After a disastrous 2015/16 season, what is the mood like at Villa Park at the moment?
It is fair to say that the confidence is still a little down. Aston Villa have brought in nine players, got rid of 12, and Roberto Di Matteo has brought in his own backroom staff. There has been a big change in personnel but there is still a hangover from last season. Four or five of the players who played on Sunday were relegated last season and it will take some of them time to get their confidence back. The spine of the team has been strengthened with a new goalkeeper, central defenders, central midfielders, and strikers. Villa have really looked for character over talent in their recruitment this season. They have been stung by some bad eggs in the last few seasons but Tommy Elphick, Ross McCormack, and Mile Jedinak were all captains at their club as they look to build a team of leaders.
Is six points from six games a fair reflection of how Villa have started this season?
Results haven’t started too well with six points from six games but Villa have been playing well and were unlucky in a couple of games. They have created 75 chances in six games and hit the woodwork seven times. Fans still can’t believe how they didn’t win on Sunday against Nottingham Forest: Forest had three chances and scored twice. The finishing hasn’t been great but in Jonathan Kodija, Ross McCormack, and Rudy Gestede there are players with Championship experience. Fans aren’t worried about results yet but they accept that six points from six games is not promotion form.
On the subject of Kodija and McCormack, what about the big money arrivals during a busy, and expensive, transfer window for Villa?
They have really gone for it this summer. The club has spent £60million in total with £30million of that being outlay. Experience has been the keyword and five of the nine new players have been promoted from the Championship. There is a feeling that they have paid over the odds for some players but they are definitely flexing their financial muscles. They have put a lot of eggs in the basket of getting promoted this season and if that doesn’t happen then that will be a worry.
How have the fans reacted to playing in the second tier?
I thought that the fans would struggle to get used to the Championship as it had been 30 years since they were last in the second tier. The majority of fans have never experienced the second tier but more than 30,000 are still turning up at Villa Park every week and they have sold out every away game so far. For most fans the writing was on the wall when Randy Lerner stopped putting the money in and they were almost waiting for this to happen.
Given the size of the two clubs, are Villa fans expecting three points on Wednesday night? What kind of game can Bees fans expect?
I don’t think the fans expectation levels are that high. Wednesday is a game that fans will look at think that they need to win but any game at home is one that they need to win. Having said that they know that Brentford are on a really good run of form and won’t be underestimating them. Di Matteo has stuck with 4-2-3-1 so far this season with Ashley Westwood and Mile Jedinak holding while Jack Grealish, Ross McCormack, and Jordan Ayew and behind either Kodija or Gestede. I would expect it to be a very attacking game. Villa have created a lot of chances and, while they haven’t conceded a lot of chances, they have let in a lot of goals.