In the spotlight: Brad Friedel

Neither Brad Friedel having a bad day nor Birmingham City running riot will be greeted with any pleasure at Villa Park this season, but a combination of the two was a helping hand back in May.

Friedel allowed David Murphy's first-half goal to slip under his body as Birmingham romped to victory. Luckily for Villa fans, this wasn't another second City derby nightmare, but a day that ended with Blues triumphant but relegated and, more importantly, having done enough to ensure Blackburn couldn't leapfrog Villa into sixth place and European football.

Of course, if Friedel was making mistakes like that week-in, week-out it wouldn't bode well for his new club, but in fact it was one of a handful of serious errors in eight years of solid service between the Ewood Park posts.

The Human Wall - not yet his nickname; it was bestowed upon him during USA's impressive performances at the 2002 World Cup - signed on a free transfer for Blackburn, then in the First Division, in November 2000, as Graeme Souness put together a side that would reach the Premiership and go beyond.

Friedel immediately settled into the side and became a vital part of a team that cemented promotion, a top-half Premiership finish and silverware in less than 18 months after his arrival. Friedel was named man of the match as Rovers defeated Tottenham Hotspur in the 2002 League Cup final and secured the club's first trophy since the 1995 Premier League title.

It helped him quickly get over a difficult settling-in period in English football, when he was unable to make the Liverpool number one shirt his own in three seasons at Anfield, playing just over 30 times after arriving for £1million from Columbus Crew in 1997.

At the time it looked like Friedel would have no luck in English football; he had already been denied three work permit applications (from Nottingham Forest, Newcastle and Sunderland) between 1994 and 1997.

He had caught the eye at UCLA, leading his university to the national championship and being named in the US All-Star team during both of his seasons in college soccer. This was enough to persuade Frank Clark to make a move for his signature, but the Forest manager was to be frustrated by the immigration rules.

Friedel instead signed a contract with the US national team, promising to put his search for a European club on hold until after the 1994 World Cup. Tony Meola was the preferred first-choice for the tournament, though Friedel would go on to win 82 caps for his country.

In the aftermath of the tournament, Kevin Keegan snapped Friedel up for Newcastle United, but the move was again blocked when Friedel's work permit application was turned down. Instead, Friedel was loaned to Brondby, taking Mogens Krogh's place as first choice before returning to full-time duty as first choice with his country for the 1995 US Cup (an invitational tournament) and Copa America.

After another work permit application, this time from Sunderland, was turned down, Friedel signed for Graeme Souness - the same man who would sign him for Blackburn - at Galatasaray in 1995. He played 37 games in his one season with the Turkish giants, before moving back to America to take up a contract with the Columbus Crew in 1996. he was named MLS Goalkeeper of the Year before being snapped up by Liverpool.

After his 2002 League Cup triumph, things went from good to great for Friedel. Within the space of another few months he had inspired his country to the World Cup quarter finals, beating Portugal and Mexico en route and becoming the first goalkeeper to save two penalties in one game - not in a shootout - since 1974.

A year later he was named PFA Goalkeeper of the Year. The next season, while maintaining his fantastic form at the back, he got his name on the scoresheet, netting for Blackburn against Charlton.

There were too many highlights at Ewood Park to mention them all; another case of saving two penalties in one match springs to mind, as does that famous double-save against Arsenal. All in all, his ten seasons in English football have combined with his previous form to make the 37-year-old one of the best goalkeepers in the game.

He was offered and signed a new contract with Blackburn at the start of 2008, and had every intention of seeing it out; Martin O'Neill deserves great credit for persuading him to do otherwise. "I'd been at Blackburn eight years and this was going to be my ninth season. The fans and everyone at the club have been terrific with me," said the goalkeeper on signing for Villa.

"In saying that I'm really excited to be here at Aston Villa. Being able to work with these players, with Martin O'Neill and with Mr Lerner is exciting for me. I've really got the feeling this club is going places and that's the main reason why I'm here.

"Hopefully we can improve on last year. Sixth was good but if we can move into fifth or fourth, that would be fantastic. No one player ever makes a team but I'll just come in here and try to do the best I can."

And Friedel's best, if you needed any more convincing, is very good indeed.