West Bromwich Albion beat Aston Villa 2-0 on Saturday afternoon.
West Bromwich Albion midfielder Gareth Barry has admitted to the Birmingham Mail that it was a ‘great feeling’ be applauded by Aston Villa fans on Saturday afternoon.
West Brom kept up their push for promotion back to the Premier League by picking up a derby day win at Villa Park.
The Baggies hit two goals in four minutes towards the end of the first half to claim the win, as Hal Robson-Kanu opened the scoring before Jay Rodriguez added a second before the break.
West Brom sit four points off automatic promotion, and Darren Moore will be delighted to have picked up a win over a local rival.
The game saw midfielder Barry return to Villa Park once again, having left the club back in 2009 for a move to Manchester City.
Barry has returned regularly with City, Everton and West Brom, and has often been booed by Villa fans upon making his comeback, with some still not happy with the way he left Villa.
However, Barry was actually applauded by many Villa fans after heading off the pitch on Saturday, in what Barry himself acknowledges may be his last time at his former club.
The 37-year-old admitted that it was a ‘great feeling’ to receive that appreciation, so was happy to be heading off with some applause from Villa fans despite the rivalry between the two clubs.
“It was a great feeling to be honest,” said Barry. “I won’t forget the 12 years I spent here. To come here at 16 and spend that amount of time at a club is something you won’t forget. It is nice, you don’t know I may never play at Villa Park again in front of the fans so I was happy I went off in that way,” he added.
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