Aston Villa skipper John McGinn has provided his thoughts on our season and has got his assessment spot on in a candid post.
While Villa ultimately fell short on various fronts having suffered defeat in the FA Cup semi-finals and Champions League quarter-finals, as well as finishing sixth in the Premier League to drop down to the Europa League next season, there were still many, many highlights.
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Whether it was individual or collective performances, memorable results, big European nights at Villa Park or the ongoing journey of progression and development under Unai Emery into a side that is capable of competing at the top level year in and year out, there is a lot to still be optimistic about.
In his social media post assessing the campaign, McGinn has been honest with his thoughts, and although he emphasised the fact that we’ve secured an important achievement in qualifying for European football for a third consecutive year, he conceded that we came up short in big moments at the business end of the season.
“A horrible way to end a long season for the lads,” he wrote on X. “We have had some incredible highs and some tough moments. We achieved European football for the third year running but are aware in some big moments we didn’t produce. Thanks for all the support this season. Keep the faith #UTV.”
Having ultimately reflected what a lot of fans feel a week on from the end of the campaign, the Villa captain unsurprisingly received plenty of support and backing from supporters in the comments, and it’s hoped that having acknowledged a clear issue, we’re able to address it next season and kick on in our pursuit of success.
It remains to be seen how much changes this summer as incomings and outgoings are expected, as Villa look to not only strengthen Emery’s squad but remain on the right side of PSR and UEFA financial rules too.
In turn, it’s going to be a delicate balancing act with some decisions that won’t prove to be popular, but with McGinn set to lead the way again next season, it’s hoped that we can keep building on the positives, but absolutely learn from our shortcomings and be better off from them heading into another crunch year.
This Villa side under Emery will ultimately be remembered for many positive reasons, but the Basque coach and his players will want to deliver trophies to really write their respective names in the club’s history books, and it’s hoped that whether it’s a domestic cup competition or the Europa League, we can put ourselves in contention to go all the way and take that next step, while also maintaining and improving on our standing in the league.
John cannot be doubted in any way.To me being sort of old school having only one forward is how to try and not lose a game and not win it.Excellent passers of the ball but pass who to.