Aston Villa – love at first sight on Tipslørdag

Some choose their club. Others are chosen by it.

For me, it started in front of the TV with my dad, watching Tipslørdag (a Danish football highlights show). It was actually a bit of a coincidence. Aston Villa caught my attention because the name reminded me of Aston Martin. My dad was a mechanic, so I knew the car brand well. At the same time, Villa had some of the most beautiful jerseys in English football, and somehow, I was sold right then and there.

The love was truly cemented by players like Gabriel Agbonlahor, Juan Pablo Ángel, Martin Laursen, and David Ginola. Players who made Villa Park special, and who made the Aston Villa jersey the only jersey I truly had to own.

But it has never been a fan life filled with trophies and constant success. Quite the opposite. As a Villa fan, you quickly learn to live with adversity. The toughest moment was undoubtedly the relegation in 2016. One of England's biggest clubs was suddenly gone from the Premier League, and the road back proved longer and harder than many had imagined.

I particularly remember the years in the Championship, where the team was almost held together by loaned players, hope, and a young Jack Grealish. For me, Grealish will always be the man who carried Aston Villa on his shoulders. He led the club back to the Premier League in 2019 and was crucial the following year in ensuring Villa's survival in the league. I will never forget that season.

That's why I've never minded his move to Manchester City. When a player gives so much of himself and also brings in about a billion Danish kroner for his childhood club, he has earned the right to chase new dreams. I would still welcome him with open arms if he ever returned to Villa Park.

Perhaps that's why there was no doubt which jersey I should wear when I stood at Proud Mary with Aston Villa Denmark and watched Aston Villa lift a European trophy again. From the random Tipslørdag matches with my dad to European triumphs among other Villa fans. It's moments like those that remind me why football is never just about results.

It's about the memories.

And sometimes, they start with a club name that sounds like a car.