Aston Villa vs Millwall: Lions’ claws are out for Aston Villa
The importance of John Terry to Villa has been talked up considerably this week.
Terry turned 37 yesterday and there were no shortage of well-wishers for the Chelsea legend – from fellow Premier League hero Shay Given to the manager of tomorrow’s opposition.
With Terry sidelined through the broken foot suffered against Sheffield Wednesday last month, Millwall’s Neil Harris went as far to call the skipper’s absence a ‘boost’ to the Lions’ chances, declaring the south Londoners would look to ‘get after’ a Terry-less Villa in search of their first win on the road.
“Any side in the Championship with John Terry in it is going to be a better side – so him not being available is always going to be a boost for an opponent,” said Harris. “After a slow start Villa have found their feet and kicked on. They are in a position everyone expects them to be – in the top six.
“I’ve no doubt they will be there at the end of the season. But we know we can get after Aston Villa, and we will do. On the back of Saturday’s victory against Sheffield United we go into the game in great spirit and we dominated Fulham for long periods of that game and should have got something out of it.
“That elusive away victory is just around the corner.”
The praise for Terry may seem somewhat harsh on his Villa team-mates, who have garnered 10 points from a possible 12 since the game their captain limped off the Villa Park pitch with a broken metatarsal.
And left-back Neil Taylor – who has started all of those matches since regaining his place in the team following suspension – believes the rest of the Villa squad has stepped up in the long-term absence of not just Terry, but striker Jonathan Kodjia and Aussie powerhouse Mile Jedinak as well.
“I’ve played plenty since I’ve been here and I’m happy with the way it’s gone,” Taylor said this week.
“The main thing is that we’ve got a 25-man squad full of individuals who can step straight into this team.
“Hopefully that’s going to be the difference with regard to promotion this year.
“We’ve proved it in the last few weeks with John Terry, Jonathan Kodjia and now Mile Jedinak being out for lengthy periods.
“The key is that it doesn’t weaken to the point we can’t win games when people fall out of it.”
