Neil Critchley breaks long awaited silence on Blackpool exit and Aston Villa move

Neil Critchley has given his first interview since leaving his role as Blackpool's head coach.

Now working as assistant manager to Steven Gerrard at Aston Villa, Critchley has gone into depth as to why he left Bloomfield Road to take up the job at Villa Park. Critchley replaced the departing Michael Beale, who became the manager of second tier side Queens Park Rangers.

Critchley's exit from the Seasiders came out of the blue, after Blackpool secured a 16th placed finish in the Championship on the back of promotion from League One in 2020/21. Michael Appleton was appointed as his successor and the wait to hear Critchley's explanation for his sudden departure is now over.

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He told VillaTV: “I was actually on holiday at the time. It happened really fast and it was unexpected. It never gave me the chance to say thank you to Blackpool which was really important to me. I had a fantastic time there.

“It was a really big decision but the chance to work with Steven (Gerrard) and the staff, and to work in the Premier League at a club like Aston Villa… I felt it was the right thing to do. The Premier League is on a different level and that’s one of the reasons why I decided to come here to coach top players and to come up against top coaches.

"It’s a massive thing. I’m really excited and the next few weeks will no doubt fly by and it’ll soon be Bournemouth in our first game. I worked with Steven previously for 18 months at Liverpool. I know how he wants to work and the type of football he wants to play. That’s obviously a big drawer. The facilities, players and ambition of the club, it was a big incentive for me.

“But everyone’s made me feel incredibly welcome. It’s been a