My Old Man Said — An Aston Villa Podcast

Aston Villa lost 1-0 at home to Arsenal in the Premier League, a game settled by one clinical moment from the league's most functional side. It's a result that leaves Villa without a shot on target for the second match running, but there's plenty of mitigating circumstances for the season's slow start.Zion Suzuki made his full Villa Park debut in goal and was the standout performer with his distribution impressing. Nicolas Jackson also started, similar in profile to Ollie Watkins but still finding his feet after a couple of training sessions. In the stands were Villa's two deadline-day transfers, Ibrahim Mbaye and Taylor Harwood-Bellis, who sat next to Leon Goretzka and Johan Manzambi, who both weren't at full fitness yet. Hopefully, some of the new boys will be in the squad for the trip to Hull City, though.This Post-Mortem covers the contentious penalty decisions, a familiar team structure, checks out who the Speed Demon was, and builds the case for why a repeated no-shots-on-target scoreline doesn't yet mean what it might look like from the outside — a squad still waiting for the version of itself that's actually finished being built.UTVNew Adidas Originals collection and away kit out now Get extra months free and huge savings on a two-year NordVPN plan here

Aston Villa's Champions League league-phase opponents are confirmed: Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund, Fenerbahçe and Viking all visit Villa Park, while Villa face trips to Barcelona, Club Brugge (again), Galatasaray and Slavia Prague.We assess what lies ahead for the rebuilt Villa team, fixture by fixture: from the reality of an away day at a two-thirds-rebuilt Camp Nou to the banana skin potential of an organised Viking side at Villa Park. Could another European away day to Brugge actually be a blessing in disguise? There's also a third trip this year for Unai Emery's boys to Istanbul. None of it is straightforward to call. This is a Champions League campaign where it is hard to judge expectations of a team we haven't seen play yet, as the players are still being signed and coming through the door. Despite that factor, we judge the difficulty of what lies ahead and what's needed to progress.UTVNew Adidas Originals collection and away kit out now Get extra months free and huge savings on a two-year NordVPN plan here

Aston Villa's 2026/27 Premier League season opened with a 4-0 defeat away at Brighton, a result that owed as much to what wasn't on the team sheet as what happened on the pitch. No recognised striker started. Ezri Konsa was long gone, while Emiliano Martínez remains missing, training alone and potentially bomb squaded along with Leon Bailey. And Ollie Watkins — absent from training, his locker cleared at Bodymoor, and deep in talks with Al Hilal — was nowhere near the squad at all.This post-mortem covers the collapse in detail: the mix-up that gifted Brighton their opener, four goals conceded in twenty-three first-half minutes, João Gomes seeing red, and a Villa side with no shots on target across the 90 minutes. It sets out why the Watkins situation looks unrecoverable, what three years of dismantled combinations actually costs a squad entering the Champions League, and what's genuinely needed before the international break arrives.New Adidas Originals collection and away kit out now Get extra months free and huge savings on a two-year NordVPN plan here

Aston Villa may have lost their 100% run in European finals in their Super Cup loss to Paris Saint-Germain in Salzburg, but it provided an insight into the actual starting line-up for the upcoming Premier League season, despite most fans thinking it was a one-off changed line-up in terms of a competitive game. Brian Madjo's goal was the night's one moment of real distinction, making the 17-year-old the youngest player ever to score in a Super Cup final. This week's episode is a catch-up recorded before the season proper begins, working through what is actually happening and what it means.The decision to name Emiliano Martínez, Ezri Konsa and Ollie Watkins in the squad but not play any of them is picked apart directly, alongside the individual performances that did go well — Madjo's redemption arc after missing earlier chances. We also look at the goalkeeper saga that's reopened: the move for Zion Suzuki from Parma and Juventus playing footsy with Martinez, only to do the dirty on him.It closes on the bigger picture — the scale of this summer's overhaul, described on the show as bigger than anything seen under Unai Emery at Villa so far, and the uncertainty it brings for the season ahead.UTVNew Adidas Originals collection and away kit coming 22.08.26Get three months free and huge savings on a two-year NordVPN plan here

