Aston Villa have a huge Champions League opportunity in October

I don't think the novelty of Champions League football at Villa Park has worn off for me at all and I'm not really sure it ever will. Villa have already started their campaign and got that first win against Club Brugge, but with the international break coming almost immediately afterwards it feels like the competition arrived and then disappeared again, so having two home games during October should make it feel like the Champions League is properly back.

Maybe I feel like that because I can still remember when the idea of Aston Villa playing in this competition seemed so far away that you didn't even really think about it. It wasn't that long ago either, which is probably important when you look at how quickly expectations have changed under Unai Emery. When Villa qualified for the Champions League the first time, I remember thinking that you just had to enjoy absolutely everything about it because there was no guarantee we'd ever get another season like it, and yet here we are back again after missing out last season but managing to win the Europa League instead.

There is a danger with how quickly Villa have progressed that all of this starts to become normal when it really isn't. Qualifying for the Champions League twice in such a short period, winning a European trophy in between and going into these games genuinely expecting to compete is an unbelievable transformation from where the club was before Emery arrived. I've watched the Champions League for my whole life and spent the overwhelming majority of that time watching other clubs play in it, so being able to go to Villa Park and watch Villa involved still feels like a massive bonus to me.

The exciting thing about October is that there is a real opportunity attached to the occasion as well because Fenerbahce and Viking both come to Villa Park, and you look at those games and think Villa are capable of winning both. That isn't about being disrespectful to either of them and Fenerbahce in particular have plenty of players you immediately recognise, but Villa have reached the point where they should be confident going into Champions League games at home rather than simply being pleased to be involved in them.

If Villa can win both, they would be sitting on nine points and suddenly you're looking at the rest of the league phase from a really strong position. That could be particularly useful because the domestic schedule is difficult as well and October is going to ask a lot of the squad, so getting those European points on the board now could remove some pressure later and give Emery a little more flexibility with how he manages everything.

I'm also really interested to see what Villa Park feels like because the stadium has taken some getting used to this season. The North Stand situation inevitably changes the atmosphere and there have been moments during the opening games where the ground has felt slightly strange, but I don't think we'll notice it quite as much on a Champions League night. There is something completely different about Villa Park under the lights in Europe and once that music starts I would imagine the place will still feel absolutely raucous.

That's another reason I don't want to become blasé about any of this. There were Villa supporters who only six or seven years ago would have struggled to imagine watching their team in the Champions League at Villa Park, and we're now discussing whether they can get themselves onto nine points and start positioning themselves for another run into the knockout stages. Emery has changed the parameters of what we think is possible with this club to such an extent that sometimes you almost need to remind yourself how extraordinary the journey has been.

We've also already seen what Villa can do once they get into the latter stages of European competition. We've had the huge nights, we've seen them compete against the very best sides and there is no reason to go into this Champions League campaign placing a ceiling on how far they can go. The immediate job is simply to get through the league phase and the two home games in October provide a really good opportunity to make significant progress towards doing that.

If Villa come out of this month with nine points, then you can start looking at the table and wondering who Emery's side might be able to pick off next. For now, though, I'm just looking forward to having Champions League football back at Villa Park because however quickly expectations have changed, I still don't think nights like these should ever be taken for granted.