How Prince William played key role in convincing Aston Villa cult hero to complete transfer

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Former Aston Villa striker John Carew has revealed that Prince William "convinced" him to seal a switch to Villa Park. Carew put pen to paper on a deal to join Villa in 2007 from French club Lyon and netted 48 goals in 131 outings for the claret and blue.

The former striker spent four-and-a-half years at Villa, which included a loan spell at Stoke City in the second half of the 2010/11 campaign, before departing B6 on a free transfer and linking up with West Ham .

Prince William is an avid Villa fan, and Carew has recounted an meeting with the Prince of Wales that ultimately led to the former striker making the move to Villa Park, reports Birmingham Live .

"We met in Norway, during a dinner with the royal family ," Carew said in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.

"I remember we only talked about football, and shortly afterwards, he invited me to England to watch an Aston Villa match, his team.

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"He convinced me to move there in 2007: for three consecutive seasons, I scored double figures in the Premier League .

"He admired me. In 2019, we watched the play-off final against Derby County together at Wembley, which secured our return to the Premier League."

Since calling time on his playing career in 2012, Carew chose to go into acting, which the 46-year-old says started during his spell as a Villa player.

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Carew has already shared the screen with Hollywood heavyweights including Angelina Jolie , and has revealed how his acting journey began.

"In 2009, I was playing for Aston Villa. I was 30," Carew said. "Some of my friends in London worked in the film industry, and one day they said to me, 'John, you look interesting to be an actor.'

"I didn't believe it at first. Then I convinced myself and started taking courses. Acting allowed me to create a channel to express my emotions."

Carew added: “I'd like to star in a beautiful Italian love story. And then I'd like to be a villain in one of the next James Bond films.”

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