Dad won’t know it’s me in the Wembley dugout
Villa boss opens his heart on dementia hell
Dean Smith would like nothing better than to show off the League Cup to the man who sparked his love affair with Aston Villa.
But, heartbreakingly, Villa’s gaffer knows it would be an empty gesture – as his father Ron no longer knows his name. Or even the fact he has a son.
Smith has been all smiles even as Villa fight off relegation from the Premier League but before today’s League Cup Final he was sombre as he spoke of the struggles of having a family member with dementia.
He said : “My dad has dementia – he has no idea I’m Villa’s manager. I went to see him just before the play-off final. “He was awake and I just saw that little glint in his eye.
“Unfortunately, over the past couple of months, I’ve not seen him often with his eyes open.
“I was only six when he took me and my brother Dave to the final against Everton in ’77. We’d gone on the coach to Wembley because my dad doesn’t drive.
“It wasn’t the greatest game, so I’m told. But that was my first real memory and I have my dad to thank for that.
“Mind you, my brother Dave’s eyes are open all right. Last term we played Sheffield United and were three down with 10 minutes to go. It ended up 3-3.
“He came into my room afterwards for a drink and said, ‘ What about all those fans who left early?’
“I replied, ‘ Yeah, and you’d have been one of them too if I wasn’t the manager.’”
Today’s opponents Man City have defeated Villa by an aggregatee score of 99-1 in the leag ue this season, including a six-goal thumping at Villa Park in January.
But Smith revealed there is still a belief that his men can upset the odds, saying: “Jack Grealish talks even now about that first game at the Etihad. He said our players sat in the dressing room convinced
they were going to win. “The drive for me, and for us, is to prove the doubters all wrong.
“And there aren’t many better places to do it than a domestic cup final at Wembley.”