Joleon Lescott has revealed he was frozen out of Aston Villa’s first team “for no reason” — before eventually receiving a personal apology from Roberto Di Matteo years later.
Lescott, who described Villa as his boyhood club, spent just one season at Villa Park, featuring 31 times and scoring twice, as well as making a solitary appearance for the under-21s. His spell coincided with the club’s 2015/16 relegation campaign, a year marred by controversy both on and off the pitch.
The defender drew criticism for calling relegation a “weight off the shoulders” and later sparked outrage after a tweet showing off a luxury car was posted just hours after a 6-0 hammering by Liverpool. He insisted the post was an accident, sent while his phone was in his pocket.
Speaking on In The Mixer, a SkyBet podcast, the now-43-year-old explained:
“I was told I couldn’t train with the first team for no reason. Just, ‘go and train with the reserves.’ I would’ve stayed, but once they said that, I couldn’t come in and do it. I’m not a bad professional — I didn’t need to play, but I needed respect.”
Carlton Cole, also on the show, suggested such decisions often come from higher up at board level, trickling down to the coaches.
Years later, Di Matteo apologised in person. Lescott recalled meeting him at a charity match:
“He came over and said, ‘I just want to apologise for how I treated you at Villa. And when you see Micah [Richards], tell him the same thing.’ It shocked me — but it showed managers are human too, and often just following orders from above.”
Lescott also drew a parallel with Alexander Isak’s current contract standoff at Newcastle, pointing out the business side of football often outweighs the human one: “Clubs can’t have it both ways. If you value a player, you have to pay him accordingly.”