Aston Villa face Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup final at Stadion Salzburg on Wednesday 12 August — Europa League holders against Champions League holders. An unlikely win will lift Villa up a tier in English teams in terms of European royalty, as not many can boast two Super Cup wins to their name. This week's episode asks the question the squad list can't quite answer yet: is Emery's side actually ready, with the transfer window still open and noticeably weaker than in recent seasons due to injuries and World Cup returning player doubts.The team-news picture is complicated. Lucas Digne's move to PSG has finally been made official, weeks after it was widely reported as done. Johan Manzambi is a confirmed absentee, having knee treatment with no return date given. And the three World Cup finalists — Emiliano Martínez, Ezri Konsa and Ollie Watkins — are only just back in training (we hope) after three weeks off, leaving Unai Emery to decide how much to risk from the opening whistle.Villa have five players missing from the XI who started Villa's last competitive meeting with PSG — Marcus Rashford, Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, Amadou Onana and Digne - and there hasn't been an upgrade on any of the positions. If nothing else, the game will provide an unflinching assessment of where the squad actually stands with just over two weeks to go to the new season. At best, Villa, with a bit of luck will carry on their proud unbeaten European final history.Odds, history, and one very specific plan for Alejandro Garnacho — this week's episode has the full build-up before kick-off.Get three months free and huge savings on a two-year NordVPN plan here

Just over a fortnight out from the Premier League opener at Brighton, this week's episode asks the question Villa's midfield can't avoid: is it actually good enough for the Champions League and this season? Youri Tielemans and Morgan Rogers are both gone. João Gomes and, everyone hopes, Johan Manzambi are meant to replace them — not like for like, but as a different way of playing altogether.The conversation works through the practical questions first. Is Gomes the same kind of deep-lying orchestrator Tielemans was, or something with more bite and less silk? Can Boubacar Kamara handle a full season without breaking down again, and would shifting him fractionally further forward protect him or just expose someone else? Where does Manzambi actually play — box-to-box eight, wide left, or as the ten Villa haven't reliably had since Rogers' best form — and does Alejandro Garnacho's arrival settle that question or complicate it further?It broadens from there into the harder conversation underneath all of it: whether this is a refresh or a genuine rebuild, and whether a club can safely attempt one of those in the same summer it returns to the Champions League. There's also the cautionary tales of clubs like West Ham and Spurs, and indeed historic Villa, in terms of what can come on the heels of European glory.No predictions or certainty — just an honest account of how much of this squad remains genuinely unknown with the season weeks away.UTVSubscribe to AVWTF - www.astonvilla.wtf Sharp and informative Villa writing for supporters who can spot the clickbait from the back of the Holte.

The preseason catch-up show returns with the foundations of Villa's summer transfer business largely settled — Johan Manzambi, João Gomes and Alejandro Garnacho in, Youri Tielemans, Lucas Digne, and Morgan Rogers out. Also we reflect on Villa player's impact on the summer's World Cup.From there it's Villa news — the North Stand rebuild, injury concerns and Brian Madjo's registration appeal success. The Three Points has a shirt theme, while Emery's Clipboard tries to unearth more Buendia's.Subscribe to AVWTF - www.astonvilla.wtf Sharp and informative Villa writing for supporters who can spot the clickbait from the back of the Holte.

Aston Villa's summer took another turn this week: Morgan Rogers completed a British-record £117m move to Chelsea rather than Arsenal, João Gomes' switch from Wolves was announced, while João Palhinha's loan from Bayern Munich is less straightforward than it looked.This week's episode goes back over the week that was and explains why Chelsea, not Arsenal, always made more sense once the pieces were on the table — Johan Manzambi's arrival, the timing of the announcement, and what it signalled about who Villa expected to be negotiating with. There's a breakdown of João Gomes' fit alongside Boubacar Kamara, an honest look at where the Palhinha deal actually stands, and the developing left-back competition between Pervis Estupiñán and Ian Maatsen.There's also a proper explanation of Squad Cost Ratio, the rule that has replaced PSR this season, and why it changes the calculation on every sale Villa make from here. Plus: Emiliano Martínez's finger and Ezri Konsa's situation.Check out the cracking sale on the Adidas Villa Original Icons range hereGet MOMS in your inbox every Friday, free. Sharp, funny, informative Villa writing for supporters who can spot the clickbait from the back of the Holte. No spam. Join the astonvilla.wtf newsletter →