It was Winnie, of course, who made this statement after El Alamein: “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” A statement that gave notice that the turnaround had begun: that after years of being in a ruinous-looking situation, Britain was back on the front foot. And so it proved.
So, as the Villa’s seasonus horribilis comes to perhaps a welcome end, we seem (with a suspected imminent takeover) to be at a new beginning. But the question is, will this new era be triumphant? Will the new owners learn from what has gone before this last 10 years, and, indeed, the previous 24 years of Doug’s reign?
And outside the realm of Aston Villa there are other indicators that new owners may well note: the success of Leicester City as a supposed small club by comparison, and the observation in the press that moneybags Manchester City has become heartless and soul-less from the top down. Chelsea – a money driven club for a decade now – has also had its problems over the years, and particularly this season. Their supporters still seem to have a soft spot for Ranieri (now of Leicester), so it seems to me that the simple formula of megabucks and ego does not go down well with fans once that combination has been experienced. The thought of lucre to buy success may seem attractive, but it’s strange how banknotes lose their sheen if success does not get constantly repeated, even if the last major trophy win was only two years previous. Everyone loses patience if the dominance does not perpetuate: “We only finished fifth this season” looks like the grumble of Man U fans.
It is a welcome change, though, that it looks as though London will be bereft of any trophy winner this season, barring the possibility that Crystal Palace may yet produce a further fairy-tale story to accompany Leicester’s success.
But Villa? That the club has been relegated has been both unwarranted and unnecessary, but it is a fact and we have just got to go forward and heap our expectations onto new owners – and metaphorically even to offer our paintbrush services as was done back in 1969. And there lies the underlying needs of the club: to restore unity from disunity; to restore pride from shame. It happened in the 1969-82 years: it can happen again. In fact, it’s an overwhelming need for unity and pride to be restored in a football club such as Aston Villa.
Back in 1968 at a supporters’ protest meeting, a former Villa star player of the 1940s said: “The aura of greatness is no longer with us. … Once, the air at Villa Park used to be electric and the whole place was alive.” Well, we can say that now, too, can’t we? We have known some great days up until the end of the 90s, and some reminders in the days of O’Neill, but spirit is now in deep need of restoration. But although spirit can be found in a bottle, supporters need to go home from the match with the memory of something marvellous: something that the likes of Blanchflower, McParland, Hitchens, Rioch, Little, Gray, Cowans, Shaw, Withe, Saunders, Atkinson, Yorke and even Angel could provide in my lifetime following Villa. Even the efforts of defenders like Lynn, Aitken, Gidman, McGrath and Laursen have greatly aided in the creation of past excitement. That list could be extended, but aside from Benteke we’ve seen precious few of their ilk this past 18 years. Their like need to be restored as a priority at Villa Park in my view: players that can excite and warm the blood.
Winning is one thing, but firstly let’s get back to a base where pride and skill are paramount.
A “Bright Future”? Well, hope reigns eternal.
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