My Old Man Said — An Aston Villa Podcast

Aston Villa drew 2-2 with Brentford at Villa Park in the Premier League, leaving them still without a league win at home this season. Unai Emery went with Tyrone Mings over Pau Torres to deal with Brentford's set pieces, which seemed the right move in the first half, as the long throw-ins rained in, until a misplaced pass put a question mark over Villa's ability to play through Brentford's press.

Brentford certainly arrived with a plan to rough Villa up, the referee let it happen, and Villa's attempts to fight fire with fire keep looking petulant...

Aston Villa host Brentford at Villa Park in their first game after the extended international break, still looking for a first home league win of the season. With the Bees currently fourth in the Premier League table, built on set pieces, and with a decent recent record against Villa, it'll be a good test of where this new Villa team are at.

There's a look at how the break went for Villa's new signings and who is still missing: Matty Cash's dead leg for Poland looks like a scare rather than a problem, but Leon Goretzka...

Aston Villa's international break has produced progress on some fronts and raised a few new questions, and this catch-up takes stock before a full main show lands ahead of Brentford at Villa Park. The headline event was a 3-1 friendly win at Sevilla in the Antonio Puerta Memorial Trophy, played in honour of the Sevilla midfielder who died in 2007 and also a tribute to Unai Emery's three straight Europa League wins with the club.

The friendly offered something a friendly rarely does: a strong midfield, a proper trip, and goals from Garnacho and Barkley plus an...

The Mad Few Listener Q & A is back in the first of a planned recurring format: 30 minutes, no more, answering listener questions from Match Club and the Mad Few Facebook group.

The questions range wide: who succeeds John McGinn as captain once his generation moves on, with no obvious heir yet established among the new arrivals; how last season's alumni have fared since leaving, and why Zion Suzuki's long passing is being read as a deliberate tactical answer to high pressing rather than a novelty; and where Alejandro Garnacho actually stands in the pecking order, with...

With the international break in full swing and there still being two weeks until Aston Villa return to action, this main show takes stock of the potential upside to the squad that Unai Emery was actually built. Six of the summer's ten signings started together for the first time against Tottenham, and this episode digs into what that means going forward.

There's a proper look at Zion Suzuki, whose passing range is framed by Emery himself as a specific tactical response to how Premier League teams are evolving.

There's a closer look at the...

Aston Villa won 3-2 away at Tottenham Hotspur for their first Premier League win of the season, after leading 3-0 and then conceding twice late. It came at a timely moment: three weeks of international-break stewing would have felt a lot longer stuck in the bottom three.

This post-mortem starts with Johan Manzambi, whose first Premier League start brought a goal and an assist in a free role behind Nicolas Jackson. Jackson also bagged his first Premier League goal for Villa, while Emiliano Buendía returned to scoring bangers (again, against Spurs) to make it 3-0.

Aston Villa travel to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Saturday for the early kick-off, with both clubs still chasing a first league win of the season. Both teams will want to be heading into the international break outside of the bottom three, with Villa needing the win to achieve that.

The preview looks at Tottenham's big-spending summer: a squad of ready-made signings, an ownership that has chosen to back its manager after Daniel Levy's departure, and a side that keeps creating chances without finishing them. It sets that against Villa's very different rebuild — younger, hi...

We look back at a fairly routine Carabao Cup win against Coventry City, but a game nonetheless that was important in the scheme of things for the season to come. Also, will the Carabao Cup play a more important part to Villa's season than first expected?

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Aston Villa lost at home to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League, a result that leaves Unai Emery still searching for a first win in his career against Oliver Glasner. This post-mortem show of the My Old Man Said podcast starts with the moment that shaped the whole second half: Nicolas Jackson hooked off at half-time as a yellow-card precaution, with Alysson brought on ahead of Alejandro Garnacho and Johan Manzambi — a change that left John McGinn shunted out to the left and the team's shape compromised before Forest had even sensed the opportunity.

There's a lo...

Aston Villa host Nottingham Forest at Villa Park in the Premier League on Saturday, looking for a first league win of the season. The game comes off the back of Villa's first win of their Champions League campaign, a 3-2 victory away at Club Brugge. This week's Villa News starts with the additional benefits of the win beyond the three points.

There's a proper look at Forest under new manager Oliver Glasner, who inherits a back-three system and a Villa Park record that has been anything but kind to visitors from the City Ground in recent...

Aston Villa have finally scored a goal(s) and got their first win of the season, beating Club Brugge 3-2 away in their Champions League league-phase opener. Villa raced into a 3-1 half-time lead, before holding out in the closing stages in a genuine test of nerve.

This post-mortem covers a landmark night for John McGinn, who scored his twelfth European goal to become Villa's all-time leading scorer in continental competition, and a complete performance from Pau Torres, who set up two of Villa's three goals before digging in defensively as Brugge pushed for an equaliser...

