Guzan signs new 4 year deal

[Legion]

Well deserved:

[adrenachrome]

Express and Star

Aston Villa keeper Brad Guzan tipped for the top

Villa keeper Brad Guzan was today backed to be one of the best keepers in the Premier League for years to come.

The 28-year-old shotstopper was a hugely impressive figure for Paul Lambert’s side last season, playing in all but two of the 38 Premier League games to win the club’s Player of the Year award after being released then offered a new deal.

And his mentor Brad Friedel, who kept Guzan out of the Villa team but is now at Tottenham, believes his fellow American will be one of the best in the top flight in the coming seasons.

“Brad can be as good as anyone in the Premier League,” said the evergreen 42-year-old, who made 114 league appearances for Villa.

“He has a phenomenal work ethic, he’s a big, strong boy and he is six foot two inches tall.

“And let’s not forget he had the season he did after Shay Given, who has been one of the best Premier League keepers, was dislodged by Brad.”

[ozzjim]

That Blackburn game was just part of the learning curve. He's taken his latest chance with real authority. Excellent keeper and seems a likeable bloke to boot.

Totally - point me to a keeper who has not had a t least a few dodgy games... it is not possible. Every keeper has them, even those meant to be brilliant have weaknesses. Cech can't save penalties for toffee, Reina looked like butter fingers last season, Hart had some bad days last season too. It is how they bounce back and learn. Scott Carson (shudders) went completely to pot after his screw ups. Brad Guzan grew and got stronger.

[rob_bridge]

Good news - big fan of Big Brad's

[Ad@m]

And to think we almost let him go!

[Legion]

We did.

[mrastonvilla]

Excellent news. If he was an outfield player he would be captain.

[richard moore]

Humble pie all round for me as I really didn't think he would make it and was slagging him off something rotten at the time of the Blackburn game. It's easy to forget footballers have to learn their trade like the rest of us and mostly improve as a result of doing so. With the obvious exceptions though - Reo Coker, Cattermole, Ireland...

[godzvilla]

According to Sky he,s a tad confused as to who he has signed the contract with ...............Godzvilla ! .

 Here's more on the news that American goalkeeper Brad Guzan has signed a new four-year contract at Aston Villa.

" For me, it's an honour and a privilege to play for Aston Villa Football Club and to commit my future long-term. I'm overjoyed by it. To have this opportunity to commit my future, with the plans and the future being what they are going forward, it's tremendously exciting and I know that's not just for me but for everybody, including the fans.I am very happy and excited to have joined Spurs. It's a huge pleasure for my career to be at a club as big as Tottenham "

[KevinGage]

That site seems to have Tottingham transfers on the brain. 

Well done Baby Brad.   Hope we have him between the sticks for the best part of a decade.

[supertom]

Quality player. One of the few old school keepers around who likes to catch the ball and come for crosses.

[Ad@m]

Well deserved:

To be fair, those stars are heavily weighted in Brad's favour.

Total saves and saves in the box were helped by the fact that our defence was shit last season so he faced more shots than most keepers.

And the goal kick completion stat is helped by the fact he almost always just kicks it to someone on the edge of our box.

The stats wouldn't look quite so rosy if they included goals conceded and clean sheets - two standard measures of goalkeeper performance.

That said, Brad had a great season last year. It would be interesting to see how he performs behind a solid defence where he's tested only rarely but where the impact of him ballsing up is so much greater.

[ciggiesnbeer]

Well deserved:

To be fair, those stars are heavily weighted in Brad's favour.

Total saves and saves in the box were helped by the fact that our defence was shit last season so he faced more shots than most keepers.

And the goal kick completion stat is helped by the fact he almost always just kicks it to someone on the edge of our box.

The stats wouldn't look quite so rosy if they included goals conceded and clean sheets - two standard measures of goalkeeper performance.

That said, Brad had a great season last year. It would be interesting to see how he performs behind a solid defence where he's tested only rarely but where the impact of him ballsing up is so much greater.

At the start of the season perhaps. Towards the end though most of his goal kicks were long. I would say the stat is skewed more because of Bentekes ability to win bloody everything in the air.

Also I note Brad Friedel saying nice things about Villa again. That is how you behave as an ex Villa player. What a top bloke.

[darren woolley]

Good news for us Brad really is a top keeper.

[Matt C]

Great news and thoroughly deserved