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Martin Jol can imagine a return to England
Wednesday 17 December 2008
Ahead of the UEFA Cup clash between
his team Hamburger SV and Aston Villa Martin Jol spoke
about his fascination for the English Premier League.
A smile came to his face when asked
after his personal experiences with Aston Villa.
But don't think it is because he
is thinking about one of the seven encounters he had
with Villa during his time at Tottenham.
He smiles about his memory of the
1982 European Cup final between Bayern Munich and Aston
Villa in Rotterdam, which he watched in the Kuip stadium
amidst the Villa fans.
"I had to keep a low profile
as I was playing for West Bromwich Albion at the time
and Villa fans were not very sympathetic towards that
club at the time," Jol says.
Tonight Jol shall not keep a low
profile as the first place in the group standings is
at stake.
"I am sure Aston Villa will
also do everything to win this group," says Jol
who highly respects the team of Martin O'Neill, who
have been able to break up the traditional Big 4 - Manchester
United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal.
"Villa are one of the biggest
sides on the island."
And who knows better than the 52-year-old
England expert.
The man who beat Aston Villa twice
with Tottenham, drew four and only lost one game is
still fascinated with English football.
"Of course most big players
end up in the Premier League," he says without
sounding sentimental.
The fascination is not one-sided
as whenever an EPL coach gets the sack the media always
rank Jol among the candidates to take over.
Such was the case when Roy Keane
was fired at Sunderland.
But no matter how often Jol emphasizes
he is happy in Hamburg he does not want to rule out
a future return to England.
"That is possible. I still
own a house in London," he says.
"But I also own a house in
Spain, in the Netherlands and one here in Othmarschen."
He will spend the holidays in England,
but Hamburg's Director of Football Dietmar Beiersdorfer
does not have to worry he will have to go looking for
a new coach anywhere soon.
To be ahead of any upcoming rumors
Jol tones down the strength of the EPL and says the
difference with the Bundesliga is not so big.
How big the difference really is
can be observed tonight when at 19h45 GMT Hamburg and
Aston Villa kick of in Hamburg.
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