TIME TO GO THE EXTRA MILE
Snodgrass and Hutton playing for their Villa futures as Jedinak admits the final is huge
THE Villa Park futures of Scotland players Robert Snodgrass and Alan Hutton hinge on a massive 90 minutes at Wembley today.
Victory over Fulham in the play-off final will give Villa the chance to buy Snodgrass and fellow loanees Sam Johnstone, Lewis Grabban and Josh Onomah.
It will also help boss Steve Bruce tie up players on new deals – with the future of former Rangers full-back Hutton hanging in the balance.
But failure will have huge consequences at Villa Park where Chinese owner Dr Tony Xia has been cutting costs after initially spending heavily.
This summer the club’s parachute payment will drop from £33million to just £15m following relegation two seasons ago. It would mean huge cuts and Bruce’s budget for next term could be as much as halved.
A raft of player exits are also anticipated if Villa lose with out-of-contract skipper John Terry likely to be among the first to leave.
Midfielder Mile Jedinak knows exactly what’s on the line in a game worth up to £170m to the winning club.
He said: “The game is life changing. It is a game we can’t lose but we’ve got to use that as motivation. It is a crossroads moment, a sliding-doors moment.
“You all know what Premier League football comes with. We haven’t spoken about the repercussions as a group but everyone knows it.
“No one is kidding themselves – people are aware of it and know the situation. We are doing the right thing and trying to make sure that doesn’t happen.” Jedinak is no stranger to pressure after scoring a second-half hat-trick as skipper, including two penalties, to help Australia beat Honduras 3-1 in November to reach the World Cup. He has also previously skippered Crystal Palace to play-off glory over Watford in 2013 before lifting the trophy with crocked club captain Paddy McCarthy. Jedinak, who joined Villa in 2016 from Palace, said: “It was truly special. To get back there this way it has gone full circle and would be unbelievable. “It would be an amazing feeling for me and for everybody. “If there’s any game where you talk about playing the game and not the occasion this is it. “While it’s going to be frantic around you and everyone is going to be filled with excitement in the stands, and there is going to be a nervous tension, you have to try to retain that focus and discipline.”