Young_Jonah steps up to the plate and takes the Vital Villan interview.
1) When did you become a Villa fan and why?
I guess I have been a fan since birth, as is family tradition. I cannot really remember anything prior to the 93/94 season though. I remember us winning the league cup against Man Utd. My first major season (i.e the year I knew all the players, had the replica shirt and went to games etc) was 95/96, Dwight Yorke became my hero and to this day I have not seen a better player in a Villa shirt.
2) Best moment/moments as a Villa fan?
My first game, 21st January 1996 vs Spurs. We won 2-1, McGrath and Yorke bagging the goals. The 95/96 season as a whole was one of the best times in my villa supporting life, we had some top players and I admired them all.
In more recent times I suppose, Ellis finally leaving and being replaced by Lerner, we had finally gotten a chairman with the best intentions at our club.
3) Worst moment/moments as a Villa fan?
The decision to field a weakened side in the UEFA Cup this year really annoyed me. And is one of many reasons why I won’t be renewing my Season Ticket. If the club can pick and choose the games they will take seriously I will also do that from now on.
By far the worst moment however was hearing the news that Yorke was leaving, I nearly burst into tears.
4) Best and worst away ground visited?
Best – Bescot Stadium, I had such fun when me and Randy.Stand went to the friendly in August last year, good atmosphere and Clayton Ince became a legend in my eyes that day, despite playing for the opposition!!!
Worst – JJB, half full and there wasn’t much of an atmosphere from home crowd, we did stuff them though so I didn’t really care!!
5) What did you think of last season? Good, bad or indifferent and do you think we progressed?
It’s hard to say that last season was a ‘bad’ season, as we did finish 6th at the end of the day. However I would hardly call it a ‘good’ season either. We suffered one of the worst runs of form in the clubs history. We appeared to be playing without any purpose or any tactics for the majority of the time and we got more than our fair share of luck in the first half of the season. Did we progress? Well we got one or two more points, so I guess so, just a shame it cost us £45million to get that extra point though.
6) Which player/s should Villa sign this summer? And do you think Villa will spend enough this summer to progress?
Getting Gareth Barry to sign a new deal would be a great accomplishment by O’Neill. Replacing Laursen is a must too. Hangelaand is the ideal replacement in my eyes.
If we only lost Barry, Harewood and Salifou (his contract is not likely to be renewed) and brought in Daniel Sturridge, Darren Bent, Brede Hangelaand, another right back and either Downing or Bentley, then I would be happy.
The thing that worries me is that we will only replace what we sell. We need at least 5 more players than the current squad size to progress.
7) What do you expect next season?
Premier League: I have a feeling it will be somewhere between 9th and 12th.
FA Cup: 3rd Round
Europa League: 1st Round
Carling Cup: Q.Finals
8) Your opinion on Martin O’Neill now he is approaching his 4th season in charge?
I am losing faith, lack of tactics, lack of decent substitutions, and lack of ability to drop ‘out of form’ players. It all concerns me. I think O’Neill has taken us as far as he can, he is not proven as a top manager, he has never finished higher than 6th, and I doubt that he has it in him. Hopefully I will be proved wrong but I think we will finish mid-table and perhaps would be hounded out by the fans next summer. If he manages to go a season without using the phrase “we have a small squad” then I will be happy. I mean after all he has been here long enough and he is responsible for the size of the squad, so the buck stops with him as far as I am concerned.
9) Your opinion on Randy Lerner and his board?
Think they have done a great job. Just a shame that after years of having managers that wanted to spend money and a board that didn’t that we now have the opposite!!!
10) Favourite current player?
Don’t really have one at the moment, Laursen is gone and Ashley Young’s persistent diving is starting to annoy me. Hopefully someone will come in the summer that excites me.
11) Favourite former player/s?
Dwight Yorke, best player I ever saw. Ian Taylor and Paul Merson are also heroes in my eyes.
12) Gareth Barry, will he stay or go and do you care?
I reckon he will stay, World Cup coming up and he knows he is likely to be in the team and needs to be playing central midfield every week next season. At Villa he would be, but who knows where Rafa would have him playing at Anfield.
That said IF Xabi Alonso goes then that would certainly increase the speculation and I wouldn’t like to say whether or not Barry will stay.
I just hope that if its going to happen, then it happens quick. I really don’t fancy a summer like the last one.
{Nicely answered YJ, sadly totally wrong…! That said, it was done quickly so you got half your wish, just not him moving to a non CL side! Ed}
13) Right, lets lower the tone… which celebrity would you most like to bang?!
From the current squad? Zack Knight probably.
With thanks to Young_Jonah
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