Leeds, next season and Sunday fun day

I told myself many years ago not to post when I've had a glass of wine, or two. But it's Friday night and it's been a busy few weeks and well, if you can't have a bottle or two of wine on a Friday night and annoy a few people, when can you?

Okay, this isn't going to annoy that many people and those that it does, will probably not come back to say they get it. And there is actually quite a lot to write about. And I write this as Rod Stewart comes on Spotify.

Oh yes, it's going to be one of those night.

First to Leeds last weekend and that goal. And this is possibly the first time I'm going to annoy a few people tonight, but these days players go down too easy and too often and when I was a kid you played to the whistle. The referee didn't blow the whistle and if we kicked the ball out every time a player went down, we'd not be scoring goals, we'd be playing a form of tennis on a football pitch.

Yes, at the time I make a 'dirty Leeds' comment on Twitter, but that was in the moment. The Aston Villa players should have played to the whistle and if the Leeds players made it look like they were going to kick the ball out, then the Aston Villa players should have played until the ball was kicked out.

But players kicking the ball out, that's another thing. The referee should decide when that happens and it should happen when the head is involved. But then again, that's new school thinking, but I accept that the head is something you want to look after. But again, as I write this, it's not as if we're in a boxing ring is it?

Leeds looked good

But enough about that for now, although I suspect I might get back to it, because I think most of you know that I believe football has changed and not for the better. We should look at Leeds and if there was one side that I've seen us play this season that I've quite liked, it's Leeds. And it's because they approach the game the right way.

And if you play against us doing that, it comes down to who wants it more and they wanted it just as much as us last weekend. If we end up playing them soon, it's going to be a very interesting game and tough.

So tough, that I think I'd prefer to play them over two legs. But we don't find that out until Sunday afternoon. And it is home and away for the first match right?

If we don't go up next season

So, in the last post I wrote about going up and obviously we all want that. But at the same time, I'm not going to be distraught if we don't go up. Yes, unhappy and yes gutted, but have we had it that bad this season and when was the last time we had it this good?

And it's because if we go up, there are no guarantees. Sure, I'd bet my mortgage payment next month that our owners will spend and support the manager and I think we'll stay up, but what happens if they do and we struggle? I mean, can anyone say they'd prefer to win less as long as they were in the Premier League?

I mean, does it really matter? Sure, you can argue that the money will run out eventually and owners will lose interest if they don't have the exposure of the Premier League and I get that, but we ended the season in the same place we did last season (or as good as) and by this I mean, we didn't automatically go up.

What I'm really saying is that I'm not going to get on anyones back if we don't go up. I've had fun this season, more than I can remember for a long time supporting Aston Villa and if it happens, with Dean Smith, a proper Aston Villa man, I'm fairly confident we will go up next season. And I also think we'll keep Jack and John and quite a few of the others.

Why? Well, it's because I think they will understand more than most that it takes time. They're clearly in a happy squad and they know that if they can keep this team together that next season will be better. And if the worst happens and we don't go up, I think that most will want to stay and finish the job. I think there is some loyalty in football these days and I think we have a group that might want to show that too.

Call me naive or blinkered or blindly optimistic, but every player has seen the love this season and they all know that it doesn't always end up like that when they're chasing the money. Incentivise them for next season, if the worst happens and they might just be more than happy with that. And as we all know, it's usually the fourth if it's not the first.

Sunday fun day

So with all that written and me only have tomorrow off this weekend (big week next week and it starts on Sunday) I'm going to leave you for now. Did I annoy anyone or has the drink finally got me writing something close to sensible?

There will be a post on Sunday and I will be watching, but also working and possibly traveling. Until then, up the Villa.

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