Nottingham Forest Greatest All-Time Team

This blogger Artur Yanturin of Russia copied many of my blog teams.  This blog was one of them.  It was my Russia All-Time Team here.  His team was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.   His Spartak Moscow All-Time team entry of was published in October 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2017.  His entry of the Dutch-German rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.  He also copied many many of my blog entries.

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European Cup Winner

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal,
Chelsea, Tottenham, Manchester City, Everton, Ipswich
Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, 
Leeds United, Leicester City, West Ham, Blackburn Rovers
Southampton
East Midlands

This is my selection of a 25 member all-time team for the club.  The number 25 was chosen because it is the official squad size for the Champions' League.

Founded in 1865, Forest were founder members of the Football Alliance in 1889 and joined the Football League in 1892. Since then they mostly competed in the top two League tiers, excepting five seasons in the third tier. Forest won the FA Cup in 1898 and 1959. Their most successful period was under the management of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor between 1975 and 1993, winning the League in 1978, back to back European Cups in the two years thereafter, four League Cups and two Full Members Cups.

1959 FA Cup winner

Team  
GK: Peter Shilton (England)
Peter Shilton is considered one of the greatest keepers ever.  He is England's all-time cap record-holder with 125.  He earned his first cap in 1970 and his last 20 years later in 1990.  He took England to 4th place in the 1990 World Cup.  He played for 11 different clubs in his career, all in England.  He won two straight European Cups in 1979 and 1980 with Nottingham Forrest. He was PFA Players' Player of the Year: 1977–78, an award rarely won by a goalkeeper.

Peter Shilton

GK: Harry Linacre (England)
Linacre started his career with Derby, where he ony playd two games.  He joined Forest in 1899. He was chosen to go on the first foreign tour to South America with his Nottingham club in 1905. In the same year as he appeared for England, he toured Uruguay and Argentina. He appeared twice for England that year, first against Scotland and Wales.

GK: Mark Crossley (Wales)
From 1988 until 2011,  he has previously played for numerous clubs in England's top flight, notably for Nottingham Forest, where he became the only goalkeeper to stop a Matthew Le Tissier penalty kick. He has also played for Manchester United, Milwall, Middlesbrough, Stoke City, Fulham, Sheffield Wednesday, Oldham Athletic and Chesterfield. He earned 8 caps playing for Wales between 1997 and 2004.

RB: Viv Anderson (England)
In 1978, Viv Anderson became the first Black player to play for the English senior national team. He would earn 30 caps between 1978 and 1988.  He was on two World Cup team: 1982 and 1986, and two European Championshiop team: 1980 and 1988. He was a part of Brian Clough's Nottingham Forrest team that won back-to-back European Cup in 1979 and 1980.  He also played for Arsenal, Manchester United and and Sheffield Wednesday. 

Viv Anderson

CB/ST: Kenny Burns (Scotland)
Kenny Burns arrived at the Birmingham as a defender in 1971, but was converted to striker and earned the first of his 20 international caps in that role soon afterwards. However, after joining Nottingham in 1977, he was converted back into a central defender. Burns was voted FWA Footballer of the Year in 1977–78, as Forest won the First Division title. He was an influential figure to Forest's victory in the 1979 and 1980 European Cup tournaments.

CB: Des Walker (England)
Walker played 59 times for England.  He started in all of England;'s games at the World Cup Finals in 1990. He was rated as one of the best defender at that Finals.  For club football, he mainly played for Nottingham Forrest and Sheffield Wednesday.  He played one season at Sampdoria in then 1992-1993 season.   He was Forest's player of the year three times. On four straight occasions at Forest he was selected for the PFA Team of the Year.

Des Walker

CB: Bob McKinlay (Scotland)
Born in Scotland, Bob McKinlay was an one club player for Nottingham Forest.  He played for them between 1951 and 1969. He bgan in the 2nd divsion with the club, but most of his career was spent in the top flight. He is the club's record appearance holder and won the 1959 FA Cup Final with the club against Luton Town.

CB: Larry Lloyd  (England)
Larry Lloyd was remembered for his stints with Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. He was a part of Bill Shankly's great side from 1969 to 1974.  He helped Liverpool winning the First Division in 1972-1973, the FA Cup 1973-1974 and the UEFA Cup 1972-1973. He was also a part of Brian Clough's team that won back-to-back European Cup. For England, he played 4 times between 1971 and 1980.

Larry Lloyd

CB: Colin Cooper (England)
Colin Cooper spnet 7 seasons with Middlesbrough in the lower divsions. After playing another two seasons in the lower division with Millwall, he moved to Nottingham Forest in 1993. It was at Forest where Colin arguably played the best football of his career, his form earning him two England caps in 1995. He returned to Middlesbrough in 1998 when it was in the Preimer League.

LB: Stuart Pearce (England)
Stuart Pearce was a club legend with Nottingham Forrest.  He was the club's most capped international player with 78 caps between 1987 and 1999.  He played at the World Cup Finals in 1990 and the European championship in 1996 at home, where England had the best two results since the World Cup win in 1966. He also played for Wealdstone, Coventry City, Newcastle United, West Ham United and Manchester City.

Stuart Pearce

LB: Frank Clark (England)
Clark started his career at Crook Town.  He started his professional career at Newcastle United, and played a total of 464 games for them between 1962 and 1975.  He then joined Nottingham Forest, and helped them win promotion in 1977, and he played for them in the 1979 European Cup Final, where they beat Malmö FF

CM/DM: Roy Keane (Ireland)
Keane was the captain of Manchester United from 1997 to 2005, where he won one Champions' League, 7 Preimer League titles and 4 FA Cups.  He was the PWA Player of the Year in 2000.  He had 67 caps.  He played for Ireland at the 1994 World Cup Finals in the USA, but was sent home 4 years later before the start of the World Cup Finals in 2002. He later played for Celtic in Scotland after leaving Manchester United.

CM: John McGovern (Scotland)
John McGovern played under manager Brian Clough for Derby, Leeds United and finally, Nottingham Forrest. He is most famous for captaining the Nottingham Forest side that won the European Cup twice.  At the age of 19 he became the youngest player to play in all four divisions of the Football League. During his playing career he won promotion with Hartlepools United, Derby County and Nottingham Forest.  At the end of his career, he also played for Bolton Wanderers F.C.

