Young not guilty over Boro demise

Villa right-back Luke Young insists he won’t feel any pangs of guilt if he helps send former club Middlesbrough down.

The defender makes his first trip to Teesside tomorrow since swopping Middlesbrough for the Midlands, in the knowledge that three points for Villa coupled with a point for Hull or Newcastle will relegate Gareth Southgate’s side to the Championship.

The England international, who cost Villa £6million, admits he would take no pleasure in sending his old employers down but insists he and his team-mates won’t be the ones to blame if a Villa victory seal Boro’s fate.

Young said: “I’ve had thoughts about it. They need to beat us. I have a lot of friends I still speak to up there, so I’m sure I’ll be having a chat with them in the build-up.

“I wish we could win and they could still survive, but it’s definitely going to be a result that determines whether they stay up or not.

“They will need to get something against us, otherwise they are probably going to be down. It will be a difficult day but it’s one of those things.

“You don’t want to send one of your old clubs down, but I’m a Villa player now. I’ve had a good year here, I enjoyed myself at Boro but you have to move on.

“It’s not going to be me sending Boro down or James Milner sending Newcastle down, the season is over 38 games.”

The full-back was one of a number of high-profile exits from the Riverside Stadium last summer, along with the likes of Mark Schwarzer and George Boateng.

He believes a lack of experience in the team this season can be attributed to Boro’s demise.

Young said: “There’s a good young crop there, but I think maybe the one thing they are missing is a bit of experience.

“Chris Riggott is the oldest player there and he’s 28. He’s been injured for the last few months.

“There’s just not been enough experience there to help them through.”

But Young insists former Villa defender Southgate is the man to lead them back to the top flight if they go down.

The defender said: “I like Gareth a lot. He lets you go out there and play your own game.

“I think his hands have been tied a little bit financially – he had to get rid of some of the high earners at the club.

“He had to balance the books more than other managers there. Hopefully he will be given time, even if they go down.”

Villa hope Gareth Barry will recover from illness to skipper the side, while Carlos Cuellar is again doubtful with flu.

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This article was posted on Friday, May 15th, 2009 at 11:30 am.
View more articles about: carlos cuellar, england, gareth barry, james milner, luke young, middlesbrough, newcastle, villa.

1
Tedd

May 15, 2009 at 4:23 pm

I don’t blame Luke. He did a good job for us, and we were mad to sell him. He’s hardly the person to blame for us being useless all round.

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