Micah puts his hands up to FA misconduct charge

Aston Villa defender Micah Richards admits to FA charge of misconduct after incident in tunnel after Swansea game....

Villa skipper Richards had until 6pm on Thursday to reply to the charge and opted against an appeal (or was too busy watching Pointless).

It's not easy, being green

Spraying the pitch green in Manaus? Villa were doing that over 20 years ago.. pic.twitter.com/VljK1p5s05
— villamad.co.uk (@villamadtweets) June 14, 2014

Villa matches moved for Sky Sports

The Premier League has announced a raft of fixture changes as the latest tranche of televised games are announced.

Two Villa fixtures have been shifted, both at the behest of Sky Sports.

The away clash down at Fulham shifts from Saturday 7th December at 3pm to the new time of Sunday 8th December at 1.30pm.  Darren Bent will ineligible for this fixture due to Premier League loan rules.

Villa snubbed by BT Sport

The following week, the home clash with David Moyes's Manchester United is plucked from 3pm on the 14th and will now take place at 1.30pm on Sunday 15th December, leaving thousands of Villa fans facing the bleak prospect of being dragged round the Christmas shops by the other half on the Saturday.

villamad advises any Villa supporter facing this fate to consider steering their beloved towards the Frankfurt Market.

No other Villa fixtures appear in the latest tranche so it would appear that the club has been snubbed by the rival fledgling sports service BT Sport.

The list also reveals that Villa's Christmas fixtures will be unaffected by TV company shenanigans.

Match Preview: Man City are coming...

Who are we playing?
Manchester City

Where are we playing?
Villa Park

Can I go?
You can but don't hang about. Most areas have "amber" availability, so get in quick if you want to pick where you sit. Some sections, such as North Stand Lower have sold out.

How many are they bringing?
They've sold all of their 2,900 allocation. We charged them £41 for an adult ticket.

Bingo caller at TV-am

Can I watch it on the telly?
Of course not! It's a Saturday three o'clocker! Extended highlights will be on Sky Sports on Saturday night and you can catch a flavour of the game on Match of the Day. As we're playing Man City, we might not even be last this week.

Do Manchester City have any famous fans?
Well there's that John Stapleton bloke off of breakfast telly and of course Noel out of Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds. And Bernard Manning. Except he's dead. Anyway, we've got Tom Hanks out of The Polar Express. And Noele Gordon off Crossroads. Except she's dead. We win anyway.

Who's playing for us?
With Big Chris Benteke likely on the missing list for six weeks, Libor Kozak should get a Premier League start. Lambo reckons most of the other walking wounded that missed out on Spurs are fit so Gabby and Weimann should return. Ashley Westwood won't recover in time though. Mister Lambert will have to decide on his full backs, having dropped Lowton from Premier League action last week, while Joe Bennett will be anxious to see if he's done enough in the cup game to keep Tony Moon out. Fabian Delph should be back. We gave Bacuna our Player of the Week so we'll be annoyed if he doesn't feature.

Who's playing for them?
Aguero doesn't play, which is one less thing to worry about. David Silva will also miss the trip. Whoever they pick, they'll be scary. Despite their fringe players having a decent run out in the cup, it's hard to see the starting line up differing greatly from the one which ran riot against United. Clichy's fit though and might squeak in at Kolarov's expense.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:

Manchester City have won six of the last seven Barclays Premier League encounters between the teams.

Apart from us, only Sunderland haven't managed a single point at home. Sunderland sacked their manager.

Despite Joe Hart getting pilloried for his form. Man City have kept three clean sheets in their last four Premier League away games.

We haven't kept a clean sheet in the league at Villa Park in 2013.

The last time we met in this tournament was in the 5th Round of the League Cup in January 1994 with Villa winning 2-1

Prediction:
Call us wildly optimistic, but if the Villa that played against Arsenal and Chelsea turn up, we've got half a chance here. What's important here is the quality of the performance as much as the result. If we press the opposition on the ball and if we take our chances when they come, then a high scoring draw could be on the cards. Bear in mind that we predicted loads of goals in the Norwich game before you put your beer money on it though.

U21s Villa v Norwich as it was tweeted...

Tangerine Dream: The Fonz heads back to the seaside

Tangerines

Villa's England Under 21 star Nathan Delfouneso has rejoined Blackpool on another loan to January 1.

Nathan netted seven times in a season-long loan at Bloomfield Road last term and they've taken him back for another spell.

PIC: Delfouneso will wear the number 14 shirt this time. pic.twitter.com/IRlQsz9HgX
— Blackpool FC (@BFC1887) August 16, 2013

Delfouneso's shirt is ready for tomorrow's trip to the Riverside. #welcomeback pic.twitter.com/X5CSc9uoEO

— Blackpool FC (@BFC1887) August 16, 2013

The lad from Tyseley will be looking to score on a more regular basis but had become a firm fixture in Paul Ince's team selection and will be delighted to get another chance at regular first team football having been frozen out of Paul Lambert plans.

