FAQs

They’re not frequently asked questions. I made them up. But here they are anyway.

What is Aston Villa Review?

Aston Villa Review is a Substack that aims to provide ad-free, free range, nose-to-tail coverage of Aston Villa Football Club.

There’s written content from me and a podcast from me and my co-host, Steve, who you’ll meet in a couple of questions’ time.

We are new but also old. So, so old.

What the hell is ad-free, free range, nose-to-tail coverage?

You can barely go anywhere or do anything without ads and branded content being shoved in your face, can you?

Not here.

Aston Villa Review is about providing quality content and journalism focused on our football club without the ads and pop-ups and videos that make it difficult to take it all in elsewhere.

To enable that, it has a paywall. But the idea is that it’s additive – paid subscribers getting more, not free subscribers getting less.

If you’re in a position to buy a paid subscription, please consider doing so. You will be supporting independent sports journalism and helping me to put food on the table as a working freelance sports writer.

Are you the guys from the old Aston Villa Review?

Yes, we are. I’m Chris Nee, the owner and writer of the site and co-host of the original Aston Villa Review podcast. Between 2012 and 2017, I produced the podcast with Steven Green and we’re the voices on the rebooted podcast too.

Can I find you on social media?

Reluctantly, yes. I’m on Bluesky and Twitter, and I write about football on the High Protein Beef Paste newsletter.

Wait, don’t you support someone else?

I do! Well remembered. I am a Coventry Sphinx supporter. We play in the Pitching In Northern Premier League Midlands Division at the eighth tier of English football.

While Sphinx and Villa did meet in the Birmingham Senior Cup a few years ago – Tim Iroegbunam and Sil Swinkels were in the Villa team that night – I think I’m justified in not seeing much of a conflict of interest.

I follow St Mirren and Kawasaki Frontale too but you don’t need to worry about that.

So, you don’t go to matches then?

Not anymore. I was born in Birmingham and I love Aston Villa but the days of being able to afford a season ticket are gone. I was a season ticket holder in three different decades but it’s more difficult now for reasons that wouldn’t surprise you.

I consider myself a match-going supporter who can’t go to matches anymore.

Let’s get this out there right now: I’m a low-ranking freelance sports journalist and you’re more likely to find me at a Coventry City, Birmingham City, West Bromwich Albion, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Walsall, Shrewsbury Town, Wycombe Wanderers or Huddersfield Town match than a Villa one.

Trust me; I’d prefer to be at the Villa.

Do I really need another Villa site?

That’s up to you!

There’s a lot more on offer now than when Steve and I started the Aston Villa Review podcast in 2012. Lots of the people we spoke to back then have gone on to great things and we’re thrilled for all of them.

They’ve got you covered for on-the-whistle reports, video, podcasts and news but I missed talking to Steve every week and writing about Villa, so I’m hoping my specific skills and style will earn Aston Villa Review a place in the Villa universe.