Antonio Luna has joked how they thought they’d signed Roberto Carlos when he first arrived at Aston Villa.
For those that don’t remember him, Luna’s tenure at Aston Villa was a brief, bittersweet chapter that was ultimately defined by his first game at the club.
He joined the Villans in 2013 for an estimated £1.5m from Sevilla. He made an immediate, explosive impact on his Premier League debut against Arsenal at the Emirates.
Playing at left-back, he made a late bursting run in the 85th minute to latch onto a through ball before slotting calmly past Wojciech Szczęsny. That goal sealed a 3-1 win and quickly sealed him as a cult hero, affectionately known as Tony Moon.
That high point was never to be repeated. He started that campaign as first choice under Paul Lambert, but defensive vulnerabilities were quickly exposed by the Premier League. By the second half of the season, he’d lost his place and left on loan in 2014, never to play for Villa again after just 18 appearances in total.
Roberto Carlo comparisons
It’s not something he’s bitter about, though. Far from it. Instead, he looks back and laughs at how his ability was perhaps misconstrued.
“In England, if you land a Premier League contract, I mean, you’re guaranteed to walk away with a fortune,” he told the Offsiders Podcast.
“And man, I started off incredibly well; I even scored in my first match. I fooled everyon, they must have thought they’d signed, I don’t know, Roberto Carlos! Of course, they eventually realised that wasn’t the case.
“I have to say that, regarding my starting spot in the first match, I wouldn’t say it was handed to me, but I got it because they had paid €2m for me. Also, the player I was competing with wasn’t exactly highly rated by them. And I’ve never been particularly strong during pre-seasons.”
The former defender is willing to admit one thing, though. He preferred Spanish football to what he found in England.
“I prefer Spanish football,” he added.
“I like a style that’s more skilful, focused on control, more elegant, refined, and based on combination play. But English football is incredible, man.”
Out of his league
He’s not making any arguments about his time at Aston Villa coming to a quick end either. He knows that he simply couldn’t handle what was in front of him in the Premier League.
“I noticed that, tactically and technically, I was perhaps a step ahead. That’s partly because I came from Spanish football and had played for good teams alongside some incredible teammates,” he concluded.
“On the other hand, though, I was physically overwhelmed when I played against the likes of Townsend, Ben Arfa, Walcott, or Valencia at Manchester United.
“I was able to compete because I’ve always had that competitive gene. But if they were at a level of 10, I was at a 7.”
Looking back, he also thinks that his preferred style of play was perhaps not best suited to life with Aston Villa.
“For instance, since I’ve always considered myself an attacking full-back. I want to be up the pitch, but if I’m up, I can’t be back,” he concluded.
“So, what happens is, well, the Premier League is perhaps more exciting—but you have to set that aside a bit and focus more on tactical aspects. Defence, staying alert, and keeping close to the wingers to prevent them from making too many runs against you.
“It really isn’t my kind of football—or at least it wasn’t back then. I liked to get forward and contribute as much as I could to the attack.”
