Laursen Calls On Faithful

Man mountain Martin Laursen would like nothing more on Thursday than to see the crowd in as finer voice as it was against Ajax a few seasons ago.

Speaking on the Official Site as we attempt to put Sundays result behind us and gatecrash the group stages of the Europa League, Laursen has called on the fans to help scream us through.

'The Ajax game was so special , it was a magical European night for Villa.'

Laursen scored the opening goal that night and captained us to victory, but despite his joy and I remember him saying at the time, the first proper thoughts about the win were for the fans.

'That fans hadn't had those magical nights for quite a while. It was a great build up beforehand and then when I scored it was emotional and I can still hear the noise of the crowd when I went to celebrate. It was just unbelievable.'

Laursen again restates that having a vocal crowd fully behind the team does have an affect, and players naturally play harder when they are being roared on by the fans.

That's exactly what he hopes to see on Thursday. The game is set up nicely with us already having the away goal and there's no doubt the team will be wanting to have a strong performance to wipe the Newcastle memories.

And let's face it, with the last few weeks and everything that has gone on, qualifying for the Group Stages would be an enormous 'pick me up' for everyone.

Vital Villa on:

Vital Villa on:

Click here to join in the debate on the club forum.