Hey guys, it's international break time! Don't tell me you haven't noticed. Rather than see what the likes of Alan Hutton and Jermaine Jenas can do this week, we have to wait in agony for next week's match against Everton. And what do Aston Villa fans get instead? Some players off at international duty, playing for their countries in Euro 2012 qualification.

Villans In Euro 2012

Bulgaria v England (20:15 CET, 14:15 ET)

This match pits Darren Bent against Stiliyan Petrov! At least, I assume it does...I haven't taken the time to actually confirm because I'm lazy like that. Anyway, England might not have a hold on winning the group, with Montenegro having their cheeky ways with other nations, but they're almost certainly through to the tournament. Watch for Ashley Young to continue to be fantastic for England. Sniff.

Continue reading this post »

England are an average side firmly ensconced in the second tier of the world game and no longer a force where and when it matters. And they will be there for some considerable time. To think otherwise is delusion.

So says Phil McNulty in his blog about England's performance against Montenegro yesterday. So says everyone who has watched England play over the past year--at least, everyone who has been paying attention. Wayne Rooney's lack of form, the absence of creativity in central midfield, the absolute rubbish play of Glen Johnson at 'right-back': these are just a few reasons that England sit second in Group G in Euro 2012 qualifying.

Continue reading this post »

This matchup has been covered again and again, in traditional English media, in the blogs, on tiny twitter-rants. People with more knowledge and greater skills than I have dissected today's match, and over and over they come to one conclusion: England should beat Bulgaria.

Then why all the fuss? Why spill hundreds of words on England's first qualifier, when they've got seven to go, and a few against what appears to be much more threatening opposition?

Continue reading this post »

Bulgaria begins the process of qualifying for Euro 2012 tomorrow and, I gotta confess, I really hate Group G. Three out of four Villans playing one group? Have some fairness, Euros. You should  be considering me and my desires when creating the groups. Group B has Russia, Slovakia and Ireland--you're telling me I have to chose between Andrey Arshavin, Marek Hamsik and Richard Dunne? Well, obviously I'm pulling green but I want all of those teams to go through. Let's rearrange Group D (France, Romania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Belarus, Albania and Luxembourg) so that any of those teams can go out, and my repre and the little meerkat can go through.

Right. Focus. Bulgaria.

Continue reading this post »

Richard Patrick Dunne, unlike James Collins, really is Irish. He remains the only Aston Villa player on the Republic of Ireland squad, no matter how many rumors of Robbie Keane or Kevin Doyle swirl among the tabloids.

(Note: Stephen Ireland, who really is Irish, has not played for the country since September 2007 on account of some pretty foolish choices he made in regards to saying his grandma was dead when she was very much alive)

Continue reading this post »

Sorry to disappoint, y'all, but James Collins is Welsh, not Irish. I know, his gingerness can really be confusing. And Villa do seem to have a thing for Irish players--at least, according to the media. But Collins has 34 caps for Wales, and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be wearing those if he were Irish. Collins' first game was a match against Norway back in 2004 and he's been helping hold up their back line ever since.

Continue reading this post »

Aston Villa have a two-week break from club play as qualification for Euro 2012 begins. For those of you new to European football, or who have always believed that "Euros" indicated money rather than a tournament, here's a quick look at what they are:

The UEFA Football Championship, or Euros, is held every four years and, for national sides, is considered to be second only to the World Cup in terms of prestige. Euro 2012 is to be held in Poland and Ukraine, and all nations other than those two are required to participate in qualification rounds--the fun things we're going through now, a year and a half before the tournament starts. The 51 countries involved in qualifying are drawn into nine groups of five or six each. The winners of each group, along with the runner up with the best record, qualify directly, while the other eight runners up enter into a playoff round. The four sides which score the greatest number of aggregate goals over home and away ties will move on to the tournament. Spain hold the latest title, Euro 2008.

Get used to hearing about Euro 2012, because qualification play will last for over a year. With every team playing ten or twelve games, and needing to schedule them around club football, the matches are pretty staggered. We'll see two matches for each country over the next two weeks before league play resumes.

So who are the Villans who must go play football rather than sun themselves in Spain for the next two weeks?

Continue reading this post »