Tim Sherwood still can’t believe what an Aston Villa director once told him to do when he was manager

Add as preferred source on Google

Tim Sherwood was left stunned by something an Aston Villa executive told him prior to a meeting with Birmingham City during his time in the dugout.

After the sacking of Paul Lambert, Sherwood was made Villa manager in 2015.

Aston Villa have enjoyed much success in recent years, but their spell under the 56-year-old was difficult.

Jack Grealish likes Sherwood, who took them to the FA Cup final in 2015, but they were thumped 4-0 by Arsenal, and five months later, he was sacked.

What Aston Villa executive told Tim Sherwood before Birmingham City game

The former manager turned pundit has now been discussing his time at Villa on Premier League Productions’ Team Talks.

When doing so, he recounted a shocking conversation he had with one executive prior to a League Cup match versus Birmingham City.

He said: “I remember someone on the executive side Aston Villa knocked on my door the day before one of the games and said, “Don’t worry about tomorrow. It’s League Cup game. It’s not important.”

“It was a fourth round, similar stage to where we are now. It’s not really that important this game because the priority has to be the Premier League, you know, rest the players for the weekend.”

“I just said, “Listen, I’m the manager. I’m picking the team what I feel is correct for the game. And the Aston Villa fans out there will be amazed that it was actually Birmingham. We were playing in the next round of the cup.

“Now, I could not believe that someone was actually speaking to me on them terms and football terms. It’s a rivalry which is very strong. It is the biggest rivalry in the Midlands. I could not play a group of kids against Birmingham at home at Villa Park and it would have just bred negativity and more negativity around the club.

“So I made a conscious decision, no, we’re going to play. We’re going to win the game and we’re going to springboard from there.

While not specifically named, the only League Cup game to take place during Sherwood’s spell came on September 22, 2015.

Aston Villa came out on top, with Rudy Gestede scoring the only goal of the match in the 62nd minute.

Aston Villa thrive under new ownership

Three years after Sherwood’s exit, Wes Edens and Nassef Sawiris made a significant investment in the club.

Former owner Dr Tony Xia remained on the board for a time, but his involvement ended in August 2019.

Under their new ownership, Villa escaped the Championship and are now a regular feature in European competitions.

Club chief Damian Vidagany has praised the backing from Aston Villa’s owners recently.

He said: “Aston Villa’s success is based on Unai’s genius, the resources we have dedicated, and the ownership’s faithfulness to their word.”