Phil Thompson: Why I turned down down the chance to work with Gerard Houllier at Aston VIlla

Published: 09 Sep 2010 - 06:40:00

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SOMETIMES in life you get presented with an opportunity that is too good to be true but, ultimately, has to be turned down. Had circumstances been different, I would have been delighted to accept the chance to join Gerard Houllier and work with him and Patrice Bergues once again at Aston Villa. But I had to weigh up the pros and cons and while it was both flattering to be asked, not to mention hugely enticing, I really had no other choice but to turn the offer down. When you work with Gerard, you are signing up to 12 hour days; on top of that, you have to go to reserve games, scout players and also head off to check up on forthcoming opponents - in other words, you have to be totally committed. Now don't get me wrong, I would love to throw myself at such a challenge again but, at the same time, I do not want to uproot my wife and my two boys; I'm not someone who could live away from them through the week. What's more, the thought of doing a daily commute on the M6 does not appeal. We all know that stretch of road, at the best of times, can resemble a car park but to do the job properly, you really have to be living in the vicinity of the training ground. I would have been cheating Gerard, the club and the fans and that would not have been fair; Aston Villa are a terrific club with a great history and I remember only too well being on the end of a 5-1 drubbing there in 1976.