John McGovern

CM: Archie Gemmill (Scotland)
Gems played for a few clubs before Peter Taylor took him to Derby in 1970.  He won two league titles before he followed brian Clough and Peter Taylor to Nottingham Forest.  He later played for r Birmingham City and Jacksonville Teamen.  Gemmill played 43 times and scored eight goals for Scotland, and captained the team on 22 occasions.  Against Netherlands in the 1978 World Cup Finals, he scored one of the greatest goals in the World Cup Finals.

CM: Steve Hodge (England)
Steve Hodge joined his boyhood club Nottingham Forest as an apprentice in 1980 and helped the club to reach the semifinal of the UEFA Cup.  He also played for Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspurs and Leeds United. Capped 24 times fro England.  He went to both 1986 and 1990 World Cup Finals. He exchanged shirt with Diego Maradona after the infamous quaterfinal match vs Argentina in 1986.

RM/CM: Martin O'Neill (Northern Ireland)
Starting his career in his native Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham Forest, with whom he won the European Cup twice, in 1979 and 1980. He also played for Manchester City, Norwich, Notts County, etc. He was capped 64 times for the Northern Ireland national football team, also captaining the side at the 1982 World Cup.

RW: Steve Stone (England)
Stone began his career at Nottingham Forest, where, despite suffering three broken legs, he managed to establish himself as a vital team player, and also earned a call up to the England squad, making his international debut in 1995 against Norway. He went on to earn nine caps, scoring twice, and was part of Terry Venables' squad for Euro 96.

LW: John Robertson (Scotland)
John Robertson played for Nottingham Forest when they were at the peak of their success under manager Brian Clough, notably scoring the only goal in a 1–0 victory in the 1980 European Cup Final against Hamburger SV. He also played 28 times for Scotland, scoring the winning goal against England in 1981 and against New Zealand in the 1982 FIFA World Cup. He also played for Derby between two stints with the Forrest.

John Robertson

FW/LW: Ian Storey-Moore (England)
Storey-Moore was playing junior football in Scunthorpe before he joined Nottingham Forrest in 1961. From 1972 to 1974, he played for Manchester United, but an injury ended his career.  He had brief stint everywhere after 1974. Storey-Moore played once for England against Netherlands in 1970.  He was voted in the Best XI for Nottingham Forest.

FW: Stan Collymore  (England)
Stan Collymore held the English transfer record when he moved from Nottingham Forest to Liverpool for £8.5 million in 1995.   He formed a great partnership with Robbie Fowler.  Unfortunately, he never lived up to expectation after his first few seasons.  He left Liverpool in 1997, where he played for Aston Villa, Leicester City, Fulham, Bradford and Real Oviedo. At the international level, he was capped three times at senior level by the England national football team.

Stan Collymore

FW: Grenville Morris (Wales)
Grenville Morris was one of the greatest players of his generation and was known as "The Prince of the Inside-Lefts".  He still holds Forest's all-time goal scoring record with 217 in all competitions.  He won his first full international Welsh cap at the age of 18 in 1896 against England, and went on to play 21 times for his country,

ST: Wally Ardron (England)
Wally Ardon joined Rotherham United from Denaby United in 1938, and went on to score 98 Football League goals for Rotherham, either side of World War II. He joined Nottingham Forest in 1949 after his time at Rotherham, and holds the record for scoring most Forest league goals in one season (36 in 1950–51). He retired in 1955.

ST: Nigel Clough  (England)
Nigel Clough is most notable for his time as a player at Nottingham Forest, where he played over 400 times in two separate spells, mostly under the managership of his father Brian and scored 131 goals throughout his career making him the second highest scorer in the club's history.  He subsequently had spells with Liverpool, Manchester City and Sheffield Wednesday.  He was capped 14 times between 1989 and 1993.

Nigel Clough

ST: Tony Woodcock (England)
Woodcock broke into the Forest first team in 1976–77, helping the team to promotion to the First Division. Under Brian Clough, Forest went on to win the First Division title and Football League Cup in 1978 (Woodcock winning the PFA Young Player of the Year award that year as well), and the European Cup in 1979. In 1986, he joined FC Köln in 1979 and later played for Arsenal.  Capped 42 times and went to Spain 1982.

ST: Trevor Francis (England)
From 1971 to 1979, Francis played for Birmigham Town.  He was England's first £1 million player when he moved from there to Nottingham Forrest. He was known for winning the European Cup with Nottingham Forest in 1979 and 1980.  His career also took him to Manchester City, Birmingham, Detroit Express, Sampdoria, Atlanta, etc. He played for England 52 times. He went to the 1982 World Cup Finals.

Trevor Francis

Honorable mention
Brian Laws (England), Des Lyttle (England), Johnny Metgod (Netherlands), Michael Dawson (England), Steve Chettle (England), Wes Morgan (Jamaica), Joe McDonald (Scotland), Julian Bennett (England), Pierre Van Hooijdonk (Netherlands), Ian Woan (England), Ian Bowyer (England), Jermaine Jenas (England), Jeff Whitefoot (England), Jack Burkitt (England), Gary Crosby (England), Barry Lyons (England), David Phillips (Wales), Garry Birtles (England), Ian Storey-Moore (England), Neil Webb (England), Stewart Imlach (Scotland), Tinsley Lindley (England).

