Author: Alex Othon

Aston Villa’s sensational 4-0 demolition of Derby County last weekend has given renewed optimism that the club can finally put a run of results together, gatecrash the top six and nail a playoff position. Jack Grealish’s return was the obvious catalyst for the first half blitz. Worldy volley and all, and having him available to pull the strings once again for the run in will obviously be crucial if results in his absence are anything to go by. But if there is to be a surge upwards in the league, there could be some unsung heroes in Grealish’s shadow. One…

Aston Villa tried their best to make huge waves when they splashed into the Championship back in the summer of 2016. The plan to bully teams into accepting extortionate amounts of money for their best players failed miserably. It very nearly threatened the existence of the club. The cost of that extravagance is still being felt and the club will never recoup anywhere near the huge costs spent on players. There is somewhat of a forgotten man from that initial summer splurge, however. Aaron Tshibola was signed for a not insignificant £5.31 million from Reading. At the time, with the…

Aston Villa’s season took another nosedive toward midtable mediocrity at the weekend with a 2-0 defeat to near-neighbours West Bromwich Albion. Dean Smith’s promising start has given way to performances lacking in confidence and uncertainty and there is plenty of unrest amongst supporters right now. There are those that are already questioning Smith’s appointment. And whilst he isn’t immune from criticism, calling for his head at this early stage is quite frankly, ludicrous. Smith cannot be fairly judged until next season. Any real grumbles shouldn’t be taken seriously until the end of this calendar year the earliest if improvements aren’t…

When Tony Xia took over Aston Villa back in 2016, one of his visions included building a theme park for the club. Whilst those outlandish plans were never likely to come to fruition, Villa Park is nevertheless gaining a reputation for giving supporters a rollercoaster experience. Villa’s unlikely 3-3 draw with Sheffield United last Friday was the latest in a growing list of bizarre scorelines seen in B6 this season. It isn’t even the first 3-3 draw that we’ve hosted, with Preston being the visitors on the fateful night that one supporter threw a cabbage at then boss Steve Bruce.…

Aston Villa’s 2-1 victory over Ipswich Town at the weekend hasn’t been enough to halt much of the criticism that seems to be sweeping through social media at the moment. One man at the centre of this criticism seems to be Conor Hourihane. Dean Smith’s promising start understandably raised expectations, perhaps artificially so. There is clear disgruntlement over one or two things amongst many fans that is bubbling under the surface. As we know, we love a scapegoat at Villa and one of the popular ones at the moment is Hourihane. However, by the way, Villa fans are voicing their…

Yannick Bolasie’s loan agreement with Aston Villa was surprisingly terminated on Monday afternoon. The DR Congo international has returned to his parent club, Everton. Bolasie was seen as a massive coup by the majority of supporters upon his arrival. Gazumping Middlesbrough and Tony Pulis sweetened the deal and reaffirmed to many of us that we were still a big draw. However, it’s clear that Bolasie’s departure won’t be cried over by all that many Villans right now. There are several interesting aspects to this development. As the club admitted in its statement, it was Bolasie himself who exercised an option in the…

It has been far from a happy new year for Aston Villa. Back-to-back 3-0 defeats have chiselled away at the optimism that Dean Smith’s initial impact had built. Villa fans, unfortunately, hold somewhat of a reputation for getting on the manager’s back at the earliest opportunity. But is it time we took a proper look at our squad? There have already been tweets flying about saying that Smith is the wrong appointment for the club. I even saw a couple of polls asking whether Smith should be in or out. Ludicrousy of the highest order, of course. It’s not Smith’s…

If the remainder of January continues as the beginning has started, then Aston Villa are in for an eventful transfer window. Manager Dean Smith would undoubtedly like to strengthen a squad which is patchy at best defensively. However, it may be at the other end of the pitch where a gaping hole is left. One name that keeps popping up is Brentford’s Neil Maupay. Rumours are gathering pace that Tammy Abraham will be announced as a Wolverhampton Wanderers player at any moment. The very latest at the time of writing is that the decision on whether to leave is very…

The latest result (Villa 2-2 QPR) means that Villa has shared the spoils in five of the last eight matches. Worryingly, we threw the lead away in four of those games. Add in the capitulation against Leeds and it’s crystal clear that defensively, we’re going nowhere fast. I believe it is time to phase out a cult hero! The Q.P.R result has seen the first real dissent appear within some supporters towards manager Dean Smith. But in truth, he is massively hamstrung by the personnel, or lack of it, left by Steve Bruce. In addition, we’re having some rotten luck…

Christian Purslow has kept somewhat of a low profile since his appointment as CEO of Aston Villa back in August. A showing at Dean Smith’s unveiling press conference aside, Purslow has largely remained in the shadows despite urges to hear more from him. Until now. On Sunday, Purslow appeared as a guest on BBC Radio 5’s Sportsweek programme. The transcript is doing the rounds on social media. I have to admit it makes for extremely promising reading. Even the william hill promo didn’t expect this. Despite that, for many Villans, putting trust in someone in Purslow’s position isn’t easy. Our…