Aston Villa star opens up on injury woes, goal drought and Celtic 'basketball' fears
Jacob Ramsey is hopeful his first goal at Villa Park in over a year will be a springboard for him to rediscover the form he showed in the final two months of the 2022/23 campaign before his injury struggles began.
The playmaker has missed 31 league games since the start of last season due to different injuries which have stunted his progress under Unai Emery. From the end of March 2023 until the final day of Emery's first season in charge of Aston Villa, Ramsey registered nine goal contributions in the club's final 12 league matches, including scoring two goals and making as many assists in the final games matches against Tottenham, Liverpool and Brighton.
Ramsey opened his account in the league on Sunday night when he gave Villa the lead against West Ham, before Emerson levelled up for the visitors in the 70th minute to deny Emery's side what would have been their third successive home league win in all competitions.
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"It was good to get that feeling again because I haven’t scored at Villa Park for a while," Ramsey said. "In the past 12 months I have had three or four big injuries. I hope I can keep my numbers up because after a big injury it can take three or four games to get back in your rhythm and routine.
"I think before the Euros with the Under-21s, I was flying. My numbers were really good and I looked confident. Since then I haven’t reached those levels. On Sunday, that was a glimpse of what is to come.
"I think two or three years ago I played in a different position under this boss. I was more box-to-box with late runs. Now I am linking in the final third with the midfielders. My game is to run past people, be powerful, explosive and get goals."
On Wednesday night, Villa will have to beat Celtic to give themselves the best possible chance of finishing in the top eight of the league phase table. Then, they'll be hoping a result goes for them elsewhere so they can secure automatic qualification for the Champions League last 16.
"Any Champions League game is going to be a big game, especially at Villa Park," Ramsey admitted. "Tomorrow we need three points for automatic qualification. It will be a tough match, I’m sure it will be a great atmosphere and a good game.
"Personally, I’ve come from the academy, signing for Villa at eight years old to now playing in the Champions League as a 23-year-old at Villa Park, my family and friends will be at the stadium so when the music comes on I will be looking up to my friends and family. It’s a pinch me moment really, but after that it’s full focus on the game.
"Villa is a big club with big ambitions. When the owners took over, it was clear that getting top four was the aim. For the first five minutes [vs Celtic] it will be surreal to hear the atmosphere again, but from then on it’ll be full focus on the game."
Asked about what he expects from the match from a tactical perspective, Ramsey said: "Not too. sure, but we don’t like to play that basketball game to be fair. We like to control with good possession. Celtic will try and make an impression. They’ve already qualified, but England vs Scotland, it’s going to be a really intense and physical game. We don’t want it to be a basketball game."
