West Brom legend Ben Foster sends message as Aston Villa hero retires
Former Aston Villa goalkeeper Jed Steer confirmed his retirement from football.
Steer is a cult hero for West Brom’s local rivals, Aston Villa, after his penalty-saving heroics in the play-off semi-final at The Hawthorns in 2019.
The Villa keeper saved from two-time West Brom loanee Mason Holgate and Ahmed Hegazi to send the Villans to Wembley.
The Englishman confirmed his retirement in a statement on Instagram on 28 October, which was met with a message from ex-West Brom and England international Ben Foster.
Foster replied with three clapping emojis and a short message reading, “Well done, Jed.“
Jed Steer confirms retirement with social media statement
The Midlands rivals have many links, as the claret and blue outfit seems to base its academy set-up on the Baggies.
Morgan Rogers is a former West Brom talent, while the likes of Tim Iroegbunam and Louie Barry have played for both youth sides.
Villa have ex-West Brom boss Jimmy Shan in charge of their Under-21s, and ironically, he was in charge of the Albion on Steer’s most memorable night.
The keeper’s penalty saves have gone down in Villa folklore after playing a key role in their subsequent promotion to the Premier League.
Steer released a statement on Instagram to reveal his retirement, saying, “It’s time to hang up the gloves. It’s been a blast.
“Three Wembley final wins, promotion to the Premier League and both Achilles ruptured! Thank you to my teammates, coaches, medical teams, the fans, and everyone who’s been part of the journey!
“I leave this side of the game with memories that will live with me forever. Thank you.”
What has Steer said about his penalty heroics vs West Brom?
It is unlikely that the Baggies fans will be gutted to see the keeper hang up his gloves after having nothing but bad memories with him in the net.
Steer made a stellar save against West Brom in the play-off semi-final first leg at Villa Park to deny Jay Rodriguez from making it 2-0.
He then went on to have a decisive impact before Tammy Abraham went on to score the decisive penalty in the Hawthorns shootout.
Remembering that night, Steer spoke out via the official Villa Podcast to share what was going through his mind in B71.
He said: “I looked around their team with 30 seconds to go, and all their penalty takers weren’t on the pitch. I was slightly buzzing because I’m going to have players who aren’t putting their hand up for pens having to take one.
“He [Holgate] thought I was staring at him. The biggest part was saving the penalty, saving the first two penalties. I couldn’t have asked for much more. The pressure on the penalty takers is massive.”
It was a bad night for the Albion and one which no one wants to be reminded of, but has become unavoidable by his retirement.
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