Villa will be looking to move more of the "bomb squad" out, either on loan or on permanent deals before month end.

Bent confirmed as a Cottager

Darren Bent, the England international whose goals kept Villa in The Premier League under Gerard Houllier, is off to Fulham as Martin Jol strengthens his pack before the kick off.

The deal sees Bent head south on a season long loan, with the London club covering the player's salary and paying a substantial loan fee. The Cottagers are also thought to be in the box seat for any permanent deal.

Under Premier League loan rules, Bent will be ineligible to play against the Villa.

Crystal Palace were thought to have done a deal to take the striker but it seems a last minute change of heart from the goal machine means that Jol has got his man, much to the chagrin of Ian Holloway.

"Fulham could wait a lot longer than we could so we've tried to force it, they've stepped in, took our deal," said Holloway

#FFC is delighted to announce the signing of @darrenbent from @avfcofficial http://t.co/sjLWTAomta pic.twitter.com/QxmyQ4VAnr

— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) August 16, 2013

Fulham Manager Martin Jol said: “Darren Bent is a striker I have always admired. He has shown in the Barclays Premier League that he is composed and clinical in front of goal but, even if he is not scoring, he is involved in some good link-up play, creating opportunities for his teammates. I’m delighted that he has joined us, he gives us pace up front and I am confident that he will add to our goals scored tally this season.”
Despite his initial success at Villa, injuries and lack of service during the McLeish era restricted his effectiveness, while the arrival of Benteke and the work ethic that Lambert prefers meant that his Villa days were numbered, with the Villa boss even preferring to use rookie striker Jordan Bowery on the bench than the free scoring Bent.

The last nail in his Villa coffin came when Lambert purchased Danish giant Nicklas Helenius and handed him Darren's coveted Number 9 squad number.

Bent scored his final Villa goal in last season's end of term party at Wigan. The move south will rekindle his chances of getting the game time required to force his way into Roy Hodgson's thinking.

So Darren, good luck for the future and thanks for the goals and the good times.

Join our league on Fantasy Premier League 

Another season, another villamad Movie Poster

All the goals: Aston Villa v Malaga CF

Newport County v Aston Villa as it was tweeted...

If the slideshow below isn't working you can see the story here

New squad numbers toll death knell for N'Zogbia's Villa career

Aston Villa have confirmed the squad numbers for the new season, with the injured Charles N'Zogbia losing his coveted Number 10 and getting a squad number that puts him firmly in the "Bomb Squad".

Andi Weimann is the beneficiary of this, while Benteke will continue in the Number 20 shirt, allowing new face Nicklas Helenius to take on the responsibility of the iconic Number 9.  Darren Bent reverts back to 39, though his move shouldn't be far off now. He is surrounded in the 30s by several other members of the "Bomb Squad" and by Matt Lowton who wears No. 34 by choice.

Gutted to lose my No 9 shirt. Unfortunately one of those things I have to deal with. KTF

— Darren Bent (@DarrenBent) July 24, 2013

Stan Petrov's Number 19 shirt gets a single season retirement while the Number 13 shirt comes out of retirement for new keeper Jed Steer, while it's no surprise that Brad Guzan snaffles the Number 1 shirt.. With no Andy Marshall this season, we were expecting that Benji Siegrist would have got a squad number but he's not on the list released today.

1 Brad Guzan
2 Nathan Baker
3 Joe Bennett
4 Ron Vlaar
5 Jores Okore
6 Ciaran Clark
7 Leandro Bacuna
8 Karim El Ahmadi
9 Nicklas Helenius
10 Andreas Weimann
11 Gabby Agbonlahor
12 Marc Albrighton
13 Jed Steer
14 Antonio Luna
15 Ashley Westwood
16 Fabian Delph
17 Chris Herd
18 Yacouba Sylla
19 Not Available
20 Christian Benteke
21 Jordan Bowery
22 Gary Gardner
24 Aleksandar Tonev
25 Samir Carruthers
34 Matt Lowton
35 Shay Given
36 Charles N'Zogbia
37 Enda Stevens
38 Nathan Delfouneso
39 Darren Bent
40 Stephen Ireland
41 Alan Hutton
42 Barry Bannan

Wycombe Wanderers v Aston Villa as it was tweeted...

Enfield Town 0 Aston Villa 2

Villa's second string ran out 2-0 winners at Enfield, thanks to goals from Daniel Johnson and Jerell Sellars as Sid Cowans and new assistant development coach Stan Petrov's charges got the first game of pre-season under their belts in front of a crowd of 402 at The Queen Elizabeth II Stadium.

