Tommy Elphick wasn’t the only thing to return from a season long loan at Hull – so did his pre-match ritual.
Elphick routinely misses the photo line-up ahead of kick off, in favour of walking to the goalposts, putting his head against it and kick and shaking the goal-frame.
The ritual began at his time at Brighton and is a superstition, which Elphick attributes to keeping him calm and in the right frame of mind, has continued ever since.
The ritual continued following his return to Villa Park, prior to the New Years Day 2-2 draw with QPR:
So #AVFC …who has missed the Tommy Elphick pre-match routine? pic.twitter.com/2lDFN6q3r5
— Villa Underground (@avfc_vilr) January 2, 2019