Aston Villa against Manchester City in the FA Cup; Saturday's fourth-round tie will carry special meaning for one member of the Villa squad. Just a couple of weeks short of 10 years ago, this was the fixture that launched the career of one Micah Richards.
It may have been a decade ago, but the goal Richards scored in that February 2006 game remains one of the most iconic in recent City history. Villa were leading 1-0 heading into the final seconds when the visitors nicked a corner. Joey Barton took the kick, fired it into the centre of the Villa penalty area and there was Richards, just 17 years old, to power a headed equaliser into the net -- with 93 minutes on the clock. City won the fifth-round replay, but the bigger buzz surrounded the emergence of their strapping young defender who had announced himself in such dramatic style.
Richards will no doubt think of that moment when he faces City on Saturday. Villa Park is now his home but his bond with his former club is strong, having progressed through the youth system there and leaving only last summer. As a contrast, his Villa career is less than 20 matches old and probably won't last much longer than a single season; it's difficult to see him wanting to play in the Championship -- should Villa indeed be relegated -- and come the end of the current campaign there should be plenty of interest in an experienced defender who doesn't turn 28 until June.
His time at Villa has not panned out as Richards might have expected. He wouldn't have predicted that the club he joined on a free transfer would be rock bottom of the league well before Christmas. He couldn't have foreseen the departure of the manager who signed him. And, having been captain and first name on the team sheet under Tim Sherwood, he couldn't have known that his starting place would come under threat. Sherwood's successor, Remi Garde, warned recently that Richards was not guaranteed a regular spot.
Whereas Sherwood used Richards resolutely in one position, Garde has switched him between centre-back and right-back; partly because of the emergence of the Jores Okore-Joleon Lescott partnership in the middle but also because the latter is Richards' best role. From there, the former England man is less susceptible to lapses of concentration (or at least any misjudgments can be more easily covered by colleagues) and he has freer rein to drive forward. Playing at centre-back, his eagerness to come out to win the ball can be exploited and he lacks the positional discipline to really excel.
His performance at Sunderland at the beginning of the month, when Villa lost 3-1, was criticised; for the next match, the third-round tie at Wycombe, Garde moved Richards to right-back. He scored in that game and generally gave exactly the kind of performance that can make him such an exciting player in that position.
He's an easy player to love. While the attitude of some squad members has been less than exemplary, at least he's given everything he's got this season; his commitment is obvious in his body language, his anguish when results go against Villa, and his delight in rare triumphs. It's a cliche, but he does care.
Richards will be desperate to start on Saturday. So too will the teammates of his who also have a connection with City. Lescott had the best part of five years with the blue half of Manchester, Scott Sinclair three, although he was by far the least successful of the trio. The winger has lost his place in the lineup of late but did start both of the games against Wycombe earlier in the competition, and with a trip to West Ham looming on Tuesday, may benefit again if Garde wants to rest first-choice players. For that reason, Lescott may sit this one out. Should the Villa manager also choose to let Okore take a break -- and both central defenders skipped the third-round replay -- Richards will definitely be in.
Villa won't be hopeful of a victory but the prospect isn't hopeless. Garde's first match in charge back in November saw his new side contain City and earn a point from a 0-0 draw. Manuel Pellegrini's team were slightly off colour that day but that doesn't necessarily mean they'll be better this time around. Take into consideration a hangover from Wednesday's League Cup semifinal win over Everton, the absence of the superb Kevin De Bruyne and the likelihood of Pellegrini wanting to rest some of his star players if at all possible -- City travel to Sunderland three days after the tie in need of points to stay in the title race -- and Villa just might have a sneak of a chance.
Breaching the City defence will be a big obstacle for Villa. Goals haven't been easy to come by, and with the squad still short of a striker heading into the final days of the transfer window and Rudy Gestede struggling with a hamstring injury, options are thin on the ground. But if the hosts are still in the game in the last minutes, they know what to do -- get the ball in the box, and aim it at the head of Micah Richards. He knows what to do.