HT ETFC 0-0 AVFC an entertaining encounter. Team attached pic.twitter.com/I2yMeHn8D6
— The Town (@ETFCOfficial) July 13, 2013

Skipper Johnson opened the scoring at Donkey Lane on 72 minutes, netting a rebound off the post.

73 mins ETFC 0-1 AVFC - Johnson, the best player on the pitch slots home after an effort hits the post.
— The Town (@ETFCOfficial) July 13, 2013

Sellars confirmed the win, coming off the bench to net eight minutes from time, as Cowans ensured that all his squad got a runout.

82 ETFC 0-2 AVFC Sellers with a finish on the turn.
— The Town (@ETFCOfficial) July 13, 2013

You can catch Sid's Young Lions away at Boldmere St Michaels on Wednesday night [ko 7.30pm].

Quality 2-0 win away at Enfield, managed to bag myself a goal🙌
— Jerell Sellars (@RelSellars) July 13, 2013

Beat Enfield 2-0, great to get my 1st 90 mins of the new season, team played nice!! ☺☺
— Jack Grealish (@JackGrealish1) July 13, 2013

SV Rödinghausen spielt 1:1 gegen Aston Villa

Holman's contact terminated

Aston Villa has confirmed that Brett Holman's contract has been terminated by mutual consent.

Brett Holman leaves Villa. http://t.co/Ljz54SmYkM #AVFC
— Aston Villa FC (@AVFCOfficial) June 22, 2013

The player was concerned that lack of first team football would hamper his chances  of playing for Australia in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Dubai club Al Nasr have recently tweeted that Brett would be signing for them, subject to a medical.

The Socceroo was signed by Alex McLeish on a Bosman but didn't hook up with Villa until McLeish had left.

A frequent starter in Paul Lambert's early days, the player rarely managed to get through a full 90 minutes and fell out of favour in the second half of the season.

The fixtures are out!

The footie fixtures are out and Lambert's revamped Lions now know who they'll be facing as the Villa faithful hope for a much improved effort this term and it will all start and finish in North London.

Villa will start the season by facing Arsenal at the Emirates. The first home game will be against Liverpool giving us a tough start to the campaign. The game against Chelsea showing on the list for 31st August will need to be moved because of Chelsea's participation in the European Super Cup on the 30th.

The big Boxing Day match is Crystal Palace at home with Swansea also coming to Villa Park two days later

The bi games against the team disguised as Tesco carrier bags are at the Hawthorns on Saturday November 23, Villa Park on Tuesday January 28.
The season concludes with a clash against  a final home game v Hull City and an away clash at White Hart Lane with Spurs.

Fixtures in full to follow.... villamad Results and Fixtures page

Nicklas Helenius signing confirmed by Aston Villa

Aston Villa have confirmed the signing of beanpole striker Nicklas Helenius as Paul Lambert continues to transform his squad.

The Danish international signed a three-year deal to 2016 and Paul Lambert is delighted to have captured the 6'5" tall 22 year old.

"Nicklas is a young lad but also a full international with a good goalscoring record in Denmark and he'll prove himself in the Premier League," Lambert said.

"The opportunity will be there for him, as it will be for the rest of the lads, and he has all the attributes to go and take it.

"He wants to go and make a name and a career for himself and he's made a good start at Aalborg. It's a case of continuing to work hard and building on that and I believe he can.

"He's a good player and the potential is there for him to grow into the team and grow with the team. He'll definitely be able to give the team a hand."

listen to ‘Helenius signs’ on Audioboo

"This is a big opportunity for me, a big dream to play in the Premier League with a club with the history of Aston Villa and I'm very excited," Helenius said.

"I know we have a young team and I know we came through a test last season and got better as a team over the course of the campaign. I watched the game against Liverpool at Anfield and was very impressed by the way the team played. As we got more confidence in the game, we became better and better and won 3-1 with some great attacking football.

"In Gabby Agbonlahor and Andi Weimann, for example, we have good players who have great speed and energy and a real love for playing for Villa. You can see this and you can also see the strength and quality of Christian Benteke. It is really exciting to be a part of this and I'm looking forward so much to pulling on the shirt and getting to know my new team-mates.

"I've been to see the stadium and it's tremendous. The atmosphere inside Villa Park can be incredible, I know this from watching games on TV from Denmark where the Premier League, obviously, is really big. I've watched Premier League football since I was eight years old.

"I was so inspired that I used to go by myself to an empty ground in my home town of Godthaab - a town of 900 people - and just kick the ball around, practise the skills and shoot. That was my whole life growing up.

