- The Aston Villa supporters came to see the debut of their £8.5 million (S$15.1 million) Tanzanian striker Mbwana Samatta, but left singing the name of a player whose roots lie much closer to home, as the team reached their first major Cup final in five years.
LONDON • The Aston Villa supporters came to see the debut of their £8.5 million (S$15.1 million) Tanzanian striker Mbwana Samatta, but left singing the name of a player whose roots lie much closer to home, as the team reached their first major Cup final in five years.
Jack Grealish was born just up the road and joined Villa’s academy at the age of six so he knows what a first piece of silverware since 1996 would mean to the Claret and Blue half of Birmingham.
The skipper helped the Villans reach the final of the League Cup on Tuesday night, playing a starring role in carving out Matt Targett’s opener against Leicester with an impudent flick.
While Kelechi Iheanacho, playing because Jamie Vardy was deemed not fit to start, sidefooted home the equaliser, Trezeguet, who came off the bench 13 minutes from time, popped up with the winner to spark wild celebrations at Villa Park.
After the 2-1 victory to go through 3-2 on aggregate, Grealish told reporters he was relishing another opportunity to shine at Wembley.
This will be his fourth final appearance at the stadium, having tasted victory and defeat in equal measure.
He was on the losing side in the 2015 FA Cup defeat by Arsenal and the 2018 Championship play-off final before making amends at the same stage a year later as Villa won promotion to the Premier League.
Making light of their poor form last month, which included a 4-1 home league loss to Leicester, Grealish said: “It shows what character we’ve got in the team.
“We were in a sticky patch before Christmas – we couldn’t string four passes together, never mind winning, but we have started the new year in great form.
“This is massive. It’s my fifth time (including the 2015 FA Cup semi-final) at Wembley with Aston Villa which I’m over the moon at.
“I love a trip to Wembley. We’re looking forward to it. In the first leg, we were under so much pressure, but today, we were brilliant and had the better chances if anything.
“The goalkeeper (Orjan Nyland) was great. Everyone was brilliant. Now, we’ll concentrate on Saturday (at Bournemouth) and try to get out of the bottom five.”
Dean Smith, who like Grealish is a boyhood Villa fan, is also aiming to write his name in the club’s history books by lifting his first trophy on March 1.
Admitting that he “certainly let myself go” after Trezeguet’s stoppage-time goal, the Villa manager, who took over the reins in October 2018, said: “It means an awful lot.
“We’ve got a proud history in this competition, and if we could go and lift the trophy for the sixth time, then, I’ll be a very proud man.
“We know it’s going to be tough, but the hard part is getting to a Cup final, and we’ve managed to do that against a very good Leicester side.”
Foxes manager Brendan Rodgers was left to rue their missed chances in both legs, even though Nyland was outstanding, but backed his “gutted” players to bounce back.
Despite missing out on a first major Cup final appearance in 20 years, his side remain on course for a return to the Champions League for the first time since the 2016-17 season.
They are third in the league, 14 points ahead of fifth-placed Manchester United, and while Rodgers claimed “the loss to Villa hurts, that hurt will help you going forward”.
