Aston Villa bersiap menghadapi Freiburg dalam pertandingan babak final Liga Europa di Stadion Tüpraş, Istanbul, pada Rabu malam untuk memperebutkan trofi kompetisi Eropa pertama mereka sejak tahun 1982.
Klub asal Inggris tersebut belum pernah lagi memenangkan trofi utama selama 30 tahun terakhir setelah keberhasilan mereka meraih Piala Liga pada 1996 silam.
Kiper Aston Villa, Emiliano Martinez, menekankan pentingnya memenangkan trofi bagi kelompok pemain inti yang telah membela klub selama bertahun-tahun melalui konferensi pers langsung menjelang laga.
"It's massive. I have been with [John] McGinn, [Ezri] Konsa, [Ollie] Watkins, [Tyrone] Mings, Cashy [Matty Cash] since we have been at the club. So many years, so many games together fighting for mid-table to European places to semi-finals and now we are in the final." kata Martinez.
Martinez juga menambahkan mengenai kelayakan tim serta para pendukung untuk berada di partai puncak, ditambah rekam jejak manajer mereka yang berpengalaman.
"I think we deserve it, I think the fans deserve it and obviously the manager has had four or five finals in this competition." tutur Martinez.
Sang penjaga gawang menegaskan dukungan penuh seluruh elemen tim terhadap sang manajer, Unai Emery, untuk memimpin skuad di pertandingan final nanti.
"We don't wish [to have] anyone else on the bench apart from him leading us to a European final." ujar Martinez.
Martinez kemudian merefleksikan perjalanan karier pribadinya dan masa lalu yang sulit sebelum meraih kesuksesan besar di dunia sepak bola.
"Any time I go into a final, I never think about the outcome. I always think where I come from, leaving my family behind when I was young." ucap Martinez.
Dia mengingat kembali masa-masa perjuangannya ketika masih muda di Inggris demi mengubah nasib keluarganya di Argentina.
"I know how tough times were when I was in England when I was young, missing my family." kata Martinez.
Martinez menegaskan bahwa memori masa kecil tersebut tetap membekas dalam dirinya hingga saat ini meskipun dia sudah meraih gelar juara dunia.
"Even though I am a World Cup winner and I have a few titles with the national team, I still think about that young kid who left Argentina to save his family from poverty." tutur Martinez.
Mantan kiper Aston Villa, Nigel Spink, yang ikut memenangkan Piala Eropa 1982 setelah masuk sebagai pemain pengganti dini, menyatakan bahwa ini merupakan waktu yang tepat bagi klub untuk menambah koleksi trofi baru.
"I felt like it was time for the European Cup to be moved along the shelf a little bit to make room for another European trophy and I'm so pleased we've got an opportunity to do that," kata Spink kepada BBC Sport.
Spink juga menyampaikan harapannya agar skuad Aston Villa yang ada saat ini mampu mengulang sejarah kejayaan kompetisi Eropa terdahulu.
"I know we're one step away still but if we do beat Freiburg then there'll be nobody more pleased than me to see that another crop of players having achieved European glory for the mighty club." ujar Spink.
Kapten Aston Villa, John McGinn, dipastikan memimpin timnya dalam laga ini sebelum ia tampil membela tim nasional Skotlandia di Piala Dunia musim panas mendatang di Amerika Utara.
Mantan Kepala Pengembangan Pemuda St Mirren, David Longwell, memberikan kesaksian mengenai bakat, kualitas, serta etos kerja keras yang ditunjukkan McGinn sejak masih berusia sangat muda di akademi.
"John when he was in the academy as a seven-year-old showed so much quality and awareness even at such a young age." kata Longwell secara eksklusif kepada Record Sport.
Longwell menceritakan bahwa McGinn merupakan pemain yang menonjol, namun sempat melewati masa pertumbuhan remaja yang sulit dan membutuhkan kesabaran.
"Through the academy at 12s, 13s, he was a standout as again showed such a high level of quality and such a high work ethic to do well and compete. So you could see from a young age how talented he was." ujar Longwell.
Kesulitan masa pertumbuhan tersebut dinilai membentuk karakter kuat dan determinasi tinggi di dalam diri gelandang berusia 31 tahun itu.
"But with many young players they have ups and downs and went through a difficult growth period as a teenager. It took a lot of patience from John, his family and the academy to allow him to get through such a challenging time while his body grew. Obviously when he came through this and his body settled he was showed his qualities again." kata Longwell.
Longwell memuji kegigihan McGinn yang selalu bermain seperti seorang pemenang di sepanjang karier profesionalnya.
"Having this adversity though shows how top his character is and his determination to succeed which he plays with abundance as he’s a winner and has proved this in his career.” tutur Longwell.
McGinn yang sempat bermain sebagai bek kiri saat muda karena posturnya yang kecil, sukses bertransformasi menjadi gelandang tengah produktif, termasuk mencetak dua gol pada semifinal melawan Nottingham Forest.
"A mix of John being smaller when he was very young made him fight harder to win tackles and then having two older brothers also I think helped as he would play football with them being older and stronger. He has been a tough competitor as so brave from when he first came to the club.” kata Longwell.
Kombinasi kualitas dan hasrat menang McGinn dinilai menjadi kunci utama keberhasilannya mencetak gol-gol penting di berbagai klub.
"He played at left back when younger but would get forward and chip in with goals then as he got older moved into central midfield .With his level of quality and desire to win was a great combination to score goals. “He’s done incredibly well. John has been a winner with the League Cup with St Mirren at 18, then winning another Cup at Hibs then promotion at Villa then getting Scotland to Championships so he will do everything to win achieve this and it would be another amazing achievement wining a European trophy. “He is a top leader. He comes from a very good family that Instilled in him very good habits as a person which has created his leadership skills. Also his time at St Mirren taught him very good discipline and leadership.” ujar Longwell.
David Longwell menambahkan pula bahwa keberhasilan alumni akademi St Mirren seperti John McGinn dan Kenny McLean untuk tampil di Piala Dunia merupakan cerita luar biasa bagi sepak bola Skotlandia.
"They will be vitally important. Look at the importance of the goals they have scored. It’s an amazing story two young lads from St Mirren’s academy will be representing their country at the World Cup.After doing the same in the euros. Their quality and experience along with their goals will be huge for Scotland “Kenny scored a near identical goal like the long range one against Denmark. When he was playing for St Mirren under 18s against Kilmarnock at Kilwinning sports centre. He’s always had so much quality. “John still to this day hasn’t changed. He’s so humble and grounded after all this success and shows how important his attitude has been since a young kid at St Mirren all the way to playing in the highest level games today.” kata Longwell.
Sementara itu, mantan rekan setim McGinn di Hibernian menyatakan kepada Hibs Observer bahwa kesuksesan besar di Liga Inggris dan tim nasional tidak mengubah kepribadian rendah hati sang pemain sejak awal kariernya.
