Craig Shakespeare has professed his delight at joining Aston Villa.
The 56-year-old became assistant head coach earlier this month after Dean Smith approached him for the job, citing Shakespeare’s Premier League experience as a key factor.
The pair have a long-standing relationship that dates back to their playing days at Walsall in the 1980s, and they’ve kept in contact through the years.
𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: Craig Shakespeare! 🗣️
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) August 26, 2020
Our 🆕 Assistant Head Coach sat down to discuss his move to Villa, his friendship with Dean Smith, the mood in the camp and his memories growing up as a Villan. 💜
Watch the interview on VillaTV or the Villa app! 📲 #AVFC
“He’ll tell you that he was my boot boy at Walsall and that I never gave him a tip, but I’m sure I did, and I think it was a big one for those days,” Shakespeare said.
“We’re from the same area of Great Barr, we played together, and we kept in touch. You keep in touch with people from your area and you keep an eye on their career.
“I was really pleased to see how he did at Brentford and of course here at Villa.”
The newest member of the coaching staff is a Villa fan and has great memories of supporting the club in his youth.
He said: “As a youngster, I was taken with my father down to Villa Park in the Andy Gray era and Dennis Mortimer before that.
“My earliest memory is actually going and sleeping outside Highbury in my brother-in-law’s car the day we won the league when Ipswich didn’t win. I was there at Highbury waiting for the result to come through, which I can still remember clearly now.
“Waking up at 7am, not having a good night’s sleep, playing a bit of football in and around Highbury and waiting for the game to commence.”
Shakespeare is with the squad at their pre-season training camp in Wales, and VillaTV captured the entirety of his first interview with the club. You can watch it here.
