Back to Villa Park we go, and so do Newcastle.
The new season kicks off and we’ve got an early start. Everything should be working, the turnstiles set up, everyone in the ground, served and toileted well before three. It’s a 12.30 kick-off, but you can’t have everything.
And look who we’ve got on the other side Newcastle United, formerly coveted holders of the Coventry City One-Way Rivalry Award and now invariably linked with us in the “It’s not fair that…” opinions. No it isn’t, and it’s even more unfair that they’re in the Champions League, where we should be.
Newcastle seem to have finally given up all that overblown World’s Greatest Supporters/Big Club nonsense. They even seem to have accepted that being owned by a bunch of human rights violators won’t make them automatically a team full of galacticos. Whether they’ve given up horse punching, topless sunbathing in the winter and wearing Arab headdresses remains to be seen.
What they have got, amazingly, is Matt Targett on their books, and even more amazingly he’s still not turned thirty yet. They’ll also more than likely have Jacob Ramsey some time in the next few days. It’s a pity we couldn’t have hung onto him, but needs must.
Anyway, we’ve still got Emiliano Martinez and Ollie Watkins, despite them both being sold a dozen times each in the past three months. We’ve also got our new signing (singular – so far) Evann Guessand, however it’s pronounced. We’ve also, it seems, got a full and uninjured squad to choose from. Unless, that is, one of them gets injured in the meantime. If one does, I think we all know who it will be.
The forecast’s good, so bring sunscreen and plenty of water for the queues. Get there in plenty of time and be aware that whatever problems you might have getting into the ground or trying to spend your money inside, it’ll be your own fault. Not the club’s, or the staff, and certainly not any new technology they might have installed and not bothered checking. It’s August and they’re not expecting a match. Some things never change.