Squad Explanation
-- Nottingham Forrest is unlike the other all-time teams I have created. They are much smaller than the other clubs. They also spent many years in the lower divsion, but they are two-time European Cup champions.  Without that achievements, I would not consider making this team.
--  The book "Official History of Nottingham Forest has the following players as their Best XI: Peter Shilton, Viv Anderson, Des Walker, Kenny Burns, Stuart Pearce, Martin O'Neill, Roy Keane, Archie Gemmill, Ian Storey-Moore, Trevor Francis and John Robertson.
-- In the beginning, I left out Archie Gemmill and Ian Storey-Moore.  In 2019, I edited the team.  Archie Gemmill replaced Neil Webb. Ian Storey-Moore replaced Stewart Imlach.
-- Steve Hodge edged out Neil Webb for the last spot.  Both players have similar numbers for both Nottingham Forrest and England.  Hodge was born in Nottingham and was a home grown player. So I took him over Webb.
-- I wanted to keep Stewart Imlach because he won the 1959 FA Cup. He was the only player selected from that team.  Now, he is on honourable mention.
-- Ten players won one or both of Nottingham Forrest's two European Cup titles. I selected 10 players from those teams.  They Peter Shilton, John McGovern, Kenny Burns, Viv Anderson, Trevor Francis, Tony Woodcock, Martin O'Neill, John Robertson, Larry Lloyd and Frank Clark. Woodcock left for Koln in the Bundesliga after the first title. Chris Wood who later found successes was a backup goalkeeper.  His career over here was limited.  So I did not put him anywhere.
-- Peter Shilton is known to be England's greatest goalkeeper. His time with Nottingham Forrest was his most decorared career.  As mentioned above, Chris Wood only served as a backup goalkeeper.
-- Des Walker earned fourth successive selection for the PFA Team of the Year and Stuart Pearce did it 5 straight times.
-- Viv Anderson is known as the first Black player to earn a senior cap with England.
-- John McGovern played under manager Brian Clough for Derby, Leeds United and finally, Nottingham Forrest. John O'Hara also played for all three clubs. Archie Gemmill also played for Clough with Derby, but he never played for Leeds United.  Colin Todd joined Nottingham Forrest in 1982.
-- Nottingham Forrest reached the semifinal of the 1984 UEFA Cup. It was the best result since the two European Cup victories in the late 1970's.The club's best result in Europe without Peter Taylor by Brian Clough's side.
-- From 1988 to 1990, Nottingham Forrest won back-to-back League Cup.  Nigel Clough, Steve Hodge, Stuart Pearce and Des Walker were selected from the team.
-- In 1995, Nottingham Forest finished third in the Premiership.  Their manager was Frank Clark who also made my all-time team as a leftback. It is their best season in recent years.  Stuart Pearce was their captain.  Liked Clark, he was a leftback.  Stan Collymore, Neil Webb, Steve Stone and Mark Crossley also made my all-time team.
-- Nigel Clough was Nottingham Forrest's second all-time leading scorer.  He was on the team, not because of his name. He just happened to be Brian Clough's son. When he was transfered to Liverpool, he was one of Liverpool's most expensive ever signing.
 --Andy Reid only played in the lower division for Nottingham Forest.
-- Roy Keane's transfer out of Nottingham Forest was a British record at the time.  He is not a home grown, but he started playing for the club's under-21 team.  I do consider him a product of the club. 
-- Michael Dawson and Jermaine Jenas were famous playing for Tottenham Hotspurs respectively.  However, they came from Nottingham Forest's academy.
-- I found a player named Tinsley Lindley.  He scored 14 goals for England in 13 internationals. Lindley was given an O.B.E. in January 1918 for his work during World War One and in 1935 he was also awarded the King George V Silver Jubilee Medal.  He played his entire career with this club.  I put him on honorable mention.
-- Tony Woodcock was homegrown.  He broke into the Forest first team in 1976–77, helping the team to promotion to the First Division.  He was the PFA Young Player of the Year: 1977–78.


Formation

Newcastle United Greatest All-Time Team

Inter-Cities Fairs Cup 1969

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

England
North East England, NorthWest England.
Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal,
Chelsea, Tottenham, Manchester City, Everton,
Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, 
Leeds United, Leicester City, West Ham, Blackburn Rovers
Southampton

This is my selection of a 25 member all-time team for Newcastle United.  The number 25 was chosen because it is the official squad size for the Champions' League.

The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, ever since.  They have won four League Championship titles, six FA Cups and a Charity Shield, as well as the 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and the 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup. Newcastle United has the ninth highest total of trophies won by an English club.

Newcastle has a local rivalry with Sunderland, with whom they have contested the Tyne–Wear derby since 1898. The club's traditional kit colours are black and white striped shirts, black shorts and black socks. Their crest has elements of the city coat of arms, which features two grey seahorses. Before each home game, the team enters the field to "Local Hero", and "Blaydon Races" is also sung during games.

1955 FA Cup Winner

Team
GK: Shay Given (Ireland)
Shay Given started his career with Celtic in Scotland, but made his professional debut with Blackburn Rovers.  He was remembered for playing with Newcastle United from 1997 to 2009.  He was voted into PFA Team of the Year twice, 2001-2002 and 2005-2006.  He later played for Manchester City, Aston Villa, Middlesbrough F.C. and Stoke.  He earned 126 caps for Ireland. He played in the 2002 World Cup Finals and the European Championship in 2010 and 2016.

Shay Given

GK:  Ronnie Simpson (Scotland)
Ronnie Simpson was one of the "Lisbon Lions" who won the European Cup in 1967.  He also played for Queen's Park, Third Lanark and Hibernian. From 1951 to 1960, he played for Newcastle United. He represented Great Britain at the 1948 Olympics, but he did not play for Scotland until 1966.  He set a new record for being the oldest player to make his Scotland debut, aged 36 years and 196 days.  He was considered to be Celtics' best ever keeper.

GK: Jimmy Lawrence (Scotland)
Born in Glasgow, Lawrence's first club was Partick Athletic, from where he moved to Glasgow Perthshire. Although still connected to Glasgow Perthshire, he sporadically played for Edinburgh side Hibernian. He played with Newcastle for eighteen years after joining the Tyneside club in 1904 and still holds the record for making the most appearances for them, 496 matches in total.  Capped once.

RB: Billy McCracken (Northern Ireland)
He was one of the most successful defender of his time.  McCracken played for the English club Newcastle United from 1904 to 1924, helping them win three League titles and the FA Cup. He was known for setting the offside trap for the attackers.  The offside rule was changed because of him. He was a part of Ireland(IFA) that became the co-champion of the 1903 British Home Championship, the first time the tournament was not won by England or Scotland.

RB: David Craig (Northern Ireland)
David Craig joined Newcastle United in 1962 and went on to make 412 appearances for the club, scoring 12 goals. He left the club in 1978 after retiring from the game, and remains seventh-highest appearance-maker for the club. Frank Clark played on the other side. He played 25 times for Northern Ireland, fighting a position with Arsenal's Pat Rice at the time.

CB/RB: Warren Barton (England)
Barton began his league career with Maidstone United.  He was transferred to First Division side Wimbledon on 7 June 1990 as the most expensive for a 4th Division player.  In 1995, he became the most expensive defender in English football when he moved to Newcastle United for £4 million. He later played QPR and Derby. Capped 3 times.

CB: Bobby Moncur (Scotland)
Bobby Moncur played a total of 296 times for Newcastle United, scoring three goals – all in the two-legged final of the 1969 Fairs Cup. He also played 16 times for Scotland between 1968 and 1972. In 1974 after Captaining Newcastle in the FA Cup final, he was transferred to Sunderland, moving again to Carlisle United in 1976, where he ended his playing career.

