As a teenager transfixed by the Martin O’Neill team of the late 2000s, Ashley Young was the most exciting Villa player I’d ever watched. Until 2007, I thought players that ‘got you out of your seat’ were a bit of a cliche, but Young did exactly that every week. Hugging the touchline with chalk on his boots, his pace, directness and crossing ability created excitement every time he got the ball. Only Jack Grealish and Christian Benteke have had similar impacts on me since.

Fast forward 16 years and Ashley Young playing for Aston Villa is about the only thing that hasn’t changed in my life. If that wasn’t remarkable enough, he’s also arguably been our player of the season so far.

It’s a different Ashley now, of course. No longer a pacy winger but an assured and versatile full back who loves nothing more than putting his body on the line to defend his goal. I’m not sure anyone could have predicted such a transformation back in 2007. “Eight and a half stone wet through” is how O’Neill described him back then and in truth his build hasn’t really changed since. He does however appear to have developed a much greater tolerance for cold weather…(remember snoods?)

Wiry as ever, at 37 years old he defies all odds to keep up in the quickest and strongest league in the world as shown in his excellent performance against Wilfried Gnonto of Leeds on Friday night. He puts his exceptional fitness levels down to the brutal running sessions during his time at Inter under Antonio Conte, and it’s clear how that experience of winning Serie A along with his four major trophies at Manchester United has also shaped his mentality and desire.

Winning means everything to him and he’ll do it by any means necessary. A bonafide shithouse, it’s easy to forget now that Young was far from popular with Villa fans during his time at Old Trafford for a pretty blatant dive to buy a penalty against us in 2012. Naturally now he’s ours again, we love his antics because that’s how football works.

During a break in play on Friday night, Young ran virtually the furthest distance possible on a football pitch, diagonally from right back to left wing, solely to give Luke Ayling some verbals. An act he repeated during the celebrations when Emi Buendia’s goal was eventually given. Along with the world’s favourite glove-thrusting villain Emi Martinez, he gives us a nasty streak we could do with a lot more of and his influence in the dressing room must be invaluable.

His contract will be up again this summer and on the evidence of the last few months we would be foolish not to offer him an extension. He’s in the team on merit, keeping out players you’d expect to be first choice, and there appear to be plenty of miles left in his legs. It would be wonderful to see him remain at Villa beyond this season, if only so I can keep clinging onto my youth.