So life for us Villa fans at the moment is good, we have new signings coming in thick and fast, the signings are not breaking the bank, and Paul Lambert is giving everyone connected with Villa a reason to be happy at the moment.
This week I wanted to talk about the player/s we expect the biggest change from: I mean, who is going to stand out from our current batch? The new signings will stand out because they are new. I am talking about the players that we have had for a while, the players that didn’t stand up last year for whatever reason.
Like it or not we can’t afford to replace the whole team so we are going to need some of the players who didn’t perform to start performing, and without that we could still struggle if they don’t—a few signings don’t make a squad.
Who will change the most?
For me, I am quite confident we are going to see a return to form of Dunne, for lots of reasons. From what I can make out and we are led to believe, Lambert is a big admirer of Dunne. Dunne can be immense or he can be a liability. I think Lambert is going to be able to provide the confidence he needs to perform consistently. Also, with potentially a few new signings breathing down his neck for the CB spot, I wouldn’t expect him to roll over and give his place up easily.
Stephen Ireland, Lambert is going to play to his strengths. Lambert’s game is going to suit Ireland down to the floor and will give him the stage to show off what he is capable of. Even with the ginger one towards the end of the season he still managed to shine, so with a manager as positive as Lambert I expect big things for arguably our most creative player.
He is one of us, Gabby, and I am expecting a big season from him—I am confident he will come through. Many of us have doubts, and rightly so, after many seasons of inconsistent performances, but this season is going to be different. First, he is one of us: that gives him the capability of giving at least 10% more than anyone else, because he is a fan. Second, I think he is as much aware as we are that time is ticking by on his career and it is in danger of drifting away from him. He could be labelled in history as the player that could have been. Lambert will revive him, and he is going to be fired up and ready to show what he is all about. I have faith in Gabby. After all, he is one of us.
Over to you
So there you have it, my three picks of the existing squad I am expecting to see big things from. I am expecting them to lead the way for us in all different ways—performances, vocally, and attitude. If they can do that then add to that Bent coming back from injury, the youth itching to prove themselves, and new signings hand picked and drafted in to provide cover and competition in the areas we struggled in last season, and we will have a very, very good season.
Its good to be Villa again!
*****
Episode two of AVL’s Five on Five podcast is available for download now by right-clicking on the following link: https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/avlclustermedia/podcasts/fiveonfive/Five_On_Five_The_Aston_Villa_Life_Podcast-Episode_2.mp3
In this week’s episode, recorded in the early hours of Wednesday morning, site editor Matt Turvey and regular columnist and sub-editor John Clark cover five of the top topics of the past week amidst a few other unscheduled items including punching Dave Whelan in the face, whether Alan Hutton is the missing link between Neanderthal man and a footballer, and how Gary Karsa is earning his money at the club.
PLEASE NOTE *** – This podcast contains some explicit language as well as the terms “Alex McLeish” and “Alan Hutton”, which may offend some listeners.
You can also left click the above link if you would like to stream the podcast directly on the site without downloading it.
Episode one is available here: http://www.astonvillalife.com/news/five-on-five-podcast-launches-you-can-be-part-of-it
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