Aston Villa open their Champions League league account away at Club Brugge, a fixture Villa know well from their run to the competition two seasons ago and a genuine litmus test after an underwhelming start to the Premier League season. Europavision — the podcast's dedicated European show— returns to look at what has changed with Club Brugge since Villa's last encounters with them.

This preview covers Bruges's recent record as one of European football's most consistent Champions League "gatekeepers," a rebuilt attack led by a new-look front three, and the kind of two-way trading model that's kept them...

Aston Villa were held to a goalless draw away at Hull City in the Premier League, a result that flattered the hosts on the day. Villa finished with the better expected goals (1.74 to 0.58), thirteen shots to Hull's four, and three big chances missed to Hull's two — but only one shot on target across the whole ninety minutes was enough to explain the scoreline. it's the same one shot that they've had in all of their three games so far this season.

This My Old Man Said post-mortem episode centres on Unai Emery's approach of not throwing ne...

With the transfer window shut and 10 new summer signings now on the books, this week's Main Show turns its attention to one man in particular: Taylor Harwood-Bellis. The centre-back needs to be quietly competent rather than spectacular if this rebuild is going to hold together. The show works through his winding route to Villa Park — loan spells, a relegation at Southampton, an England call-up earned along the way, and the awkward parts of his reputation.

Villa News covers deadline day itself, including Leon Bailey's move to Olympiacos finally getting the wages off the books, and the Th...

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...

Aston Villa's great big summer rebuild continues as nine new incomings have been confirmed as the transfer deadline approaches. The latest MOMS main show catches up on the latest news, Three Points and Emery's Clipboard, before looking at the centre-forward and goalkeeper position, which could be key to the season ahead.

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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 I...

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...

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.<...

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...

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 han...

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 c...

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 al...

Aston Villa's transfer window has gone from silent to frantic inside a week. Youri Tielemans has had his £35m release clause triggered to join Manchester United, Lucas Digne has had his release clause triggered to, as he's heading to join Paris Saint-Germain, and Johan Manzambi is arriving from SC Freiburg.

We look at what frames it all, the restrictive UEFA settlement Villa have in place and the fact they desperately need to refresh an aging squad, that is one of the oldest in the Premier League.

This week's episode gets into why Villa a...

The main show is back. Pre-season friendlies have forming on the horizon, there's a Super Cup to be won, and we know the Premier League fixtures, well, until Sky Sports changes them. The World Cup is on, and while the transfer window is in stasis until the knockout rounds begin in earnest, there is a lot to get through.

We catch up with all the latest news - a positive update on Boubacar Kamara, Villa's key FIFA appeal, progress on Aston train stations, and more.

The Three Points section covers everything from FIFA...

The Mad Few is back. For the uninitiated: the name comes from Steve Bruce's affectionate description of Aston Villa supporters who weren't particularly happy with his management. It stuck. So when the questions for MOMS pile up, they become a Mad Few episode.

Part one of at least two covers the season just gone, the questions it raised, and the conversations it opened. It starts where the season ended: relief, disbelief, and a growing suspicion that what just happened might be the best sustained run of results in over forty years.

Was the...

The season is done. The trophy is in the cabinet. The top-four finish is banked - literally. And now — with the confetti swept and the open-top bus parked — it's time for the honest debrief.

This week's episode is a free-form end of season conversation covering everything from the new 2026-27 home kit to Ollie Watkins' late-season renaissance, from the tipsy final day at Manchester City to the question that will define next season before it has even started: does this summer's transfer window signal genuine ambition or cautious consolidation?

There's also...

Aston Villa are Europa League winners. Three-nil against SC Freiburg on a rain-soaked Wednesday night in Istanbul, that ended in the early hours with a trophy cabinet that finally has something new in it.

This post-mortem covers what actually happened — and what it means. From Youri Tielemans' opening volley, which settled every nerve in the ground the moment it hit the corner of the net, to a second-half of focused control. Three picture-perfect strikes. A goalkeeper who broke a finger in the warm-up and played on regardless. A fanbase that spent two seasons fluent in PSR an...

Aston Villa face SC Freiburg in the Europa League final in Istanbul on Wednesday — and this week's episode is a full lowdown on the opponents, covering their history, their identity, their key players, and the tactical shape of what awaits. It's everything you need to know.

The episode opens with a verdict that captures the problem succinctly: Villa have to shoot Bambi. Freiburg are 100% fan-owned, operate on a fraction of Villa's transfer budget, have the lowest squad turnover rate in the Bundesliga. The rest of the world will be rooting for the virtuous underdog.

...

Aston Villa beat Liverpool 4-2 at Villa Park on Friday evening, sealing Champions League qualification through the league and sending supporters into the Istanbul week in exactly the right frame of mind. The game that looked like a distraction turned into the best possible preparation.

