Be a Premier League Star: Learn To Play the Aston Villa Way

Imagine this: You're a footballer who has just turned professional, hitting the big time and earning thousands of pounds a week playing for League One club Gillingham FC , having been chosen by their scouts after they were impressed with your performances for your Sunday League team.

You're doing well on the pitch for your new club, the fans love you, you get on great with the players and the manager, and you seem to be the darling of the local media.

Then after a few months you get a call from Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill , the former Celtic boss, who wants you to join his team. A multi-million pound bid has been accepted, and you agree to sign a contract that will earn you tens of thousands of pounds a week.

On course for a place at Wembley in the Carling Cup final, as well as for the lucrative fourth UEFA Champions League position in the Premier League , Villa have had a rather successful 2009/10 campaign so far this season.

And such success can be put down to their fluid, attacking, composed style of play. So where would you fit in with the likes of James Milner , Gabriel Agbonlahor , Ashley Young , Stewart Downing , Richard Dunne , and Brad Friedel ?

Goalkeeper: As a goalkeeper for Aston Villa FC, you won't necessarily need to be the greatest of all, because you'll have a tight defence in front of you that should keep out most threats. However, for the likes of Chelsea and Arsenal , you'll need to be a good shot-stopper and have command of your area.

Expect tough competition from the two Americans, Brad Friedel and Brad Guzan . But don't worry, they're nice guys; they'll help you on your way to stardom.

Centre-back: You will be vitally important to the team, and expect opposition to load your box putting balls in. It's fundamentally important you have a good, strong header on you, and make sure you're able to accurately slide tackle. When distributing the ball, play short, and look for the playmaker who's cut back into space to create an attack.

Impress in training and you could be in the starting lineup; just be sure Carlos Cuellar is off his game, because Richard Dunne is an untouchable and will permanently be in the starting 11.

Full-back: You're attacking talents won't have to be great, because the manager doesn't have direct instructions for the full-backs to pile forward. Make sure you can pass, tackle, and get on well with the winger; there'll be a lot of exchanges between you two.

Stephen Warnock and Luke Young are reliable, but work hard with Habib Beye in training and you'll both be able to get a starting place, if you can increase your pace slightly.

Holding-midfielder: Without necessarily playing the diamond 4-4-2 formation, the gaffer likes to have a holding midfielder, and another getting forward. If you're chosen as that defensive midfield maestro, you'll need to have a very strong tackle, be able read play like a book and intercept opposition passes, and you'll also have to cut back at times and help the defense when the opposition are attacking, like an anchorman role.

Very tough to get a starting position here, because it's currently occupied by club captain Stiliyan Petrov . You're just gonna have to pray he's suspended or gets injured if you ever want serious playing time.

Attacking-midfielder: The most vital component of the team, you are the playmaker. You need a very good eye for a pass, you need to work in tandem with the wingers and the strikers, you need to have a good long range shot, and you need pace to burst into the box when your team is attacking. The lads will also look to you to set up the counter attack.

Unless you're better than the phenomenal James Milner, don't even think about it. By far the toughest role on the pitch, if you're ever lucky enough to play here, you're the Kaka , the Steven Gerrard , the Frank Lampard of Aston Villa Football Club. Tough task indeed.

Winger: The manager likes this area, and can exploit it well. To play here, it's a must that you have great pace, can deliver pinpoint crosses into the box, can cut inside and shoot, and can take set pieces like corners and free-kicks.

Ashley Young and Stewart Downing are two of England's finest wingers, both having played under Fabio Capello for the England team, and are in the reckoning for their place at the 2010 FIFA World Cup . To overthrow one of those two will be the next step you need to take if you ever want to dream of becoming a superstar.

Striker: One of you will play as a support for the other. As a support striker, you need to challenge defenders and win headers, you need to pass the ball through the defence for your striker partner to latch onto, and you need to be able to shoot and finish well, but not as much as your teammate in the slightly more advanced role. It's also vital you can control the ball well and have a good touch.

As the proper striker, it's a must that you can shoot accurately and finish with perfection. You also must have great control, a sublime touch, can win headers, and hit them accurately on goal. It will also help if you can cut out to the wing, and set up a shot for your support, or the overlapping winger.

Gabriel Agbonlahor is untouchable as the proper striker, so if you're strongly built, you're best bet is the supporting role. If you have a good shot and can finish well, and have the support attributes above, Emile Heskey and John Carew won't even get a look in while you're playing.

Tactics

Just a heads up on overall tactics as well, Martin O'Neill likes an attacking side, and will want the wingers to fly past the opposition full-backs at any slight opportunity.

When in possession, don't contain the ball for too long, play it direct and look for the man in space with a pass along the floor. However, if there's a winger hugging the touchline in miles of space, play the long ball over to him.

When not in possession, unless you're a striker, only close down in your own half. If you're winning, only time-waste in the last 10 minutes.

Simulation is never encouraged, but if you're losing and you can see a glorious opportunity for a penalty or dangerous free-kick, then for God's sake, just be street-wise! This is the Premier League we're talking about, teams take no prisoners.

And lastly, you know the drill when defending set pieces. Mark your man, or pick up a position on front or back post, or if there's no-one to mark and the posts are taken, then stay at the edge of the box ready to launch a counter-attack.

You've been signed by Aston Villa for what they usually splash out on decent new signings, a deal potentially worth up to £6million, on a two-year contract.

You can expect to reach a Carling Cup final, an FA Cup quarterfinal, and most realistically fifth or sixth in the Premier League this season. Expect the chance of participating in UEFA Europa League football next season.

Good luck in the next stage of your career!