CB: Philippe Albert (Belgium)
Philippe Albert made 41 appearances for Belgium from 1987 to 1997, and represented his country at the 1990 and 1994 World Cup Finals.   He played for Charleroi, KV Mechelen and Anderlecht in his native Belgium, and for English clubs Newcastle United and Fulham. He was known as an attack-minded centre-back for his forward runs from defence in the team dubbed as "the Entertainers"

Philippe Albert

CB: Frank Brennan (Scotland)
Brennan was a tough centre half who moved to Newcastle United from Airdrieonians for £7,500 in 1946.  He appeared on 351 occasions for the Magpies between 1946 and 1956.  He was a part of Newcastle United's victory at the FA Cup in 1951 and 1952. He was indicted into Newcastle Hall of Fame. Capped 8 times.

LB: Frank Hudspeth (England) 
Hudspeth spent nineteen seasons at Newcastle, from 1910 to 1929. This makes him the joint longest servant for the club along with Billy McCracken. During his time at the club he became a popular figure amongst the fans and gained the nickname 'Old Surefoot' for his reliability. He captained the team from 1923 to 1926.

LB: Alf McMichael (Northern Ireland)
He played over 400 times for Newcastle United between 1950 and 1963.  He won the 1952 FA Cup. At one point he was considered the best left-back in Britain and was a popular player amongst Newcastle United supporters. Before Newcastle United, he played for Linfield from 1945 to 1950. He represented Northern Ireland 40 times.

DM: Joe Harvey (England)
Joe Harvey played briefly for different clubs and then, joined Newcastle in 1945, where he stayed until his retirement in 1953.  He spent much of his career at Newcastle United. He was the club's longest serving captain.  He captained the team to two successive FA Cup victories in 1951 and 1952.  Later, he became Newcastle's most successful manager, and as of the 2014–15 season, the last to win a major trophy. Harvey was a member of Newcastle United's Hall of Fame.

Joe Harvey with the 1951 FA Cup

CM: Rob Lee (England)
Rob Lee came through the academy of Charlton Athletic and established himself in the first team by the 1984–85 season.  He was sold after the start of 1992–93 season to Newcastle United.  He was on the PFA Team of the Year (Premier League) in 1996. He played for England between 1994 and 1998, scoring twice in 21 appearances. He was in the squad for the 1998 World Cup under Glenn Hoddle. 

RW: Jock Rutherford  (England)
Rutherford was known for his longevity; he played nearly six hundred Football League and FA Cup matches, despite four seasons of football being cancelled due to World War I. He started his career at Newcastle United. Nicknamed "the Newcastle flyer", he spent ten seasons at the "Magpies", picked up three First Division medals, and played in five FA Cup finals (1905, 1906, 1908, 1910 and 1911). Won 11 caps.

AM/LW: Gary Speed (England)
Gary Speed played for Leeds United, Everton, Newcastle United, Bolton Wanderers and Sheffield United.  At one point, he held the record for the most appearances in the Premier League until surpassed by David James.  He was best remembered for winning the English league title in 1992 with Leeds United.  He made the PFA Team of the year in 1993. From 19988 to 2004, he played for Newcastle United. He was capped 85 times for Wales and served as the captain.

Gary Speed

LW: David Ginola (France)
For the national team, David Ginola only played17 times.  He was blamed for the goal against Bulgaria that eliminated France for the 1994 World Cup qualification.  He moved to England shortly afterward.  Ginola became a big star at the English Preimer League in the late 1990's.  In England, he played for Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspurs, Aston Villa and Everton.  He won both PFA and FWA Player of the Year in 1998-1999.

David Ginola

AM/RW: Nolberto Solano (Peru)
In 1998, Nolberto Solano became the first Peruvian to play in the Premier League when he joined Newcastle United from Boca Juniors. He played 15 seasons in England.  He also played for Aston Villa, West Ham and Leicester City. At home, he is associated with Sporting Cristal. He earned 95 caps for Peru.  He made his debut as a 18 years old in 1994.

AM: Paul Gascoigne (England)
Gazza was the most gifted player of his generation, but his career was marked controversy and injuries.  He played for Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur and Lazio.   In 1995, he joined Rangers with a club record fee. He had a successful career at Rangers, but he left in 1998 and went to play for many clubs all over the world.  For England, he earned 57 times.  He was remembered for the tears in his eyes as he received his yellow card against West Germany in the semi-final.

Paul Gazza

FW: Jorge Robledo (Chile)
Robledo was born in Iquique, Chile to a Chilean father and an English mother.   He joined Newcastle United in 1949.  In the 1950–51 season, he became the first South American to play in the FA Cup final and also winning it. He finished as Division One's top scorer in the 1951–52 season with 33 goals, becoming the first non-British to win the title. Chile recruited Robledo for the 1950 World Cup. He made his debut in the opening group game against England.  He would be capped 31 times.  He would also play for Colo Colo.

FW: Peter Beardsley (England)
Peter Beardsley was one of the few players i history to have played for Liverpool, Everton, Manchester United and Manchester City. His first successes came in the early 1980's while playing for Newcastle United.  In 1987, he joined Liverpool as the most expensive player in England's history.  Together with John Barnes, they formed one of the best English sides of the later 1980's. He had 56 caps for England.

CF: Jackie Milburn (England)
Jackie Milburn was best remembered for his career with Newcastle United and was considered legend there.  He was also known as Wor Jackie (particularly in North East England, a Geordie dialectal version of 'Our Jackie'). He won three FA Cup titles in 5 years during the 1950's. He was a second cousin to Jack and Bobby Charlton.  He had 13 caps for England.  He went to the World Cup finals in 1950, which was England's first ever appearance in the Finals.

Jackie Milburn

ST: Les Ferdinand (England)
Les Ferdinand's playing career included spells at Queens Park Rangers, Beşiktaş, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United, Leicester City, Bolton Wanderers, Reading and Watford during which period he earned 17 caps for England. Ferdinand is the eighth highest scorer in the Premier League with 149 goals.  He was also the PFA Players' Player of the Year in the 1995–96 season.  He is Rio Ferdinand's cousin.

ST: Hughie Gallacher (Scotland)
Hughie Gallacher is one of the greatest British footballers in the pre-war generation. He scored 463 goals, playing senior league football for Airdrieonians, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Derby County, Notts County, Grimsby Town and Gateshead. Prior to his he also played and scored for then non-league Queen of the South. For Scotland,  he scored 23 goals in 20 games for Scotland.  He was also a member of "Wembley Wizards", the Scottish team that beat England 5-1 in 1928.

