Aston Villa’s players will be praying they avoid injuries on the synthetic pitch where the club will make its Champions League debut on Tuesday, Villans fan and former Manchester United winger Lee Sharpe has said.
Sharpe remembers Sir Alex Ferguson’s concerns over unpredictable surfaces during his playing days in Europe as part of the legendary United manager’s squad, although Villa manager Unai Emery and midfielder Youri Tielemans have been keen to emphasise that they will not make “excuses” over the turf used by Swiss club Young Boys.
Speaking to 101GreatGoals on behalf of NewBettingSites.uk, Sharpe said: “We did play on some dodgy pitches – not so much synthetic pitches, it was more potholes and the grass being left,” said Sharpe, whose achievements include a key role in United’s run to European Cup Winners’ Cup glory in 1991.
“I remember going to Honved, in Hungary, and the pitch was like a farmer’s field, it was ridiculous. The manager was warning players before they went out because they could go over on their ankles and get injured.
“Before the game, you’re thinking ‘I hope and pray I don’t get injured tonight’. You go out and just do what needs to be done and you just deal with the consequences – if you get injured, so be it.”
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Young Boys vs Aston Villa
Young Boys introduced the surface at their Wankdorf Stadium home in 2014 to lower costs and help them to host other events, with Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola saying grass would be “better” before his side won 3-1 in Bern last October.
Villa changed their plans to allow them to arrive early and train on the pitch, with Tielemans likening it to the astroturf surfaces their squad would have played on during their youth careers.
“The astroturf is a weird one because although you do get a true roll, it does stick a little bit,” observes Sharpe. “Your studs can get stuck a little bit, so it’s easy to get injured and it does trouble a lot of players’ backs.
“A lot of the time, when we couldn’t train outside during the winter months, a lot of players couldn’t train on the synthetic pitches because it ruined their backs. They have got to be very careful about injuries.
“Especially on a synthetic pitch, you might think you don’t want to get a slide burn by going to ground. Your feet will be feeling totally different to how they do on a Saturday on grass. It can put you off and throw your concentration off a little bit.”
🎂 Best wishes to Lee Sharpe, who celebrates his 47th birthday today! Here’s our tribute…
Come for the goals ⚽️
Stay for the celebrations 🕺 pic.twitter.com/DVr0ZnVNU4— Manchester United (@ManUtd) May 27, 2018
Villa results: ‘Just as strong’
The only blemish on Villa’s strong start to the season is a 2-0 home defeat to Arsenal on August 24, when they would have gone ahead but for an uncharacteristic miss by talisman Ollie Watkins and an exceptional performance from visiting goalkeeper David Raya.
“They’ve strengthened well and come back just as strong this season,” says Sharpe, who was born less than 20 miles from Villa Park.
“Sometimes teams like Villa have an unbelievable season and then come back and their form sort of drops off a little bit.
“They were really unlucky against Arsenal; Ollie Watkins, on any other given Saturday, sticks two in the net and they get at least a draw out of that game. They look good, they’ve got a plan and everybody knows what they’re doing.”
“THAT is a goal to take your breath away!” 😱
What a strike from Jhon Durán! 🚀 pic.twitter.com/QSVcn8AUQt
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 14, 2024
Duran goal vs Everton
Emery’s players will be buoyed by their 3-2 home win over Everton on Saturday, recovering from 2-0 behind through two Watkins goals and a sensational Jhon Duran winner from distance.
“When you’ve got goals like that in the locker, anything is possible,” believes Sharpe. “A few of the Villa lads said they were saying ‘don’t shoot, don’t shoot’. Oh my god – it was absolutely incredible.”
