsenal at the Emirates. Less said about the rest of the season, the better, I think.
Who is your favorite player on the current squad?
Martin Laursen, John Carey, Niblett, Olof Mellberg, and Thomas Sorensen in Columbus
Benteke. He’s our only world-class player, our only genuine match winner. When he’s out, we look terrible. We need Vlaar at the back; without him, we are a mess. We need a few changes in personnel in 2014–15.
Who is your favorite player of all time?
Going to struggle to limit it to one. David Platt was great in his few seasons for Villa. His goals from midfield almost won us the league in 1989–90. Dean Saunders, Dalian Atkinson, Tony Daley, Paul McGrath, Gareth Southgate, Olof Mellberg, and Martin Laursen would be up there, too. I still miss Jimmy Milner.
What are your favorite sources for Villa news?
BBC football. The Guardian. I’m on a few Villa facebook groups. I tend to stay away from message boards; they leave me a little pessimistic about the future of mankind.
Rate yourself as a fan. What are your best and worst qualities?
With Ian Taylor in Chicago (2012)
I used to be a better fan. Villa websites used to be the first thing I read in the morning. I still watch all the games. And when we’re on the box, I go to the pub, usually wearing a retro Villa top, to watch with fellow Toronto Villans.
Where do you usually watch games?
The Toronto Villans watch at a pub called The Oxley in Yorkville. It’s a lovely pub with a pretty good breakfast. I just wish we could recruit a few more Toronto Villans to get out regularly.
Toronto Villans at the Oxley
What are you usually drinking?
Just a coffee at that time of the morning. For games that are on in the afternoon here, either a Junction Craft (a local beer) or a Guinness.
Extra Time
Rumor has it you did pretty well on a quiz show called Jeopardy! What is your favorite bit of Villa-related trivia? Got any stumpers for us?
‘Tis true. I love trivia, but I don’t really have a favorite bit of Villa trivia, I’m afraid. Here’s a couple though:
Villa Park has hosted the most FA Cup semifinals and, if New Wembley keeps hosting semis, Villa Park will remain top of that list until 2035.
Villa have scored the second most goals in the top division of English football with 6,550. Anyone know who’s first?
Blake McVey with sons Wil (in the back) and Lochlan (in his first Villa shirt)
An American fan who’s never been to Villa Park, spreading the gospel of the Holte End? That may sound like a contradiction in terms, but, as I’ve learned this season, it’s certainly not an anomaly. In fact, the more American Villans I meet, the more amazed I am that a team from Birmingham can sink its hooks so deeply into us, even though we didn’t grow up watching them play. (And this guy isn’t even a Browns fan, either!) At any rate, let me introduce you to Blake McVey, who grew up as a “soccer-starved fan getting by on scraps,” and is now a claret-and-blue supporter who gorges himself on all the soccer the internet has to offer. (Funny, he doesn’t look morbidly obese . . . . )
The Starting Eleven
Where were you born, where do you live now, and what do you do for a living?
I was born in Garden City, Kansas. I mostly grew up in Edmond, Oklahoma, where I gained a love for soccer and played as a fullback for nine seasons. Now I live in Memphis, Tennessee, where I’ve been for the past 19 years. I am a therapist working with teenagers in a residential facility.
How and when did you choose Villa?
Growing up in the 1980s, I didn’t have many options for following the sport: the Tulsa Roughnecks played in the NASL, but I was never able to go to or even see a game. I would sometimes watch Soccer Made in Germany or USMNT qualifiers. I did pay rapt attention to the World Cup in 1994. There was also the MISL but, hopefully, indoor soccer will never be spoken of again. Basically I was a soccer-starved fan getting by on scraps and memories. Through school and work I’d occasionally be fortunate enough to meet a foreign national with whom I could discuss the game with a high level of ignorance on my part. I eventually resigned myself to not being a fan at all—until the internet came along and changed everything. That luscious WWW has allowed me to become morbidly obese with all the football options out there!
Celebrity supporters: Tom Hanks, Bob Stephenson, British Consul Priya Guha, Colin Hanks, and Geezer Butler with Matt Lowton (July 2012)
But you asked how I got started with Villa. I’m a sports fan, and I played American football (both pro and college) and other sports to various degrees. (Mostly basketball, NEVER baseball. How anyone can watch baseball and then call soccer boring thoroughly puzzles me.) After the 2006 World Cup, I came across a Bill Simmons article in which he detailed his plan to choose an EPL team, follow them for a year, and evaluate whether or not he wanted to stick with it. He provided his reasoning for choosing Spurs and, along with it, had at least a brief blurb on every team in the Prem that year (included were Bolton, Charlton, and others that have not been in the top flight since).
Like him, I didn’t want to choose the obvious teams, such as Man United. I liked his reasoning: ” . . . can you imagine knowing a foreigner in their mid-30s who was looking for a baseball team and announced, ‘I’m going with the Yankees!’ Wouldn’t you hate that person? I don’t want to be that guy.” I also can’t even specifically say why I chose Villa—Lerner was just about to buy the team, so it wasn’t the American-owner thing, and I don’t even know if Martin O’Neill had been hired yet. I know I love the colors, I love the working-class attitude and the celebrity fans aren’t too shabby (Sabbath members, the ever-touted Tom Hanks). I also like that they are a sort of sleeping giant: they’ve had the ultimate success in my lifetime (’82) and they remain one of seven ever-presents in the Prem, but they are NOT supported by bandwagon jumpers. Whatever other reasons I cannot recall I do know that I am with them forever—I am a loyal fan and Villa will always be my team.