"I learnt a lot over the past few seasons with Kent Nielsen as my manager. He was a player here at Villa and, while I have always been a good finisher, he taught me to be more aggressive and determined when I don't have the ball. He showed me how to work hard and this will help me in this league.

"I thought that maybe when I was 28 or something I might eventually be able to move to the Premier League having made my mark in Danish football but now I have my chance and I think this is the right club for me with all the other young players in the side who want to do well and achieve something together.

"I want to show the fans that I'm hungry for this and that I'm very proud to be a Villa player."

Daniel Johnson signs new deal

Under 21s starlet Daniel Johnson has committed himself to Aston Villa for two more seasons.

Johnson has impressed at Reserve and then Under 21 level and had a spell out on loan at Yeovil last term as he tries to press for a place in the first team squad. While he was too old to compete in this year's NextGen triumph, he was a key figure in that tournament the season before, netting three goals and captaining Villa as they reached the quarter finals

Midfielder Johnson said: "I'm really happy to have signed the new contract. These are exciting times at the Club at the moment, you can see where the manager wants to go with it and what he's trying to do and it's really good.

An exciting prospect, he plays some great stuff, linking up well with the likes of Samir Carruthers and Jack Grealish.

Tonev signing marks the start of Phase Two of the Lambert revolution...

Aleksandar Tonev, a 23-year-old attacking midfield player has completed a medical and agreed terms today at Bodymoor Heath.

Villa and Polish club Lech Poznan have struck a deal and i's will be dotted and t's crossed next week.

"I am really happy to be part of Aston Villa and I am really proud to be able to pull the shirt on," Tonev said. "Aston Villa is a big club and the manager and club have a belief in young players and in the team ethic. Football is not about the individuals. It's a team sport and all successful teams play well together. That's what you can see at Villa, the team is playing together.

"I am part of the team now and I am hungry for success. I want to show everybody what I can really do. I have played in front of big crowds before but the atmosphere here in England is unique. The crowd is like a 12th player for the team and I am looking forward to playing in front of the fans.

"I can't wait to start and to meet my team-mates and the manager. When I heard about Aston Villa, I thought about playing in the Premier League for such a big club. I wasn't thinking about anything else.

"Stiliyan being here wasn't a massive influence on me coming here. Stiliyan and Dimitar Berbatov have done really well in this league and I hope I can do the same. They are both great Bulgarian players and hopefully I can do the same and make my mark on the Premier League.

"I have been watching Villa and I know there are some very good players here. I am really looking forward to being part of the team."

Stan Petrov added: "I think Villa fans have one exciting player on their hands. I think the Club has been monitoring Aleksandar for a few months, they have watched some games and some DVDs.

"He doesn't have a dominant foot which is really interesting and the main thing about him. He is quick, he is an exciting player and I think Villa fans will see he is a good player. He is the kind of player who can really make an impact in this young, exciting team. We spoke last night and he is really looking forward to it. He knows that it will be a challenge but he is ready for it."

Welcome to the Villa Aleks. 

Great signing!

More bread for Baker as he signs new deal.

Aston Villa defender Nathan Baker has signed a new three-year deal after breaking into the first team under Paul Lambert.

The 22-year-old academy graduate at Villa, made 30 appearances for the first team in what was an eventful and fraught season for the back line.

"I'm really happy to have signed and for my future to be with Villa," said Baker.

"It's an exciting time and, because I've come through the academy as well, it's something that's really special to me, something that hopefully I can use as an inspiration in the future.

"We were probably one of the youngest squads in the Premier League last season and we felt that we got stronger and stronger as the season went on.

"The fans could see the progress we were making and they got behind us really strongly. That was felt very keenly by the players.

"Hopefully, next season we can keep improving and we can be even better. I think things are in place that we can really do that."

Villa manager Paul Lambert says Baker is already an integral part of their squad.

"For any player here at Aston Villa, the goal is always to strive to be the best you can and to keep improving as an individual within the team," Lambert said.

"Nathan has demonstrated courage and real willing and he's contributed to the team and these qualities will underpin his efforts going into the new season."

@bakesy23 congrats geez

— Derrick Williams (@DerickWilliams_) June 6, 2013

In other news, Villa are in the process of snapping up Liam Prynn from Torquay United.

Gulls' head-honcho Andrew Candy told the Herald Express: "As I understand it, the terms have been agreed, and all parties are happy about the situation.

"We are certainly excited - the deal is good news for the club, and for Liam and his family.

"But it's good for our other youth players, who see that things like this can happen to a youngster at Torquay United."

A clue to the signing was on Pryn's twitter page last month:

Thanks for the weekend! #AVFC #astonvilla
— Liam Prynn (@prynner6) May 21, 2013