Every minute of my time at Aston Villa has been special – now I want to create a legacy
Every minute of my time at Aston Villa has been special – now I want to create a legacy
Ezri Konsa spoke exclusively to BirminghamLive about his early years in the game, his development at Aston Villa, and the exciting final two months of the season
Often underrated on the pitch and understated off it, Ezri Konsa is quietly becoming one of the Aston Villa stalwarts of the Premier League era.
His admirers have grown over the last 12 months, having helped Villa qualify for the Champions League and featured for England at Euro 2024. With a mentality of improving every day at Bodymoor Heath, he will continue to earn overdue plaudits.
Little has fazed Konsa during his rise at Villa, and perhaps some of the most significant challenges he overcame were in his younger years. No doubt, these experiences have moulded the professional he is today.
Konsa grew up in Newham and started out at Senrab FC, a Sunday League club based in East London.
One of his boyhood heroes, John Terry, also began his career at Senrab, playing alongside the likes of Ledley King, Bobby Zamora and Jlloyd Samuel in his age group.
Konsa credits his brother, Antonio, for keeping him focused as a schoolboy, admitting that his upbringing could have been different without his family’s unwavering support.
“Growing up in the area I grew up in, it wasn’t easy,” Konsa admits. “There were a lot of things going on all around me. Having a big brother there to help me and support me was really important to keep me on the right path.
“My brother is still here now and still supporting me to this day. He goes to every game that he can, so for me growing up with that support, it really helped me become who I am today.
“As you grow older, you become more mature and you realise a lot of things. Sometimes you look back and think what could have happened if you took the wrong path.
“For me, I am grateful for where I am now, and I have my own little family too. It is important that I was able to grow up and see what is right from wrong.
“I think that for everyone growing up, especially as young boys, if you have the right support around you, make sure you take it on and get any advice you can.”
Konsa’s family initially wanted him to focus on school rather than football, but his dad was made well aware of his son’s natural talent early on.
Just months after joining Senrab, Konsa’s dad was notified that Charlton Athletic wanted to take his 10-year-old son on trial.
Having players poached was nothing new for the Sunday League side, and they reluctantly let Konsa leave mid-season.
Signed by the Addicks aged 11, Konsa was now training every day after school, something which he also believes helped him stay clear of trouble in the area.
Impressing through the age groups at Charlton, he made his professional debut aged 18 in League One, before also being a part of the Under-20 World Cup-winning England squad a year later under Paul Simpson.
“When I was younger, I’d play up a couple of age groups at Charlton, and playing for the under-18s, you quickly realise how difficult it is; you really are taking a step into the men’s game,” Konsa remembers.
“You realise there are a lot of things you couldn’t do that you were able to do in the younger age groups. From there, you realise how serious it could get. Moving into the under-23s at Charlton, it was another step for me. It makes you realise how serious this could be. It wakes you up.
“Going through the younger age groups at Charlton, you have to realise very quickly that the men’s game is very different to the youth level and academy stages. I think, for me, that was what I remember as my biggest challenge coming through.”
“I signed my first professional deal at Charlton at 17, but even then, you never know,” Konsa continues. “Signing a professional contract at 17 doesn’t really mean anything, but when I started to train with the first-team at 17 and being around the first-team, going on pre-season with them, then you start to realise that you have a chance to get into this team.
“From then on in pre-season, I spoke to the manager who was Russell Slade, and he gave me a confidence boost, telling me that he wanted me to be in and around his team. I stuck around and ended up playing. From there I realised it was serious and kicked on.”
Konsa turned 21 years of age a day after making his 100th professional appearance and only his 14th for Brentford having made his first 86 at Charlton.
He became a Premier League player after just one season in the Championship having made an instant impression on Dean Smith, who replaced Steve Bruce at Villa in October 2018.
Smith used Konsa as a centre-back, but the defender had shown his capability of operating at full-back at Charlton, and that versatility was something Unai Emery took full advantage of last season.
Some of Villa’s best results last term – as they finished fourth in the Premier League – came with Konsa playing from right-back, where he would be expected to tuck in to help build-up in possession in a back three.
But following the additions of Andres Garcia and Axel Disasi in the winter window, Konsa has been utilised by Emery as a centre-back once again. It’s the position he enjoys playing most.
“I think everyone knows it’s centre-back, but obviously I can also play at right-back,” he says about his preferred role.
“From when I was young I would always play wherever the manager wanted to put me. I’ll always help the team and do my best no matter where I am playing.”
Villa qualified for Europe in Emery’s first season in charge, with his defence keeping seven clean sheets in the final 15 league games of the campaign, conceding just eight times.
Konsa and Tyrone Mings played all but one of those matches, which Villa won 10 of. So when Mings suffered a serious knee ligament injury on the opening weekend of last season, Konsa had to step up and be a leader at the back.
His idol, Terry, worked as Smith’s assistant at Villa, which allowed Konsa to absorb all the teachings of one of the best centre-back’s the country has ever produced.
Konsa will turn 28 this year, and with over 350 club appearances to his name, he is now looked up to in the Villa dressing room.
Impressive starts from the club’s winter signings, including Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio, speak volumes of the dressing room environment, which Konsa, among other senior players, has helped create.
“I think for players coming in, if you asked them, it is really easy to fit in,” Konsa says. “We have a great group of boys and a lot of characters in the changing room, especially John McGinn who makes everyone feel welcome on their first day!
“I think it’s important that most of the boys we have brought in are experienced as well. They have been there and done it, so whether it’s a young lad too, I will always help them and try to make them feel welcome. They need to feel like they belong here.”
It’s approaching six years since Konsa joined Villa.
In that time, he has helped keep the club in the top-flight, been to a League Cup final at Wembley, and made debuts in Europe, for England, in a major international tournament and in the Champions League too.
It’s no secret that Villa have a big opportunity to end their long wait for silverware this season, with a trip to Preston North End standing in the way of an FA Cup semi-final, while the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle, Tottenham and Man United are all out of the competition.
“Every player wants to win something, so when you retire you can say that you have won this and you’ve won that,” Konsa admits.
“I think for us as a club, I don’t know how long it has been since we have won a major trophy, so it is obviously something I want to do with this club.
“We’re celebrating our 150th anniversary this season and we are fighting in the Premier League, FA Cup and in the Champions League. It would not just be special for us, but also special for the fans who have followed Villa their whole life to see us lift a trophy.”
“For me it is always the case of focusing on the next game,” Konsa continues. “We only need to be thinking about beating Preston.
“You don’t want to think too far ahead in case it doesn’t happen. For me it is about taking it game by game, then we will see what happens.”
Only 23 appearances away from breaking into the top 10 Premier League appearance-makers in Villa history, Konsa is bound to overtake Ashley Young next season.
Of current Villa players, only John McGinn (194) has made more league appearances than Konsa (188), and if they lift silverware this season, there’s no doubt they’ll be creating legacies.
“It’s not something I have thought about when I first joined, but thinking about it now it would be special,” the England international admits. “I have been here for six years now.
“From when I first joined to now, it has been special and the club has grown a lot. We are playing Champions League football again for the first time in a long time.
“I do want to leave a legacy and hopefully we can win something at the end of the season.”
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