So the time is nearing for Villa to be making their first appearance at Wembley in 10 years. It’s common knowledge that since that dreadful day in May 2000, Wembley Stadium has been flattened and rebuilt, all at a massive cost. The stadium re-opened in 2007, and I’ve since attended every England game there. Here’s my review of what you can expect next Sunday.
The Stadium:
The new Wembley is everything a ‘modern’ fan would want. Comfortable seating, an exterior like an airport terminal, large concourses, etc. But in my opinion, it has lost all of its charm and character. No more twin towers, no tunnel behind the goal, no merchandise sellers on Wembley way. Just a stadium to primarily suit the businessman on a jolly-up with his company. But for all its loss of character, it is still impressive.
One of the most noticeable changes to the national stadium is the arch, situated on the north side of the ground. It is simply massive, and was constructed as a replacement for the twin towers. Although, in my opinion, the arch is not a patch on the towers, in years to come I’ve no doubt that it will be portrayed as a Wembley icon by Football fans all over the world.
Wembley Way, another landmark of the old stadium of course, still remains. The exterior of the actual complex itself, is pretty similar to that of before. However, the immediate outside of the ground, consists of two levels. You need to use the higher level if you are sitting in the top tier, and the lower level if you are sitting below.
As you enter Wembley (PS all the turnstiles are electronic), if your seat is in the upper tier, the first thing you notice is that it contains escalators. You’ve probably figured out by now that I’m against virtually anything modern in a Football ground, but these escalators are a god send, especially after 10 pints beforehand. As I mentioned before, the concourses are massive so you’ve plenty of space to have a drink before the match and at half time. However, I’d advise against this, as the prices are ridiculous. Otherwise, facilities are plentiful.
Wembley consists of three tiers all the way around, and is pretty much a larger version of the Emirates Stadium. Noticeable similarities include the fact that the middle tier is much smaller than the top and bottom tiers, and the side stands are slightly taller towards their centres. The middle tier consists entirely or Club Wembley seats (prawn sandwich eaters) and from a perspective of atmosphere, this is a huge flaw in the design. This is due to the fact that, it’s pretty much a given fact that the majority of ‘fans’ in the Club Wembley seats won’t sing, so therefore it’s hard for the top and bottom tiers to sing as one. However, I haven’t yet been to Wembley for a neutral game, where the majority of fans will be enthusiastic about the game and their team, so Sunday’s match could go some way to my opinion of Wembley changing.
Travel:
The traffic congestion problem Wembley had before, hasn’t been rectified, and so it is still a nightmare to drive away from Wembley after a game. If you are driving, by far your best bet is to park at a nearby tube station, and then catch a tube in to Wembley. I won’t go to the trouble of naming the particular stations you could park at, as there are numerous options. A quick look at a map of London and of the Underground is all you need to help you decide. If sitting in traffic for 2 hours after a game does float your boat, then there is an official car park at the stadium, which is a rip-off by the way, and as expected there are various unofficial places to leave your car for a smaller amount of cash.
Wembley is served by two underground stations. The nearest to the ground is Wembley Park. This is located right at the end of Wembley Way, and is served by the Metropolitan and Jubilee lines. The second station, slightly further away on Wembley High Street, is Wembley Central, served by the Bakerloo line.
The ground is also served by a train station (appropriately called Wembley Stadium). Chiltern trains between Brum-London Marylebone stop here, and access from the platforms to the stadium is good.
Pubs:
For the size and profile of the ground, the number and standard of the pubs near Wembley is poor. However, with the fact that 1; Wembley is in London and 2; The stadium is served by the underground, you aren’t short of options getting a drink in a pub that suits your tastes.
For cup finals, I’ve been informed that pubs are allocated to supporters of each team, depending on which side of the ground their allocation has been located. Villa are on the West side, which means we should have a wider choice of where to drink around the ground on the day. The Green Man, on Dagmar Avenue, and The Greyhound, on Harrow Road, have both been allocated to Villa fans, so you can expect them to be heaving come midday on Sunday. I’ve never been to the Greyhound, however the Green Man has a large bar inside, as well as numerous outside bars, which will be put to maximum use. There are a few pubs on Wembley High Street (between Wembley Central and the stadium), which is also ‘our side’ of the ground, and these include a Wetherspoons. Other than that, there is a small sports bar located about 50 yards down from Wembley Central.
I don’t think there’s a lot else worth mentioning, but I just thought I’d add my penneth worth of knowledge before Sunday. Let’s hope that we do a job on the ‘Mancs’ and that we’re back in April for the semi final.
