Aston Villa 4 Juventus 3 - Bill Howell's pre-season verdict

Aug 3 2009 by Bill Howell, Birmingham Mail

ALL gleaming and golden, the cup looked just like the Jules Rimet trophy.

And certainly Villa felt on top of the world after claiming a momentous sudden-death spot-kick victory over Juventus.

It was Villa’s first piece of silverware since their two InterToto successes of 2001 and 2008.

The Peace Cup was much maligned in its infancy but as soon as Villa fought back against Atlante it began to fire the imagination.

Porto were brushed aside and then, against all the odds, the Italian giants lost their nerve when Alessandro Del Piero produced the worst spot-kick since Robert Perez tried to pass to a team-mate and barely scuffed the ball.

This final began on August 2 and finished on August 3. It was 12.40am when the final kick was taken and missed by Nicola Legrottaglie.

Barry Bannan, Shane Lowry, Ashley Young and Carlos Cuellar were the spot kings.

And Brad Guzan certainly did his chances of claiming a first team shirt the power of good with two penalty saves and a number of high class additions during the 120 minutes of action.

It was five to one in the morning when the team claimed their prize amid a fairytale ticker-tape presentation.

They went over to celebrate with a hundred or so Villa fans behind the goal with John Carew mobbed and almost having the shirt ripped off his back and Carlos Cuellar the last to leave the field at 1am.

Dutch referee Kevin Blom clearly had a plane to catch as he brought an end to the second period of extra time over three minutes early.

If that brought back memories of Swiss referee Dieter Schock who blew up three minutes early against Celta Vigo at The Hawthorns nine years ago, nothing else of that calamitous night against the Spaniards bore resemblance to a quite magnificent performance by the club’s young players.

It hardly made up for European defeat to Juve in the European Cup quarter-finals in March, 1983, but this was welcome indeed.

And the cheque for two million euros might just help swing a new signing Villa’s way.

This wasn’t even a side worthy of the tag ‘makeshift’.

Villa went into extra-time with Eric Lichaj, Lowry, Marc Albrighton, Chris Herd and Bannan all on the pitch against a Juve team of internationals that included two World Cup winners in David Trezeguet and Del Piero.