Die-hard Gareth Barry fan worries his favourite player has gone mainstream

LIFELONG GARETH Barry fan Alex Stokes has admitted he fears for the artistic authenticity of his favourite player, following rumours that the Aston Villa midfielder is considering selling out and signing for a major.

Barry has long been the critical darling of the underground football scene, but recently hit the big time after the unexpected commercial success of his summer hit, Midfield performance in England vs Israel, which topped the Carling Opta charts for five weeks.

Following this rapid ascendancy Barry was tipped to headline the huge summer festival Euro 2008, rather than the less well-known Midlands Strongbow Championship Trophy, a mini pre-season festival held over just two days in cosy Villa Park.

“Along with Graeme Le Saux, Chris Powell and Wayne Bridge, Gareth Barry used to be one of the few truly DIY, left-field acts in the UK,” said Stokes. “But there’s no doubt that in the last couple of years he’s begun to move into the more accessible genre of central midfielder.

“I was on the bus the other day and I could hear middle aged men in suits watching his performance for Aston Villa against Everton on their iPods. I even saw a mum impulsively picking up a Gareth Barry shirt at the supermarket checkout last week. As if she’s got any idea what he’s all about!”

Stokes first saw Barry performing his unique brand of avant garde, lo-fi football in front of just 50 people during new acts night (Brighton Under-17s v Plymouth Under-17s) at the Goldstone Ground in 1993.

Since then, Stokes has followed Barry around the country (often queuing outside grounds for hours before kick-off to secure a front row seat), bought all of Barry’s replica shirts, and spent much of his time telling uninterested friends why Barry is way better than more popular players like Zinedine Zidane, Gianfranco Zola, and Brian McClair.

But Barry has defended his flirtation with a major and said: “I don’t care what the critics think about ’selling out’, it feels like a natural time to make a change.

“Like all artists I want my work to reach as many people as possible, and although I’ve enjoyed working with Villa tremendously, they just don’t have the clout in the football industry to help me realise my dream of a multi-date European stadium tour”

Published July 22, 2008

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