How Aston Villa could have lined up if they had kept hold of their best players.
Aston Villa manager Roberto Di Matteo
Aston Villa were relegated from the Premier League for the first time last season and are now looking to rebuild in the Championship under Roberto Di Matteo.
And while their current squad is trying to get back into the Premier League, we’ll look at some of the best players who have left Villa Park and how the team could have looked if they had managed to keep hold of them.
Here is the team:
GK: Brad Guzan
Brad Guzan left Villa Park after eight years to join Premier League newboys Middlesbrough this summer.
The American international ‘keeper would make a fantastic save one minute and an error the next but overall he was a good servant to the club.
With 171 appearances for the Villains, Guzan is comfortably the club’s most experienced former stopper still playing at the top level.
RB: Kyle Walker
The season before Kyle Walker became a Tottenham Hotspur regular, he spent half a year at Aston Villa where he played 18 times, scoring two goals.
Although Villa had little chance of ever keeping hold of the England international, he has gone on to prove himself as one of the top right-backs in the Premier League at Spurs.
The season after returning from Villa, Walker was named PFA Young Player of the Year and in Team of the Year and now has 20 England caps to date.
CB: Gary Cahill
Another England international, Chelsea’s Gary Cahill is arguably one of the Premier League’s top defenders.
Cahill spent eight years at Villa but struggled to nail down a regular starting spot before being moved on to Bolton Wanderers in 2008.
And the defender’s performances for the Trotters earned him an England call-up and eventually a move to Chelsea where he won the Champions League during his first full season at the club.
The 30-year-old also won a Premier League title with the Blues in 2015 and has made 48 international appearances, scoring three goals.
CB: Curtis Davies
While Ron Vlaar may be viewed as the obvious choice to line-up alongside Cahill, Curtis Davies is currently proving himself as one of the Premier League’s most underrated defenders at Hull City.
The former Villa man has been instrumental in the Tigers’ strong start to the Premier League season and suggestions have been made in regards to a potential England call-up.
Davies made 66 appearances for the Villains between 2007 and 2010, scoring three goals before moving on to rival club Birmingham City.
Despite being relegated three times as a player, Davies remains a highly regarded centre-back nonetheless.
LB: Ryan Bertrand
The second and final former loanee on this list, Ryan Bertrand, like Walker, has gone on to become one of the Premier League’s most highly rated full-backs since leaving Villa Park.
The England international spent half a season on loan from Chelsea in 2014 before securing a loan move to Southampton the following season where he went on to be named in the PFA Team of the Year before earning a permanent deal at the club.
Bertrand made 16 league appearances for Villa during his brief spell in the midlands and would be a solid addition for any Premier League side.
CM: James Milner
Liverpool’s James Milner enjoyed arguably the best form of his career at Villa Park before making a reported £26m switch to Manchester City in 2010.
The ever reliable midfielder made over 200 appearances for the Citizens, winning five major trophies in five seasons at the club before moving to Liverpool in 2015.
Milner was named achieved a PFA Young Player and Team of the Year double for his performances for Villa in 2009/10 as the club finished 6th in the Premier League – their joint highest finish in the English top flight this century.
CM: Fabian Delph
Like Milner, Fabian Delph also moved from Villa to Manchester City albeit in far more controversial circumstances.
Just days after committing his future to the club following interest from the Citizens, Delph made a dramatic u-turn and opting to make the move north to Manchester.
Delph was named the Villa supporters’ Player of the Year during his final two seasons at the club as he was a standout performer despite the team’s struggling league form.
The season after the England international left, Villa were relegated from the Premier League for the first time.
CM: Steven Davis
Northern Ireland international Steven Davis spent his early career breaking through the ranks at Aston Villa where he made 102 appearances over three seasons before moving on to Fulham in 2007.
Since then the midfielder went on to have a successful spell with Rangers before returning to the Premier League with Southampton in 2012.
Since then the Saints have gone from strength to strength with Davis being the lynchpin in the middle of the park.
While Villa seemed content in letting Davis go, they certainly wouldn’t mind taking him back now.
RW: Marc Albrighton
It’s been a whirlwind few years for Marc Albrighton as after falling out of favour at Villa Park, he was released and signed on a free by Premier League new boys Leicester City in 2014.
After helping the Foxes escape relegation in his first season at the club – the 26-year-old then went on to help Leicester claim their first ever top flight title against all odds.
Albrighton featured in every game in the unforgettable campaign under Italian manager Claudio Ranieri, who praised the winger for his workrate and sacrifices for the good of the team.
That same season, Villa suffered contrasting fortunes as they finished bottom of the table on 17 points.
ST: Christian Benteke
The big Belgian was prolific during his time at Aston Villa, scoring 49 goals in 101 matches for the club following his arrival from Genk in 2012.
A big money move to Liverpool didn’t quite work out and he was subsequently moved on to Crystal Palace for £27m in the summer as he looks to refind his form.
Benteke still managed 10 goals during his single season on Merseyside though he will be most notable remembered for his powerful attacking displays in claret and blue.
LW: Ashley Young
Ashley Young was a fantastic player for Villa during his four-and-a-half seasons at the club as he was twice named in the PFA Team of the Year before moving to Manchester United in 2011.
But despite a promising start for the Red Devils, the England international’s form dipped as he found game time increasingly hard to come by.
The 31-year-old is yet to play a minute of football under new manager Jose Mourinho as it appears his days at the club are numbered.
Would Villa fans take him back?
Full XI (4-3-3): Guzan; Walker, Cahill, Davies, Bertrand; Milner, Delph, Davis; Albrighton, Benteke, Young
Substitutes: Shay Given (GK), Micah Richards (RB), Idrissa Gueye (CM), Ron Vlaar (CB), James Collins (CB), Gareth Barry (CM), Stewart Downing (LM)
Overall, this team looks relatively strong and although some of the players are now past their prime, it is still a side that is solid in all areas and would likely be very competitive in the Premier League – which is much more than you could say for Villa last season.
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