Aston Villa CEO Keith Wyness spoke about why the club and Steve Bruce wanted to bring in some experienced players this season.
In the eyes of Aston Villa CEO Keith Wyness, and in the eyes of manager Steve Bruce, experience is the best teacher. With the Villans hoping to end their stint in the Championship and earn promotion back to the Premier League, Bruce and Wyness will hope that experience is the best player as well.
This summer Aston Villa have brought in several seasoned Premier League campaigners to help boost their promotion bid, none more so than long-time Chelsea FC captain John Terry. The vocal, and often controversial, center back brings with him nearly two decades of top-flight experience and an in-depth knowledge of what it takes to win in England.
He has not played in the Championship since a short loan stint with Nottingham Forest in 1999-00 but the club will be hoping that his winning ways will rub off on his teammates.
Wyness on valuing experienced players, as quoted by the Birmingham Mail:
"“We need ‘men’ in the team who understand what the Championship is about. We need that stability and fight and desire and the players we (targeted) this summer have that in abundance. I think we’ve got a very good dressing room.The additions we’re looking at will be key influences in that stability. If the players understand the Championship they we will get those 1-0 win’s in games rather than those 1-0 defeats.”"
Villa also brought in several other experienced players in Glenn Whelan, Ahmed Elmohamady, and Christopher Samba who have intimate knowledge of both the Premier League and more importantly, the Championship. Whelan spent much of his career grinding out wins with Stoke City and Elmohamady is a player that Bruce is very familiar with from his days at Hull City.
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The club also has an excellent squad of young players that shined last season despite Villa’s mid-table finish. Bruce and Wyness will be hoping that this mix of youth and experience will be enough to earn the club promotion back to the Premier League where they belong and end their two-year stint in the Championship.