"Jamie Milner is Brazilian," was the chant that rang around St James' Park last season. "We won't sell for twenty million." In the end it took half of that to bring a player back to Villa Park two years after he should have signed. Better late than never? When you think about it, it's one of the few things the winger hasn't done early.

A matter of weeks after Wayne Rooney became the youngest player to play in the Premier League, Milner was handed his debut by Terry Venables, and beat Rooney's record by fifty-one days. A month later his goal against Sunderland made him the youngest goalscorer in the history of the competition, again taking the record from Rooney.Read Post »

"Fabio Capello has every reason to come to our games," proclaimed Luke Young the day after putting pen to paper on his Aston Villa contract.

"I think I'm at the right place at the right time. He'll be having a look at the exciting young lads we've got and that will give me a chance to show what I can do. Hopefully I can force my way back in."

Despite being a member of the squad for Euro 2008 qualifiers against the likes of Israel, Andorra and Russia last year, Young's...

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Nicky Shorey already has the unusual achievement of having played in all four divisions and represented England.

When he appears in Europe - presumably sooner rather than later - he will have an almost unique full set.

The 27-year-old Londoner started his career as an apprentice with Leyton Orient a decade ago, but only managed to make fifteen league appearances for The O's as a teenager. "They had a good left-back, Matt Lockwood," he recalled last summer, shortly before...

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Carlos Cuellar is yet to represent his national team, and hopes that a move to Aston Villa will change that. But his talents have not gone unnoticed by his European Championship-winning countrymen.

"I know Cuellar from Osasuna," said Xavi, the lynchpin of the national midfield, talking about players who might challenge for a place in the squad while on Barcelona's pre-season tour of Scotland. "He is a good player so it's no surprise English clubs are...

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