Hughie Gallacher

ST/SS: Kevin Keegan (England)
Kevin Keegan was two-time European Footballer of the Year in 1978 and 1979. He won the European Cup in 1977 with Liverpool. He also found successes in the Bundesliga with Hamburger SV, where he played between 1977 and 1980.  He later played for Southampton and Newcastle United. He had 63 caps for England. However, his World Cup appearance was limited to 20 minutes against Spain at the World Cup Finals in 1982. 

ST: Alan Shearer (England)
Shearer is the all-time leading top-scorer for the Premiership.  In 1992, he joined Blackburn Rovers from Southampton in a record transfer. He won the Premiership for 1994-1995 season.  In 1996, he joined his home town club, Newcastle United for a world record transfer fees. He was FWA Player of the Year in 1994, and PFA Player of the Year in 1995 and 1997.  For England, he earned 63 caps. IN 1996, he led England to the semi-final of Euro 1996 at home, winning the Golden boot award. He also played the 1998 WC Finals and Euro 2000.

Alan Sheaer

Honorable Mention
Malcolm McDonald (England), Andy Cole (England), Steve Watson, Faustino Asprilla (Colombia), Chris Waddle (England), Jimmy Scoular (Scotland), Bobby Mitchell (Scotland), Jonathan Woodgate (England), Pavel Srmicek (Czech Republic), Shola Ameobi (England), Steve Harper (England), Colin Veitch (England), Fabricio Coloccini (Argentina), Willie McFaul (N.Ireland), John Beresford (England), Kelvin Nolan (England), Kieron Dyer (England), Irving Nattrass (England), Glenn Roeder (England), Terry Hibbitt (England).

Squad Explanation
-- Alan Shearer is probably Newcastle United's greatest player.  Hughie Gallacher, Shay Given and Jackie Milburn are undisputed selection for the club.
-- Newcastle won the 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup Final, but only two players made my team(David Craig and Bobby Moncur). Jim Scott who scored one of the goals in the Final only played two seasons at St James Park.
-- Shay Given spent over a decade with the club. Ronnie Simpson was known for his career with Celtic.  He actually spent 9 seasons with Newcastle United from 1951 to 1960 before returning to Scotland. He won the FA Cup twice with Newcastle. He would join Celtic in 1964. Lawrence is the record holder for the most competitive appearances in a Newcastle.   Pavel Srníček was my 4th choice.
-- David Craig and Billy McCracken spent 20 years with the Magpies.  They locked up the two rightback position.
-- Phillipe Albert and  Bobby Moncur are voted as the two greatest centerbacks of the club by the Evening Chronicle.  Fabricio Coloccini's career never stood out, but with Newcastle United, he finally fulfilled his potential. He was on the PFA Team of the Year in 2011-2012 season. He made my honourable mention.  Jonathan Woodgate only played a handful of games for the Magpies.
-- Frank Hudspeth and Alf McMichael edged out John Beresford for the two left back spots.  Hudspeth is second in appearance for the club while McMichael was one of the best leftback during his time.
-- I took Jock Rutherford over Jimmy Scoular at right wing because he won more trophies and at a time when Newcastle dominated.
-- David Ginola won both PFA and FWA Player of the Year in 1998-1999.
--  Both Chris Waddle and Bobby Mitchell were left wings, but I already have Gary Speed and David Ginola.  Both players were more associated with the club than Waddle.  Then, I prefer the younger players than Mitchell.  So I have no space for Waddle and Mitchell, but I might have made a mistake with Mitchell.
-- Paul Gascoigne is a homegrown player. He was named as the PFA Young Player of the Year and listed on the PFA Team of the Year in the 1987–88 season.
-- Nolberto Solano was a big fan favourite at his time.  He can also play on the right wing.
-- Hughie Gallacher, Jackie Milburn and Alan Shearer were locked for two of the strikers' position.  Kevin Keegan only played two seasons with Newcastle, but he helped Newcastle to gain promotion from the second division.  The promotion itself was a historical moment for the club.  I have rewarded players on other teams who helped their club for historical moment.  For Newcastle, that player happened to be Keegan.  He was also a popular figure with the fans.  Andy Cole and Malcolm Macdonald were seriously considered, but he is up against some of the greatest British strikers ever played the game.
-- Some fans put Peter Beardsley among the greatest ever player for Newcastle United.  He joined Newcastle United in the summer of 1993 as a "has-been player".  However, he revitalised his career here.  He helped Andy Cole to become the top scorer of the Preimership in the 1993-1994 season.  Peter Beardsley was on the PFA Team of the Year.  
-- I do not know if Jorge "George" Robledo belongs to this team. He was selected because he broke a historical milestone.  He was the first non-British to be the top scorer in England.  He was known to be the striker partner of Jackie Milburn.  For nearly 50 years, he  was the highest scoring (non-Irish) overseas player in the English top flight. Having said that, I do believe Andy Cole could have taken his space.

Jorge Robledo and 1952 FA Cup

-- The final striker position was between Les Ferdinand and Andy Cole. Andy Cole played for the club from 1993 to 1995, scoring 68 goals in 86 appearances. Both players scored a lot of goals, and only spent two seasons there in the Preimership (Cole spent one more season in Division One). Cole scored 40 goals in his first season, which was a record for the club in all competition for a single season. Hughie Gallacher holds the record for the highest number of "league" goals in a season with 36. However, I selected Ferdinand because his team came second twice in the league in his only two seasons. He was also the PFA Players' Player of the Year in the 1995–96 season.  He formed a successful strike partnership with Alan Shearer.  The fans gave him the nickname "Sir Les".  Cole on the other hand might have a better strike ratio than Ferdinand, but he was only a young player on the rise over here. Ferdinand was more established, I felt.
-- In 1987, Mirandinha became the first Brazilian to play in England, but his career was not too good in England. He does not make my all-time team, but I put him on Honorable Mention for his historical role.
--  Malcolm McDonald, Shola Ameobi, Steve Harper and Colin Veitch are into their Hall of Fame, but they only made my honorable mention.
-- Bobby and Jack Charlton's mother Cissie was related to Jackie Milburn.  Some sites suggested that they were brother and sister, but others said that she was his cousin.  Her meridian name was Milburn.