What was your happiest moment as a Villa supporter?
Blake and middle son Lochlan
This is difficult to say—there have been many good times. I always love it when we make Liverpool look bad, so last term when Benteke destroyed them I was thrilled. I loved Ashley Young giving us the last-second win against Everton a few years ago right after they thought they had managed a draw just seconds before. I also loved the first game this season against Arsenal. I was in a pub with my middle son (also a Villan!) and as we cheered the mighty Villa on to victory the one Spurs fan and a pack of Liverpool fans cheered us—the Spurs fan for obvious reasons, but the Liverpool fans I think felt that Arsenal was in their way for Champions League football. Both team’s supporters supported us (the old “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” argument) and after the win was secured the Liverpool fans sent two whiskey shots over to our table. We laughed that my middle son (only 14 at the time) was physically of a size that they thought he could legally drink and I gracefully accepted both shots. (I think the alcohol in the whiskey killed any Scouse germs that may have been on the shot glasses).
What was your most painful moment?
That one is also difficult. There have been too many recently. I hated it when Milner left a few years ago. Strangely I hold almost no grudge against him for leaving, probably because of the way he handled the whole process. He just seemed a class act throughout. Also, the way he played up until the transfer and even scored a goal, and a mighty good one at that, just keeps a warm spot in my heart for him.
Also, every time an ex-Villan scores against us I hate it. Especially Downing (a triple traitor—not only did he leave us after we saved him from injury oblivion, but he also stayed for too short of time, and, this is the kicker, he went to LIVERPOOL! I HATE that guy!) and Ashley Young. Young has no class whatsoever. The only thing that makes him better than Suarez in my book is that Suarez plays for Scouse scum. Also, at least Suarez is a very good player and Young has been exposed at Man United. I have toyed with the idea of sending him a tube of Neosporin to help treat all those splinters that must be all over his ass.
Which team would you most like to see Villa beat, or beat again, or have beaten this year?
I always want us to beat Liverpool. I don’t quite know why I despise them so much, but I do. Birmingham City have never been too good since I became a Villan so it’s been hard to properly hate them, so Liverpool functions the same as City for me.
Who is your favorite player on the current squad?
Man, that is actually hard. I love my fellow Yankee Guzan, and I like Westwood, Vlaar, Benteke, and Bacuna, and I do have hope that these young pups will make good and show the doubters how wrong they are. Of course it’s hard not to like Gabby, Weimann, Albrighton, etc. I guess that really leaves Delph. I think he’s my current favorite, because he’s just classy, on and off the pitch, he has a lot of skill, heart and he has actually scored some awesome goals this term.
Who is your favorite player of all time?
Bosko Balaban – just kidding!
Wow—again, tough. I wasn’t around for McGrath, der Hammer (though I have to give him props for recently coming out), or Balaban (just kidding) or any of the other Villa greats such as Withe, etc., so my pool of players from which to choose is more limited than many fans. I looooved Mellberg and Carew and I formerly loved the traitors: Barry and Young, and I even liked Downing OK. I know football is a business and I’ve had favorites leave from other of my teams but there was just something especially galling about the Barry/Young transfers and especially the Downing thing, but I was much less attached to that guy.
What are your favorite sources for Villa news?
I often start simple, with Aston Villa News. That often brings up the basics. I also frequent My Old Man Said, 7500 to Holte, the ESPN blog for Villa, and the Birmingham papers, the Express & Star and the Birmingham Mail. I keep track of several fan pages on Facebook as well—too many to list. I also used to frequent the boards at Avillafan as soonerfan61, but a change in jobs left it difficult to log in with any regularity, so I haven’t been on there in a very long time. That is far and away the best blog that I’ve seen, though.
Rate yourself as a fan. What are your best and worst qualities?
I am a rabid fan—I spend almost every day catching up on something Villa-related and I hate those slow news days. I have not yet been able to visit Villa Park but one day that will be remedied. My best quality is my loyalty and objectivity (yes, those two can co-exist) and my worst is that I can’t spend enough time spreading the gospel of the Holte End.
Where do you usually watch games?
Hmm . . . there’s not really a “usually.” Sometimes I get to go to the pub (there are almost NO Villans in Memphis!), sometimes I can watch from home, sometimes I pick up a feed on a laptop or a desktop—it really depends. I scour footytube for highlights whether I’ve seen the match or not, and unfortunately at times that’s all I get.
What are you usually drinking?
It depends on where I am. If I’m at the pub I get some sort of dark brew (Guinness is the likely culprit). If I’m at home I just drink dark, sludgy black coffee and if I’m elsewhere I may not be drinking anything.
Extra Time
You’re a former football player. What is the best way to answer an ignorant person who says “soccer is for sissies”?