This week's My Old Man Said Post-Mortem opens with the moment that changed everything: the teamsheet. When Emery named the side that beat Nottingham Forest 4-0 in the European semi-final — essentially the expected starting lineup for Wednesday — the game instantly became something else. Not a Premier League fixture to be survived befo...

Aston Villa face Liverpool at Villa Park on Friday evening — the last Premier League fixture before the Europa League final in Istanbul on Wednesday. Champions League qualification still isn't mathematically confirmed through the league.

It should already be wrapped up. It isn't. And that shapes everything about how the Liverpool game needs to be approached — not as a send-off but as unfinished business. The reality is though, Unai Emery and his players will rest up, but will there be at least enough application to make a fight of the game?

This week's main show...

Burnley away. The home team had only one win during 2026 so far and hadn't scored at home in months. Villa needed a win to pretty much secure Champions League football. The 2-2 draw was bordering on predictable. The My Old Man Said post-mortem dissects a performance that tells you more about the bigger picture than the result: two goals from a corner and a long punt, a performance spectrum throughout this year that drops to low.

Also, we take in Amadou Onana's latest injury and the familiar availability pattern that's plagued Villa across four seasons, Emery's...

Villa beat Nottingham Forest 4-0 at Villa Park to reach the Europa League final in Istanbul. Freiburg await. One more job to do to end 30-years of hurt.

Some nights you have a feeling about before a ball is kicked. On a European night, not many English grounds can hold a candle to Villa Park on a European night. The atmosphere was electric and the players on the pitch also made sure they made it an unforgettable night, as well — four goals, a complete performance, and a European final earned in the most emphatic fashion possible.

Before the biggest night at Villa Park in years, a solo My Old Man Said show, with some personal memories and reflections back to 1994, and an honest assessment of what the second leg of the Europa League semi-final requires.

In 1994, Villa were three-nil down at Tranmere in a League Cup semi-final first leg. The fanbase were feeling angry that the club were squandering a real good chance of silverware to put them back on the map, after a difficult decade. The build up to the second leg has parallels, as does the build-up to the final...

What happened against Spurs on Sunday night? Unai Emery elected to shuffle his pack, and there were seven changes, but the line-up wasn't too dissimilar from the one that beat Fenerbahçe away 1-0 in the Europa League. The back four was the same apart from the left-back; the base of the midfield was the same with Bogarde next to Tieliemans, with Sancho and Rogers further forward, and Barkley and Abraham in instead of Watkins and Buendia (who both did come on), but they have been patchy at best anyway. At least against Spurs, you also had Martinez in g...

Some Villa supporters have spent the week since the Fulham defeat getting increasingly pessimistic about the Europa League semi-final tie against Nottingham Forest. Especially after the Tricky Trees tonked Sunderland 5-0 in their own backyard. Have they forgotten about Unai Emery's record in this tournament?

In a first impressions solo preview, My Old Man Said host David Michael takes a clear-eyed look at the reasons for genuine confidence, and what Villa actually need from the first leg at the City Ground to set up Villa Park for the occasion it deserves.

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Villa are building a bigger stadium… but as the age profile of the current Aston Villa squad suggests, they will soon need to build a new team too.

With the Europa League semi-final against Nottingham Forest bubbling away on the horizon for Aston Villa, the main show of My Old Man Said gets up to speed on a series of key issues like Villa's aging squad and the North Stand development, while also looking at the BBC's decision to cancel Football Focus. Need a ticket to the City Ground for the first leg of the Europa Le...

One Eye on Fulham, Both Eyes on Forest

A 1-0 defeat at Craven Cottage that was never really about Fulham.

Villa lost to Fulham on Saturday. Ryan Sessegnon, who has made a habit of tormenting Villa over the years, scored the only goal. Rogers and Watkins missed big chances within thirty seconds of each other that, on another day, would have settled the game before half-time. The four substitutions made simultaneously at the seventy-fourth minute told you everything about where Emery's priorities lie this week.

In this episode the show...

The most chaotic win of the season. And potentially one of the most significant.

Three-one up and coasting. Then Sancho came on. Then it was three-three. Then Martinez stood up when it mattered most. Then Abraham scored the winner from a Digne cross that could have been measured with a ruler. Ten points clear of Chelsea. Champions League football confirmation is getting closer.

The latest episode of the My Old Man Said podcast show unpacks the full emotional spectrum of a game that had everything — brilliant team goals, inexplicable defensive gaps, a substitution th...

A 4-0 win on the night, 7-1 on aggregate. Aston Villa dispatched Bologna with comfortable ease to set up an all-English Europa League semi-final against Nottingham Forest.

Villa were three goals up before half-time, Buendia was the player of the night in what may have been his most complete performance in a Villa shirt, and the second half became an extended exercise in managing minutes ahead of Sunderland on Sunday.

In this episode of My Old Man Said, the show breaks down a night that confirmed Villa as legitimate Europa League favourites, and...