Formation

Aston Villa Greatest All-Time Team

This blogger Artur Yanturin of Russia copied many of my blog teams.  This blog was one of them.  It was my Russia All-Time Team here.  His team was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.   This entry of his was written in October 21, 2020, but mine was uploaded in a few weeks before his 2020.   Another entry of his was written in October 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2017.  His entry of the Dutch-German rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.  He also copied many many of my blog entries.

His Facebook  and Instagram

European Cup 1982

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Ipswich
Chelsea, Tottenham, Manchester City, Everton,
Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, 
Leeds United, Leicester City, West Ham
West Midlands

Aston Villa Football Club were formed in March 1874, by members of the Villa Cross Wesleyan Chapel in Handsworth which is now part of Birmingham. The four founders of Aston Villa were Jack Hughes, Frederick Matthews, Walter Price and William Scattergood. Aston Villa are one of the oldest and most successful football clubs in the history of English football. Villa won the 1981–82 European Cup, and are thus one of five English clubs to win what is now the UEFA Champions League. They have the fifth highest total of major honours won by an English club,  having won the First Division Championship seven times, the FA Cup seven times, the Football League Cup five times, and the European Cup and UEFA Super Cup double in 1982.

Villa have a fierce local rivalry with Birmingham City and the Second City derby between the teams has been played since 1879. The club's traditional kit colours are claret shirts with sky blue sleeves, white shorts and sky blue socks. Their traditional club badge is of a rampant lion

1995-1996 League Cup

Team

GK: Nigel Spink (England)

Nigel Spink joined Aston Villa in 1977.  He played once for Aston Villa for almost 5 years before he played in the 1982 European Cup Final after starter Jimmy Rimmer was injured.  He went on to make 460 appearances for Villa before moving to neighbouring club West Bromwich Albion in 1996.  He later played for Millwall and Forest Green Rovers.  In 1983, he played his only time with England, but only for 45 minutes.

GK: Jimmy Rimmer (England)

Jimmy Rimmer is considered to be the greatest Aston Villa goalkeeper. He won two European Cup medals: 1968 with Manchester United and 1982 with Aston Villa.  He was Alex Stepney's understudy in the 1968 Final.  In the 1982 Final, he only played 9 minutes before getting an injury. He played 3 seasons with Arsenal, where he was their player of the year in 1975. He was capped once in 1976.

GK: Mark Bosnich (Australia)
Bosnich was voted as Oceania Goalkeeper of the Century.  He was known for his career with Aston Villa.   He earned himself a transfer back to Manchester United in 1999, but his career started to fall apart over there.  He also played for Chelsea. He also played in Australia for  Sydney United, Central Coast Mariners and Sydney Olympic. For the national team, he only earned 17 caps due to club's commitment.

RB: Stan Lynn (England)
Nicknamed "Stan the Wham", Stan Lynn was renowned for his powerful right-footed shots which came from his "Booming Boots".  He started with Accrington Stanley.  He was all-time great with Aston Villa. Playing against Sunderland in January 1958, Lynn became the first full-back to score a hat-trick in a top-flight match. He moved to Aston Villa's arch-rivals Birmingham City in 1961.

RB: Howard Spencer (England)
Spencer is considered one of the greatest Aston Villa captains of all time. He played for them between 1892 to 1907. He helped the side to four First Division championships and three FA Cup victories, as well as becoming the first Aston Villa player to captain England.  He was known for his good sportsmanship which earnt him the nickname the "Prince of Fullbacks".

CB: Martin Laursen (Denmark)
Martin Laursen played three seasons for Italian club AC Milan, with whom he won the 2003 UEFA Champions League and the 2004 Serie A championship. He also played for Italian clubs Hellas Verona and Parma FC, and Aston Villa. Capped 53 times from 2000 to 2008, and he was named 2008 Danish Football Player of the Year. He represented Denmark at the 2000 European Championship, 2002 World Cup, and 2004 European Championship tournaments.

Martin Laursen 

CB: Olof Mellberg (Sweden)

Olof Mellberg is best known for playing 7 seasons at Aston Villa as well as spells with Italian side Juventus and Greek side Olympiacos.  He was a former captain with the Swedish national team, earning 117 caps.  He played in both 2002 and 2006 World Cup Finals as well as the Euro 2000, Euro 2004, Euro 2008 and Euro 2012. He won the Guldbollen as Sweden's Football of the Year in 2003.  He had a feud with Fredrik Ljungberg while both played for Sweden.

CB: Allan Evans (Scotland)
Allan Evans played for Dunfermline Athletic (1973–77), Aston Villa (1977–89), Leicester City (1989–90) and Darlington (1990–91).  He won the league title in 1980/1 and was part of Villa's 1982 European Cup winning team. Evans was later club captain and helped Villa win promotion back to the First Division in 1988. Evans won four caps for Scotland, all in 1982, and was a member of their 1982 World Cup squad.

CB/DM: Paul McGrath (Ireland)
Paul McGrath is one of Ireland's greatest players.  He played 83 times for Ireland. He appeared at the 1990 and 1994 World Cup Finals, as well as the Euro 1988.  He played for St Patrick's Athletic and then, joined Manchester United in 1982.  He had a run-in with Sir Alex Ferguson who was the new manager at Manchester United and moved to Aston Villa in 1989 where he won the PFA Player of the Year in 1993. He later played for Derby County and Sheffield United.

Paul McGrath

LB/CB: Steve Staunton (Ireland)
Steve Staunton was capped 102 times for Ireland.  He was the first footballer to have reached a century of caps for them. He went to the World Cup Finals in 1990 and 1994.  He captained Ireland at the WC Finals in 2002 after the depature of Roy Keane. For his club career, he started his career with Dundalk.  He played mainly for Aston Villa  and Liverpool with two spells each.  He also played for Coventry and Walsall.

LB:  Charlie Aitken (Scotland)
Charlie Aitken is the all-time record appearance holder at English club Aston Villa. He played for Villa from August 1959 until May 1976, a period of 17 seasons. Aitken was a member of the 1975 League Cup winning team, having been a runner-up in 1971. He spent the last two seasons of his professional career in the NASL with the New York Cosmos.

DM: Gareth Barry (England)
Gareth Barry has made 597 appearances in the Premier League, including 365 for Aston Villa, putting him third on the all-time appearances list, and top among current players. In 2009, he joined Manchester City, where he won the FA Cup in 2011 and the Premier League title the following season. After a season on loan, he joined Everton on a three-year contract in July 2014. He played 53 times for England.  He was a member of Euro 2000 team, and then, the 2010 World Cup team.

