From cabbages to kings - Aston Villa copy Newcastle United’s Champions League blueprint
Aston Villa mirrored Newcastle United by brushing aside Champions League royalty last night - they were in the Championship five years ago.
Exactly six years after a cabbage was launched at Steve Bruce, Villa Park hosted - and defeated - European royalty. Bayern Munich were outfought as the Midlands welcomed Champions League football for the first time since the competition’s 1992 rebrand.
When Glenn Whelan missed a 97th-minute penalty against Preston North End on October 2, 2018, Aston Villa fans could never have dreamed of nights like last night. Bruce was sacked within 24 hours of the 3-3 draw - and that marked the beginning of the club’s revival.
A shrewd rise through English football has seen Villa win promotion and stabilise a Premier League position before launching an assault on the big boys. Newcastle United - given they were relegated alongside the Villans in 2016 - followed a comparable trajectory.
Villa’s rise has mirrored Newcastle’s rise in more ways than what meets the eye. Aside from sacking Bruce, some of the other trivial details, like approaching Unai Emery or ditching Castore for Adidas as kit suppliers, are strikingly similar.
The buzz around Villa Park as they defeated a continental heavyweight also reflected the Magpies stunning Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 last season. Fans that travelled to Rotherham United and Burton Albion in recent memory were raucous, re-energised and up for a fight, albeit teary-eyed as the Champions League anthem blasted through the speakers.
The star-studded Bayern Munich team were put to the sword, just as PSG’s world-beaters succumbed to the St James’ Park noise 12 months ago. Villa and Newcastle are no allies, largely due to the infamous “Sob on the Tyne” banner unveiled 15 years ago.
But both have shaken up the status quo and dared to take on the big boys in an FFP/PSR-dominated world. Pride was lacking a decade ago - not anymore. Emery, reminiscent of Eddie Howe, hailed the occasion as “perfect” as he toasted another European scalp.
Newcastle’s and Villa’s owners inherited toxic clubs led by an under-fire Bruce when they bulldozed their way into English football. The road from cabbages to giant killers has been emotional - and the feeling is it has not finished yet.