Five Reasons to Be Cheerful as Villa Aim to Build on 2023 Progress.
If the second half of the season can live up to the levels of the first, then Villa fans are in for a treat and potentially even a trophy. With Premier League football on a mini hiatus, here are Five Reasons to be Cheerful as Villa fans:
Adidas Coup
Villa kicked off the new year by announcing to the media that Adidas will be providing the team shirts instead of the stuffy Castore option starting in the following season. The agreement is purportedly an improvement, and it should assist Villa in taking the initial steps toward catching up to the richest six teams, whose revenue now exceeds Villa’s.
How customized the Villa kit is will determine a lot of the kit’s appearance. Since Adidas is known to invest more time and energy on some club uniforms than others, perhaps the summer unveiling will win over more supporters than the more recent kit releases. I hope it doesn’t resemble a West Ham uniform.
Cup Hoodoo
The game was dull, the subsequent draw wasn’t kind, but Villa finally made it out of the FA Cup third round for the first time in years. Hallelujah. Another hoodoo crushed by Emery (at the second time of asking but we won’t mention last season’s exit) and a chance to win a third straight match at Stamford Bridge in the fourth round.
While it’s certainly not a priority for the season, a win at Chelsea might start to add more spice to the FA Cup for Villa fans, once again.
League Outlook
Aston Villa is now eight points ahead of West Ham in sixth place after 21 games played. Overall, the season has gone exceptionally smoothly, but the mystery surrounding the possible fifth Champions League spot this season may yet provide some late drama throughout the European competitions.
The players at Villa should benefit from the current football break since their performances against Manchester City and Arsenal have started to wane. The clubs Villa plays next are Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Newcastle, Manchester United, Sheffield United, and Fulham; all but Fulham were opponents Villa lost to in the first half of the season.This time, there needs to be a noticeable improvement in the situation.
International Bonus
Some of the teams around Villa have lost significant players to the international tournaments taking place this month. Tottenham losing, arguably, their best player as are Liverpool. This could give Villa the edge in creating a larger buffer between itself and the chasing North Londoners. Villa only have Traoré missing, a player that Emery suggested could be on the way out this window should a suitable offer arrive.
Window Shopping
Villa announced the first deal of the January window, involving Kosta Nedeljković. The more trustworthy members of the Twitterati have been leaking strong connections to two other players, all of which suggest a return to the pre-Gerrard strategy of recruiting young, gifted players rather than older, established players at greater salaries.
Even if the new addition won’t arrive until the summer, Villa’s current right-backs—including the returning Kaine Kesler-Hayden—should consider that if consistency isn’t reached by May, they may be playing on borrowed time.
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