I don’t know—I haven’t met Jim Rome in person. I’m kidding, but I just really don’t engage those troglodytes anymore. If the game doesn’t suit them that’s fine—but I’ll sure remind them of that ignorant opinion if/when they want to talk to me about baseball, NASCAR, professional wrestling, etc. I think our sport is head and shoulders above any of those offerings and if someone wants to dismiss my love of the game by distilling it down to an ignorant, short-sighted, brainless opinion then they have the right to do so. I just don’t bother myself by arguing with the small-minded.
Gary Barr was born into a family of Birmingham City supporters but, after watching Villa beat the Blues in 1978, he promptly saw the light, pledged allegiance to the claret and blue, and became a Villan for life. Sensible lad! He’s never wavered since, and has seen his team through highs (champions of Europe!) and lows (relegation), somehow holding on to a strong sense of optimism in the process.
The Starting Eleven
Where were you born, where do you live now, and what do you do for a living?
I was born in Portsmouth, UK, but moved to Kings Heath, then Northfield (both in Birmingham) when I was 6 or 7. I came to the U.S. in 2002 and have been here ever since, having left the rain and grey firmly behind me! I now live in Ridgefield, Connecticut, though am literally in the process of moving to the east coast of Florida—slowly getting warmer and warmer as I age! I’m the chief product officer for a New York-based financial-analytics software company. Who knew after attending Harborne Elementary?
“But that’s the WRONG COLOR BEAR!” cries wee Gary.
How and when did you choose Villa?
My dad was a fervent Birmingham City supporter, as were the family around me—they even gave me a bloody blue-and-white teddy for Christmas in 1969! They took me to as many games at St Andrews as possible when I was a kid. Then, in October 1978, Villa came and beat City 1-0 and my dad was so upset, I decided there and then I had to support the Villa. I always was the black sheep in the family! I was 10 and so started a 35-year love affair—I have seen the ups and the downs and was a season ticket holder for a number of years before I came to the U.S.
What was your happiest moment as a Villa supporter?
Without a doubt, Rotterdam on a spring evening in 1982. I was 14, so I watched the match live (on ITV!) with the great Barry Moore commentating. He uttered those immortal words: “Shaw, Williams, prepared to adventure down the left. There’s a good ball played in for Tony Morley. Oh, it must be! It is! Peter Withe!” and I was on top of the world. Lets not forget the Bayern team we played that night had some of the greatest footballers of that or any time: Augenthaler, Rummenigge, Hoeness, Breitner, Müller, etc., who were all established West German legends. And they got their backsides walloped by a bunch of home-grown Villains—a memory I will always cherish.
What was your most painful moment?
Losing 2-1 at home to Sheffield Wednesday in 1987, a defeat that confirmed relegation. We had gone from European Champions to relegation fodder in less than 5 years. Horrific. And truth be told, we deserved it: that team was young and talked up, but on the field it was a mess. But I always have been an optimist, and some good did come from it : Graham Taylor arrived and it was a swift promotion back to our rightful place in the top tier.
Which team would you most like to see Villa beat (or beat again) this year?
Well we can’t beat them again because we already played them twice—but Chelsea. There is simply nothing, absolutely nothing, nil, nowt, nada about them, they are just the worst form of a football club I have ever had the displeasure to watch over the years. Bottom line: a lack of class.
Who is your favorite player on the current squad?
Fabian Delph. A legend in the making if he can stay fit, stays with the club, and continues to learn and work hard. And I love the fact that a team can potentially be built around him. Let’s hope.
Who is your favorite player of all time?
I have to cheat—I have two that I can’t separate. The first is Paul McGrath. Everyone has already said it but the man was a rock and one of the most gifted footballers I ever saw live. To call him a legend is an understatement. The second is Dennis Mortimer. Hard-working, never grabbed the headlines, but was the dynamo and captain during our greatest years—an inspiration. I don’t think we have had a captain like him since.
Rate yourself as a fan. What are your best and worst qualities?
Ha! I’m a top fan, of course! My best qualities, I think, are patience and perspective—I rarely snap to judgement or write things off without trying to understand the bigger picture. Many know I am a big fan of what is going on at Villa these past two years under Paul Lambert, largely because I think when one puts it into perspective, its as exciting a time as many I have seen. Yes, the performances at home have been dire on the whole, but something good is emerging and I am excited to see it play out over the next couple years. My worst quality is that I turn the TV off when games are tight. It drives me nuts watching and I prefer to set the DVR, see the result, and then watch without the stress!
Where do you usually watch games?
On the couch. See my picture above.
What are you usually drinking?
Whiskey—on the couch!
Extra Time
Which non-Villa player, past or present, do you most wish had worn the claret and blue?
Oliver Barr: Future Villa Captain?
There are a few: Lionel Messi (best player in the world for me); Trevor Francis (I know people won’t like that but, as a young kid taken to St. Andrews, I saw him as the first $1m player and he was electric—shame he is such a tw#t these days!); and Bobby Moore (well, who wouldn’t right?). In the future, I want my boy (pictured in his first Villa outfit) to be captain—please god, please!!!!!
American Born Villan 
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