Marc Albrighton
Nationality :
English
Date of Birth :
18/11/1989
Height :
5' 9" (175cm)
Weight :
10st 7lbs (66.74kg)
Squad Number :
12
Position :
Midfielder
Marc Albrighton was unquestionably the young lion who made the biggest impact in 2010-11 - and he has the awards to prove it!
Albrighton had a night to remember at the end of season awards dinner, taking home four prestigious prizes.
He won supporters' young player of the season and shared the players' young player of the season with Ciaran Clark.
The wing wonder also won the goal of the season for his cracking effort at Craven Cottage against Fulham - beating Emile Heskey's header at Wolves into second place.
The 21-year-old also took home the Terrace Trophy - the official player of the season award for our Lions Club network, as voted for by members.
It is handed out to the first team star who has won most polls for classy performances throughout each campaign, with a vote taking place each month.
Albrighton made it five out of a possible six by heading up both the December and January polls. That meant the young midfielder couldn't be caught.
Albrighton came out on top in August, September, November, December and January with Nigel Reo-Coker, Darren Bent and Stewart Downing winning the other monthly polls.
He followed in the footsteps of Stiliyan Petrov and James Milner, who won the gong in 2009 and 2010 respectively.
He may have been used more sparingly towards the end of the season, with the manager opting for the experience of Ashley Young and Stewart Downing but there's no question Albrighton has a bright future ahead of him in claret and blue.
Not many youngsters can claim to have made their first team debut in Moscow either, but Albrighton will always be able to relate that tale with authority too - as well as his quartet of awards last season.
Having been on the subs bench on a couple of occasions, the wing wizard was plunged into Villa's starting line-up for the second leg UEFA Cup clash against CSKA.
And despite a 2-0 defeat which ended the club's interest in the competition, he acquitted himself well at the Russian capital's imposing Luzhniki Stadium.
Before the start of the 2009-10 term, he was Martin O'Neill's player of the tournament in the Peace Cup pre-season success, dazzling on the wing and showing a calmness and composure beyond his years in the Malaga competition.
But when the season started for real, injury was a major problem as he looked to make an impact.
When he was called upon he performed admirably, however. He came on early in the season against Wigan, Rapid Vienna and Cardiff City while he was thrown into the action midway through the term at Villa Park in the high-profile clash with Liverpool.
He started brilliantly against Brighton in the 3-2 win, setting up Nathan Delfouneso for the opening goal, before being forced out of the action through injury.
He was also brought into the action in the 2-2 draw with Wolves towards the end of the campaign but ultimately niggling problems were deciding factors in not getting as much game time as he would have wanted.
He did star for the reserve team when fit and dazzled in the national play-off final against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
His performance prompted United legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to pinpoint him as one to watch.
At the start of his claret and blue career, Albrighton was a member of the team which reached the 2008 FA Youth Cup semi-finals.
The Tamworth-born youngster made the step into the reserves with no great difficulty, helping the second string to the FA Premier Reserve League South title twice.
And all of this after he was rejected by neighbours West Bromwich Albion at an early age.
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