John McGinn looks forward to the new campaign with an evolving Aston Villa unit.
The club captain has seen plenty of change at the club since he signed in the summer of 2018, but times have never been better at Villa Park. The team reached the Champions League for the second time in three years and continental competition for the fourth successive season under Unai Emery, who masterminded more success in another Europa League final a 3-0 win against Freiburg.
‘We’re excited by the new Aston Villa’
That night in Istanbul ended a 30-year drought for a trophy, and it brought McGinn much pride as the Villans etched another team into European folklore with the team that beat Bayern Munich in 1982.
“It was special for the supporters after 44 years. Aston Villa is what they live for. They’ve had a lot of pain over the past ten years. They saw their club nearly go under, they saw their club get relegated and they were probably ashamed of their team for a time.
“What we’ve given them is a team to be proud of, a club to be proud of, and once again Aston Villa were European champions. It was a dream come true, and to see three or four generations of Villa fans line the streets the day after was truly special and a day I’ll never forget.
Now is the time to focus on the future. The 2026/27 season starts with a trip to the Amex Stadium against a Brighton outfit that ended last campaign in strong form and finished in eighth position.
“We’re going to be different this season but our preparations have been strong, they’ve been tough.
“It’s important to be as fit as possible and we’ve played a lot of games, and players have been coming back at different stages. We’re excited by the challenge; we’re excited by the new Aston Villa, and hopefully we can do as well as last season.
“It will be a really tough game, the same as you always have at The Amex. It’s one of the most impressive clubs in the league. They’re a team that loses players but recruits well, and you never really notice a difference with the players they have missing.
“It’s a club that everyone should be trying to emulate in the division. They’re very smart, they operate well, they’ve got a really young, positive team. It’s always a very tough game. We’re going to have to be at our best to win, but we have a decent record at The Amex, so hopefully that carries on.”
