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Aston Villa RUINED My Christmas
A single loss caused me to turn my phone off, and shut down completely.
I was having an absolutely wonderful Christmas with my family. The couple of days leading up to Christmas were spent with friends and family, eating and drinking and just generally being happy to be around one another. Christmas day was a blast as my kids loved their presents, and were being super kind to each other. That doesn’t happen often when you have 3 kids all under the age of 10. Later on Xmas day, my wife kids and I all went to parents’ house, where my mom made a brilliant roast beef dinner with all the fixings.
Those couple of days, were magical. Magical in the sense that we could be together, enjoy the time, reflect on the year of 2023 and all the blessings we had had. We talked about the fun days, the bad days, and how good the weather was. We even spoke about how nice it was to be an Aston Villa supporter as the team were doing phenomenal this season, second in the table at the time. They were still in the Europa Conference League and may even pick up a piece of silverware this year.
The Villa were playing Manchester United on Boxing Day (the day after Xmas), and we felt that finally we had a team that could go into Old Trafford and dominate. Dominate as we had done in previous matches against Man City and Arsenal. Both 1-0 Villa victories. Aston Villa supporters were floating in the clouds at the prospect that we could actually be title contenders. This hasn’t seemed possible in more than two decades. But this year, this season, Unai Emery has taken the club to heights that none of us could of imagined.
If you had asked any Villa fan where we thought the club would be come boxing day, second place in the league would not have been dreamt off. I guarantee that.
Then, to take us to greater heights, we scored TWO goals in the first half against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Boxing Day. I mean, 0-2 up and looking like we’ll add three more points to the league points list…..I mean, it’s the stuff dreams are made of.
BUT WAIT…..THIS IS ASTON VILLA…..and inevitably, the collapse came. 3-2 was the final, as Villa looked tired and lathargic in that second half. The first United goal went into the net because of a poor give-a-way. And then, just then, we knew how it would end.
The final whistle blew to cement the 3-2 loss. My dad, brothers and I switched the TV off, and all drove back to our own homes to sulk. It was the end of the Christmas period. I turned my phone off, which is something I NEVER do. I didn’t go online and add comments to the We Are Soccer Facebook Group like I normally do. I didn’t read texts, I didn’t read about soccer. And I certainly didn’t talk about soccer. I took the next 5 days and stayed away from everything. I was numb.
Now, why would a simple loss, which didn’t even cause us to drop in the table, hurt so much? Because every season, there is a game that Villa seem to just collapse in, and the season goes into a downward spiral from that point on. The year Leicester won the league, you remember that? It was 2015-16. Leicester were doing ok in the early parts of the season, Villa were doing ok, then they played each other on September 13, 2015. Villa went up 2-0 and just like the game against Man Utd. this season, collapsed and lost 3-2. That game, that game sent Leicester on the upward trajectory to win the league. WE were their spring board. US, Aston Villa. Ugh. I’m glad Leicester won the league, very happy to be honest. But, it’s the loss that Villa took that hurts.
Yes, Aston Villa FC is like a religion to me. When they lose, it hurts. And when they win, it’s sunshine and roses. My grandfather was a Villa fan, my aunts and uncles were and still are Villa fans, and my cousins still attend games. It’s what binds us all and gives us something to talk about. I’ve traveled the country to see them play when Villa visit here in the USA. I’ve traveled to England to see them play, and I even traveled to see them play a single game. It was the EFL Championship game back in 2019 against Derby County which saw us promoted back to the Premiership…so I can’t be blamed. It was after-all, a VERY important game in our history as a club.
Anyway, all this to say that Villa ruined my Xmas because of a single loss. BUT, as we head into 2024, I’m growing up. I can say without a doubt, that yes I took that loss very hard, but I shouldn’t have. I should have continued to be happy and enjoy my time with family, and the holiday period. I’m learning, I’m growing, and maybe next time Villa collapse like they did at Old Trafford, I won’t take it so hard…no promises though.
Up The Villa!
- Craig