Gareth Barry

CM: Dennis Mortimer (England)
Dennis Mortimer captained Villa to the 1982 European Cup Final. A 1–0 victory against Bayern Munich in the De Kuip Stadium was courtesy of a Peter Withe goal. From 1975 to 1985 he made 403 appearances for Villa scoring 36 goals. He also played for  Coventry City, Sheffield United, Brighton & Hove Albion and Birmingham City.Mortimer was capped by England at Youth and under-23 level and captained the England B but was never capped for the full England team.

AM/CM: Gordon Cowans (England)
Cowans started his career at Aston Villa as an apprentice in 1974, and signed as a professional in 1976. During his time at Aston Villa, he won the League Cup, the League Championship, the European Cup and the European Super Cup.  He also played for Derby County, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Sheffield United, Bradford City, Stockport County, Burnley and Bari in Italy.  Capped 10 times.

CM: David Platt (England)
Platt began his career as an apprentice at Manchester United but later moved to Crewe Alexandra where he began building a reputation as a goal scoring midfield player. In 1988, he signed for Aston Villa and made his debut for England a year later. At the 1990 World Cup, his performances in Italy earned him a move to Bari in 1991. In 1992, Platt moved to Juventus, where he spent one season. In 1993, he moved to Sampdoria where he stayed for two seasons before returning to England with Arsenal.  Capped 75 times.

David Platt

AM/CM: Jack Grealish (England)

Jack Grealish joined Aston Villa at the age of six, and made his debut for the club in 2014, following a loan at Notts County. He was capped by the Republic of Ireland up to under-21 level before switching to play for England in April 2016.  He made his debut for England in 2020 and played in the Euro 2020. He is considered to be the future of English football.

LW Tony Morley (England)
Morley played for Preston North End, Burnley, Aston Villa, West Bromwich Albion and Birmingham City, as well as playing for other teams in Hong Kong and the USA. His goal against Everton at Goodison Park won him the 'Goal of the Season' award for 1980–81. He was a vital part of the Villa side that won the League Championship in 1980–81 and the European Cup the year after. His brilliant dribble and cross set up Peter Withe for the winning goal against Bayern Munich in the final. Capped 6 times for England.

Tony Morley

FW: Archie Hunter (Scotland)
Hunter was one of Victorian football's first household names. He was first captain of Aston Villa to lift the FA Cup, in 1887. Despite being one of the greats of the 19th century game, Hunter never fulfilled his dream of playing for Scotland against England. This is because at the time the Scottish Football Association had a policy of not picking 'Anglo-Scots' (i.e. Scots who played in the English League).

FW: Pongo Waring (England)
Tom "Pongo" Waring is one of Aston Villa's all-time great centre forwards. He signed for Tranmere Rovers in 1926, scored 6 of the 11 goals scored against Durham City. He moved to Aston Villa for £4,700 in 1928. As well as playing football, Waring also worked for The Hercules Motor and Cycle Company in Aston.  He was capped 5 times for England.

ST: Peter McParland (Northern Ireland)
Peter McParland scored two goals against Manchester United at the FA Cup Final of 1957.  He was also remembered for injuring Manchester United keeper Ray Wood in a legal move during the game. He also won the Second Division title in 1960 and the League Cup in 1961 while with Aston Villa. Represented Northern Ireland 34 times and starred for them in the 1958 World Cup in which he scored five goals and helped his team to the quarter-finals. 

Peter McParland

FW: Johnny Dixon (England)

Johnny Dixon played for Spennymoor United before he signed as a professional for Aston Villa shortly after the Second World War.  He played for them from 1945 to 1961.  He also scored 144 goals, including five during the 1957 Cup run.  The 1957 FA Cup was Aston Villa's first FA Cup victory at Wembley.  He was considered an important player for Aston Villa.

ST: Andy Gray (Scotland)
Andy Gray joined Aston Villa in 1975. His 29 goals in the 1977-78 season earned him the PFA Young Player of the Year and PFA Players' Player of the Year awards.  At the time he was the youngest player to earn the Players' Player of the Year award.  Later, he had successful careers with Wolverhampton Wanderers and Everton.  With Everton, he was a part of their great team of the 1980's, winning the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. He won 20 caps for Scotland. Despite winning the Player of the Year award, he was not selected for the WC Finals in 1978.

Andy Gray

ST: Peter Withe (England)
Peter Withe was a much-travelled English footballer who played as a striker between 1971 and 1990.  The highlights of his career came at Aston Villa, where he was a key player in the Football League title triumph of 1980–81 and scored his side's only goal in their 1982 European Cup Final victory.  Capped by England 11 times, Withe scored once, and was the first Aston Villa player to be selected in an England World Cup Finals squad (in España 82).

ST: Brian Little (England)

Brian Little played his entire career with Aston Villa from 1971 to 1980.  He made his debut in the Third Division.  He was part of Villa's League Cup winning teams of 1975 and 1977, scoring two goals in the second replay victory over Everton in the latter final, as well as helping the club climb from the Third to First Division in the early part of the decade.  He played once for England.

ST: Billy Walker (England)
Billy Walker is considered by many to be the greatest footballer to ever play for Aston Villa Football Club. He made 531 appearances for Villa between 1914 and 1934, scoring 244 goals, of which 214 came in 478 league matches.  He remains Aston Villa's all-time top goalscorer to this day. He was an FA Cup Winner with Villa in 1920. Walker is the only-player to have scored a hat-trick of penalty kicks in a Football  League game, doing so against Bradford City in November 1921.

Billy Walker

Honorable Mention

Nigel Sims (England), Brad Friedel (USA), Sam Hardy (England), Shay Given (Ireland), Gareth Southgate (England), Kenny Swain (England), Richard Dunne (Ireland), Richard Dunne (Ireland), Ian Taylor (England), Gerry Hitchens (England), Ken McNaught (Scotland) and Chris Nicholl (Northern Ireland), Gareth Southgate (England), Ken McNaught (Scotland) and Chris Nicholl (Northern Ireland) , Stiliyan Petrov (Bulgaria), Gabriel Agbonlahor (England), Juan Pablo Angel (Colombia), Brian Little (England), Clem Stephenson (England), Jack Devey (England), John Gidman (England), Trevor Ford (Wales), Darius Vassell (England), Clem Stephenson (England), Kent Neilson (Denmark), Dwight Yorke (T&T), Jack Grealish (England).

