By Graham Hill
TYRONE Mings says he wanted to become an Aston Villa player ‘all summer long’.
The influential centre-half ended a long wait to finally make his move to Villa Park a permanent one.
Mings, 26, made a huge impact in the second half of last season as he helped Dean Smith’s side to promotion thanks to a powerful late charge into the play-offs.
But he returned to parent club Bournemouth after that and it took weeks of talks between the clubs to finalise a £20million deal that could go much higher with add-ons.
And Mings admitted that the messages on social media from fans urging him to return to Villa made an impact.
Mings told the club’s official website: “Yes, of course I saw all the responses.
“I couldn’t get away from it. That was even if I posted about stuff that wasn’t related to football or even if it was.
“Even if it was another company I’m involved in or my Academy, everyone was getting inundated.
“It’s nice to feel wanted. It’s nice to receive such a lovely welcome from the fans.
“It was something I wanted all summer long and something they wanted so thankfully we’re not sitting here and I’m a permanent Aston Villa player.”
Mings now heads to the USA for Villa’s pre-season trip Stateside.
And boss Smith is delighted to have the player back on board.
Smith added: We’re really pleased to have Tyrone back at Aston Villa on a permanent basis. I think everybody could see the connection that he made with the club as a whole and it is excellent news that we can continue the relationship in the Premier League.
“He will be an integral part of the squad for the new season and I look forward to working with him and helping to further develop his game.”
Villa Roar 