Tony Xia has revealed plans to make changes to Villa Park’s North Stand to give it a ‘more modern style’.
The Aston Villa owner has been putting plans in place to redevelop Villa Park since buying out previous owner Randy Lerner and has held meetings with Birmingham City council chiefs about his plans.
But those plans have edged closer in recent weeks with Xia presenting them to his fellow Villa bigwigs - and the feedback has encouraged the Chinese.
“We have very big plans for Villa Park," Xia told Villa's official website. "We finished a plan in China a few weeks ago. We handed it to the management team here. It’s fair to say they were shocked.
“It will be something really different from what we can imagine from other clubs.
“One element will involve the North Stand, which I know people talk about a lot.
“The main point I want to make is it will have a very modern style but will definitely keep the historic feel, which is very important.
“But in terms of the whole plan? I am confident people will like it. People who have seen the plan love the plan.”
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Xia was criticised by some for his extravagant predictions for Villa’s future upon arriving at the club in 2016.
Ambitions such as winning the Champions League within 10 years raised eyebrows, and that pledge came back to haunt the owner as Villa failed to mount a genuine promotion challenge last season.
But, after a positive start to the current campaign, Xia is adamant Villa are on the right track to achieving his lofty targets, although he hasn’t put a time frame on success.
“When I took over, when I said those kinds of words, it’s more about ‘I have to say something to make people positive and believe we will do something special’. It’s something we needed to do to make this whole environment positive – including the fans.
“I wanted them to believe that we would get back on track. It was more, at that time, for that kind of purpose.
“But I have to fulfil all the promises I have made and all the words I have said. I will keep my word and do my best to complete the promise.
Full transcript:
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“The only difference from now to when I took over the club is that I have a much clearer strategy and solution now – more practical information on how to achieve that target.
“It may take years to achieve but honestly, right now, I am really confident we can do that. I am positive we will do it. It doesn’t matter how many years. I know we will achieve it.”