Aston Villa is a big club. They have won the first division
seven times (albeit only once since the First World War), won the FA Cup seven
times, five League Cups and are one of only five English teams to have won the
European Cup, in 1982. Villa Park holds over 42,000 and was once a venue for FA
Cup semi finals, and the club has competed in the Premiership every season
since the league began.
The club struggles to compete with the flash teams from
London nor the giants from Merseyside and Manchester and under Martin O’Neill
the Villains hit a glass ceiling, battling for a top four spot only to slide in
the second half of the season to finish sixth three times in a row. That frustration
that the club could not or would not spend and push higher led to O’Neill’s
departure, and after an indifferent season with Gerard Houllier there was the
walking disaster that is Alex McLeish. With a high wage bill and dwindling
success, owner Randy Lerner looked to reign in the spending, and the
appointment of Paul Lambert was with the understanding that budgets would be
trimmed.
Fortunately for Villa, they have a wonderful habit of
bringing through youth products. Not all of them go on to the highest level –
Gaby Agbonlahor has failed to find the consistency to become a top Premier
League striker, Craig Gardner is at struggling Sunderland, Luke Moore is often
on the bench for Swansea while the likes of Barry Bannan and Marc Albrighton
have seen their stars fade a little – but there is a constant conveyor belt of
talent coming through that. Lambert likes to give young British players a
chance, as demonstrated by his spell at Norwich where Grant Holt, Wes Hoolahan,
Elliot Bennett, Bradley Johnson and John Ruddy are amongst the players who have
made the step up from the Championship and lower. At Villa it is the same.
Nathan Baker, Andreas Weimann, and Ciaran Clark have come
through the academy to become first team regulars this season, while Gary
Gardener would surely have made a mark if injury had not ruined his season.
Lambert has also signed players from the Football League (Ashley Westwood from
Crewe, Matt Lowton from Sheffield United, Joe Bennett from Middlesbrough, Jordan
Bowery from Chesterfield) and given more prominence to battling Englishman
Fabian Delph. At a time when Roy Hodgson is lamenting the lack of English
players playing in the Premiership, Lambert is giving that talent a chance,
showing no fear when it comes to transfers, allying big money transfers like
hattrick hero Christian Benteke and Ron Vlaar with home grown and ‘lower league’
players.
This season has not been without its setbacks, and the loss
of Stiliyan Petrov to illness was a massive blow. His experience and leadership
have been missed and this was exacerbated when Dutch international Vlaar was
injured in the first half of the campaign. Villa and Lambert fought through the
tough times and have come out the other side, and Monday night’s 6-1 win over
Sunderland was clearly their most impressive result and performance of the
year. The attacking play finally appears to have come together, although the
defence still looks liable to concede there is at least hope for the future.
The January signing of Yacouba Sylla underwhelmed many
observers, at 22 the defensive midfielder did not appear to be what Villa
needed by Lambert knew better. Lowton has improved as the season has worn on,
while Benteke has been one of the Premiership stand out players and Villa will
do well to hold on to him in the summer. If the Congo-born Belgian
international does leave, Villa will be making a very hefty profit.
After the win over Sunderland, Villa look in a good shape to
stay up this season. If Lambert can work his magic again in the transfer
window, offloading a few of the higher wage earners like Shay Given, Richard
Dunne, Darren Bent and Stephen Ireland, and bring through even more young
British talent, the long term future of Aston Villa looks very exciting. While
they will never be able to compete on the same level as Manchester United, City
or Chelsea, they have at least identified a plan to return the club to its
former glories. A financially honest plan that relies on British talent? That
is something we can all admire.
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