Squad Explanation

-- In August 2021, I did a review of the team.  I could not believe that some of the selections I have made in 2016.  So I completely redid the team.

-- Aston Villa's greatest achievement is their victory at the 1982 European Cup.  Peter Withe, Jimmy Rimmer, Tony Morley, Dennis Mortimer played in the Final.  Of course, they also won the league title the season before.

-- Aston Villa was dominating football in the 1890's.  They won five League titles and three FA Cups by the end of Queen Victoria's reign in 1901.  Howard Spencer and Archie Hunter came from that era.

Aston Villa 1890's

-- Mark Bosnich has a remarkable career with Aston Villa.  His career after Villa Park faded quickly.  He won the 1995-1996 League Cup.  At the time of writing, it was Aston Villa's only major trophy since 1982. Paul McGrath also played on that team.

-- Jack Rimmer helped Aston Villa to reach the 1982 European Cup Final, but he was injured during the game in which Nigel Spink stepped in.  Spink helped Aston Villa to win the European Cup. He  spent 17 years with the club and holds the club record for most appearances (460) made by a goalkeeper.

-- Sam Hardy was the best goalkeeper in England during the 1910's.  He won two FA Cup with Aston Villa.  Peter Schmeichel only played one season with Aston Villa. I never considered him.  Brad Friedel was mentioned frequently, but he only played three seasons here.  

-- Paul McGrath won the PFA Player of the Year in 1993 with Aston Villa.  His career with Manchester United was marked with off field issue.  His career took off while playing here.  He is probably Aston Villa's greatest player.  His honours in a Villa shirt included winning the League Cup in both 1993-94 and 1996-97.

-- The older fans considered Allan Evans as their greatest central defender and the younger fans usually listed Olof Mellberg or Martin Laursen.  Evans started as a striker, but manager Ron Sauders turned him into a central defender. He stayed with the club when they relegated in 1987 and helped them back to the First Division.

-- Gareth Southgate was more famous than the defenders selected due to being a member of the English national team. Ken McNaught (Scotland) and Chris Nicholl (Northern Ireland) were also legends over here.  Home grown Gary Cahill was not given a chance here.

-- Olof Mellberg spent seven seasons here and was a fan favorite. He captained the team for many years. While Martin Laursen's career was great here, he had some injury problems, but many considered him one of the greatest in the Preimership era.

-- Birmingham Mail selected Stan Lynn and  Steve Staunton as their starting fullbacks.  Leftback Charlie Aitken holds the club's appearance record.  So the second leftback was easy to choose from.  On right side, I could not find information on Howard Spencer.  He was probably a rightback. In his time, he was the greatest fullback of the game.  RB John Gidman was actually as well-known as Stan Lynn, but I had no space for him. I did not know how to rank RB/CB Tommy Smart so I left off him off.  Kenny Swain was also considered.

-- In midfield, Paul McGrath, Dennis Mortimer and Gordon Cowans were three of the greatest Aston Villa players.  Gareth Barry made the most appearances in Premier League history.   He was also home grown.   I have to decide between David Platt, Stiliyan Petrov, James Milner and Ian Taylor for the last spot.

-- James Milner led Villa to their strongest season in the Premier League to date, winning the PFA Young Player of the Year award. Petrov spent 6 seasons here and became club captain during his six seasons at Villa Park.  I took David Platt because he was voted PFA Players' Player of the Year for the 1989-1990 season.  His form led to the World Cup glory that summer.

-- Danny Blanchflower's career with Aston Villa often got overlooked. He did not fit into the team's playing style at the time.  However, I did not put him on honorable mention.  

-- The right wing was the weak link.  Ray Graydon was a club hero. His accomplishment however was mainly at the lower divsion, but he won two League Cups over here.   Tony Daley was inconsistent over here. An injury kept ST/RW Gary Shaw to fulfill his early promise.  James Milner played mainly as a midfielder over here.

-- At the time of writing, Jack Grealish has not hit his prime.  In this modern era, he is unlikely to stay with the club in his prime. He had been Aston Villa's first team for many years, but he also spent many years in the lower division.   However, he was probably their best home grown player since Gareth Barry. He was also the best player in the Preimership in the 2019-2020 season. Furthermore, the team needed a playmaker.  

Jack Grealish

-- Tony Morley kept Ashley Young and Eric Houghton off the team.  Morley was one of the most important player in the club's greatest period in the 1980's.  He was ignored by England during his prime.  I selected him because he was a hero of Aston Villa's European Cup in 1982.  See my blog. Peter McParland also could play as an outside left. Eric Houghton was a Hall of Flamer over here.  He formed a famous attack line with Billy Walker and Pongo Waring. 

-- For forwards, Pongo Waring, Peter Withe and Billy Walker were automatic selections.  Billy Walker was all-time leading scorer.  Then, I took Johnny Dixon, Archie Hunter and Andy Grey.  Dixon was listed among the greatest Aston Villa players.  Johnny Dixon was overlooked by my origin team.   He had a long service and large appearance total.  He was also their captain. The fans probably forgot about Archie Hunter.  He was probably Aston Villa's first football hero and probably the greatest footballer of his time. Andy Gray won the PFA Players' Player of the Year award while with the club.

-- Jack Devey captained Aston Villa during which time they won the League championship five times between 1894 and 1900 and the FA Cup twice. Including the famous 'Double' in the 1896–97 season, but I still have no room for him.  

-- Gabriel Agbonlahor might be Villa's all-time leading scorer in the Premier League, but he did not bring any trophy to the club.  The others were all decorated.  Brian Little was probably the biggest surprised omission.  I left Dwight York off the team because of his controversial departure from Aston Villa.  One article listed Harry Hampton as Aston villa's fifth's greatest player, but I already have 6 attackers.  Trevor Ford only spent three seasons with Aston Villa. While his scoring rate was high, I took players who had a longer tenure with the club.  

-- The last spot was difficult to chose.  The bigger names left in the pool were Eric Houghton, John Gidman, Ken McNaught, Chris Nicholl, Stiliyan Petrov, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Dwight Yorke, Brian Little, Harry Hampton, Gerry Hitchens and Jack Devey. Ideally, I should take a right winger, but both Tony Daly and Ray Graydon had less merits than the others.  In the end, I took Brian Little whom I believed to be the best player left on the pool.  Hampton just missed out.

Formation

The right side is the problem.  I am testing David Platt on the right.  Jack Grealish had played on the right side before even through it was not his best position.