Source: Daily_Mail
THE MIDLANDER: 'Giants' Villa never won titles - so give O'Neill some credit!
So what did Aston Villa's first Wembley appearance in a decade tell us all last Sunday? [LNB]Let's state the obvious - it adds to the general upwards momentumunder Martin O'Neill - who deserves to be cut some slack by Villa'ssupporters.[LNB]Although every Villa official departed Wembley with a face akin tothat worn by John Terry over the past few weeks, the long-term trendis still healthy.[LNB] [LNB]High point: Aston Villa's James Milner celebrates scoring his penalty against Manchester United in the Carling Cup Final[LNB]O'Neill does not however, share a relationship with the club'sfollowers that is one of mutual love and affection. Moscow, dug-outcritics and all the rest, point to that.[LNB]But the manager has to be supported, here and now, irrespective of whether or not the season ends in success.[LNB]It's a fact that it is now almost 30 years since that fantastic blip which ended in League and European glory.[LNB] More from Neil Moxley... THE MIDLANDER: Warnock, phoenix from the Anfield flames, is just Fab25/02/10 THE MIDLANDER: Fans should be given sympathy after Notts County saga but Football League have lessons to learn18/02/10 THE MIDLANDER: Birmingham's owners must do everything in their power to make sure brilliant boss Alex McLeish signs a new contract03/02/10 THE MIDLANDER: All the best Clem, a top bloke in an era of gatekeepers and closed shops06/01/10 THE MIDLANDER: The good, the bad and the ugly: 2009 Midlands' awards23/12/09 THE MIDLANDER: Punishing McCarthy over selection is taking the Mick17/12/09 THE MIDLANDER: England boss Fabio Capello could do a lot worse than Birmingham's Roger Johnson in central defence08/12/09 THE MIDLANDER: Why Wolves would drop a howler by kicking out Mick McCarthy now03/12/09 VIEW FULL ARCHIVE Prior to that, you have to go back 70 years since Villa won theLeague and it's 52 years and counting since the club lifted the FA Cup.[LNB]Accepted, there have been triumphs in the League Cup. But then WiganAthletic, Bolton, Middlesbrough and Swindon Town have come within ahair's breadth of glory in that competition. (Birmingham City have wonit, too. And came within a penalty of doing so again.) [LNB] So for all the good work that William McGregor, George Ramsay etal did during the late 19th century, it's now only once in the lastone 100 years that Aston Villa have actually been crowned kings ofEnglish football and once in the last 90 that they have lifted the FACup.[LNB]Those are facts.[LNB]O'Neill knows this. It's why he is a little peeved at the criticismthat he takes personally when directed at him from behind his dug-out.[LNB]His line of thinking is that Villa's fans have never had it this good. Judging by those statistics, he's probably right.[LNB]Just calm down: Martin O'Neill lets the heat of the moment get to him and is spoken to by referee Phil Dowd[LNB]The football is certainly far easier on the eye than it was underJohn Gregory. It's more successful than it was under David O'Learywho, in fairness, had his hands tied financially.[LNB]The Champions League has also altered the position in that respectand made it more difficult to break into the top four, due to the cashgains of entering into European football's Blue Riband competition.[LNB]It is impossible to compare the scenarios against yesteryear because the Champions League has distorted the domestic market.[LNB]Those who would criticise O'Neill could emphasise the money he hasspent in the transfer market - £130m over the last four years.[LNB]They would have an argument, although over £30m has been dragged back by sales.They would point to the purchases of Carlos Cuellar and Curtis Davies -at £20m the pair - and wonder why James Collins and Richard Dunne arenow the preferred centre-halves of choice, for instance.[LNB]It was achingly obvious that Villa tired quicker on that Wembleysurface. Possibly down to the midweek FA Cup tie against Crystal Palace. But just as likely is the fact that, apart from his startingXI, the manager doesn't trust the other members of his squad to getthe job done.[LNB]Sir Alex Ferguson, for instance, left out Darren Fletcher forManchester United' s victory over Hull City in the week leading up tothe Wembley showpiece. O'Neill wasn't prepared to take that chance.(Stiliyan Petrov was injured, as could clearly be seen during thesecond-half of the final.)[LNB]Despite the holes that can be picked inthe current crop at Villa Park, there is one other fact that isundeniable.[LNB]Before last Sunday, Villa could have ended the season winning theLeague Cup, the FA Cup and finishing fourth in the Premier League.[LNB]Even though that could have been the outcome during 1995-96, it'snot been on too many occasions recently that Villa's supporters havebeen in that position.[LNB]Martin O'Neill is still doing a good job at Villa Park. And whatevercounter-arguments you may care to mount, that's still a fact. [LNB][LNB] [LNB][LNB][LNB][LNB][LNB] [LNB]
