NurembergVillan

Window 17, and it's fallow ground here I'm afraid folks. There's a standout candidate for the shirt, and one who should really have seen himself written into Villa folklore with far more depth than he is. In terms of this shirt, his competition includes the likes of Neil Cox, Franz Carr and Peter Whittingham. So, erm, yeah. The man who might have been - Honourable mentions - Moustapha Salifou Dishonourable mentions - Jean II Makoun

Number 25!

It's genuinely said with affection

The SGC kiss of death Joking aside, speaking to some of the youth coaches in the summer they were all commenting on how good he is. They said his progress when he first joined was ridiculous, then plateaued but that he'd also never trained more than three times per week OR had a proper pre-season. I really hope he makes it. Would be quite the story for him.

Here we are at Day 16 - seemingly the number of the traitor. Alpay, Delph, Lescott - all regulars in the number 16 and all let the club down in one way or another. Add in Mathieu Berson, Simon Grayson and Peter Crouch and it's a fair old motley crew to choose from. One player stands out though, and even though he could easily be added to the traitor list for bailing out to Middlesbrough I still hold fond memories of his time at VP. From a shocking debut to one of the first names on the teamsheet, Ugoooooooooo - Honourable mentions - Fabian Delph. Dishonourable mentions - Alpay, Lescott, Fabian Delph.

Australia's Daily Telegraph -

If you're not paying for the product, you ARE the product.

Window 15! Christmas is coming along quickly isn't it? Today is another no-brainer, and not because of a lack of talent to wear this shirt (well, not JUST because of that) but because we're talking about a player who first wore this shirt back in 1998 and would still replace the current incumbent some 18 years later. There have been some cult-ish heroes in the 15 over the years - Fernando Nelson, Phil King (if only for THAT penalty), and Ulises de la Cruz. But the number 15 shirt belongs to one standout candidate - Honourable mentions - hmmm... bit of a struggle here to be honest. Dishonourable mentions - similarly, it's just a bit of a "meh" shirt. Curtis Davies? Not really. Maybe Ashley Westwood if you're that way inclined.

Window 14, and our worst shirt number so far. The little fella behind this door was the last regular incumbent to do the shirt any sort of justice. A consistent Premier League performer despite being only 3' 7" tall, and having to return a Ferrari he bought because the clutch was making his knees hurt, number 14 is pictured here wearing a Large Boys replica shirt - Honourable mentions for Andy Townsend, Garry Parker and Dion Dublin. Dishonourable mentions for Neil Tarrant, David Ginola, Eric Djemba Djemba, Nathan Delfouneso, Brett Holman, Antonio Luna and Philippe Senderos. Crikey...

Looks like it's going to be Zola. Should be an interesting one. I'd never realised he had a spell at Peterborough...

It's a difficult time of year. We have the idea of unbridled joy and abundance stuffed down our throats from the end of October, when the reality is often very different. Over the last 10 or so years I've really struggled with Christmas, and I don't really know why. In some respects I love it, but I tend to find myself shrouded in darkness that I just can't shake. Perhaps it's more the passing of another year more than Christmas, the constant ticking of time. I feel worse than ever this year though. I shouldn't really. I haven't really got a reason in the grand scheme of things. I'm a bit scared, to be honest.

Robbie Williams would get into our midfield.

Doing this during our awful performance against Norwich. An advent calendar should contain something to cheer you up, but we're on window 13 - unlucky for us over the years, as a string of third-rate goalkeepers have worn the shirt. There are certain pornographic connotations to the shirt for us though. Bosnich was filmed dressed as woman during an orgy, Stefan Postma was filmed being "tackled from behind" by his Mrs, and Michael Oakes reportedly had an enormous 'goal kick' on him. Absolutely no contest today really, though... Honourable mentions - Stefan Postma, just because of THAT video and admitting that he was surprised to be a last-minute call up for a game against Arsenal, only finding out whilst he was tucking into his Full English breakfast. Dishonourable mentions - Neil Cutler, Stuart Taylor and Michael Bradley.

Consider it done!

Can you imagine if he saw it and I'd chosen Joachim? He'd never speak to me again!

That's a great shout actually. Might do a "1-11 of Shame" on New Year's Day!

Now we're into the proper squad numbers we'll get into some of the more obscure heroes of the last 23 years. Window 12, and one that's often been unfilled and often seen unfulfilled potential. Steve Froggatt, Nii Lamptey, Julian Joachim, Steven Davis and Marc Albrighton all showed flashes of brilliance before moving on. Today's surprise, though, is a cult hero who went on to win a league title in Germany, and featured in the World Cup and European Championships. Described by John Gregory as having a "left foot that could open a tin of beans", let's all collectively shout "SHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT" for number 12 - Honourable mentions for Julian Joachim and Marc Albrighton. Dishonourable mentions for Peter Enckelman and Joe Cole.

Fixed that one for ya.

The VT Advent Calendar 1-11 - 1 Nigel Spink; 2 Mark Delaney; 3 Wilfred Bouma; 4 Olof Mellberg; 5 Paul McGrath; 6 Kevin Richardson; 7 Ian Taylor; 8 Juan Pablo Angel; 9 Dion Dublin; 10 Dalian Atkinson; 11 Steve Staunton.

Window 11, and not a shirt number that has seen a huge amount of talent over the years - particularly as Gabby has held onto it for 8 seasons now. It's been a pretty diverse shirt in terms of players and positions, from the aforementioned striker/inside forward to Andy Townsend, Tony Daley, Stan Collymore, Alan Thompson and Nobby Solano who very nearly got the shirt. I decided to go for someone who sometimes gets missed as a Villa icon, although he contributed a lot during his two spells here. Number 11 - Honourable mentions for Andy Townsend, Nobby Solano and Gabby Agbonlahor. Dishonourable mention for Gabby Agbonlahor.

I've been Googling trying to find the league table based on subjective opinions of performance rather than points, but I can't seem to find it. Can someone do me a favour and post a link?

3 minutes?! You got the squits?

Window number 10, and one that has seen some legendary Villa names over the years. From Gordon Cowans in the days before squad numbers to Paul Merson, some phenomenal talents have lit up Villa Park with double digits on their back. This year, though, tragic events have made what would have been a tough decision something of a formality. On his day one of the most naturally gifted players I've seen in claret and blue. A minute's applause for number 10, Dalian Atkinson - Honourable mentions for Paul Merson, Dwight Yorke and John Carew. Dishonourable mentions for Milan Baros and Charles N'Zogbia.