10 Things you need to know about new Aston Villa signing Steve Sidwell

Steve Sidwell's year in the Chelsea wilderness looks to be finally coming to an end thanks to his £5m move to Aston Villa .

You could be forgiven for having forgotten all about the former Reading star, so here's a handy 10-point reminder:

1) Steven James Sidwell was born in Wandsworth, south London, on December 14th, 1982. His brother Lee is also a footballer, most recently for AFC Wimbledon.

2) He started his professional career as a 16-year-old at Arsenal, where he won the FA Youth Cup in 2000 and 2001. One of his team-mates was future Reading pal James Harper.

3) He never played for the Arsenal first team and, following loan spells at Brentford and Brighton, he moved to Reading for an undisclosed fee in January 2003.

4) He racked up 168 appearances for the Royals (and scored 29 goals), and was an integral part of the side that ran away with the 2005/06 Championship title.

5) 'Four Four Two' magazine voted him the best player outside of the Premier League in 2004, and he was named in the PFA's Championship Team Of The Year in 2005 and 2006.

6) He refused to renew his Reading contract that expired at the end of the 2006/07 season but, rather than cash in, the club opted to play him for a year in the Premiership and then lose him for nothing. The tactic appeared to pay off as Reading finished 8th in the league.

7) Reading fans were still heart-broken to see their former hero leave. Some even held a protest, although we suspect this might just have been a ploy to get on the telly. And - look! - it worked:

8) He joined Chelsea on a free transfer in July 2007 but, despite stating he wasn't going to "make up the numbers", struggled to make an impression. He made his league debut on August 12th as an 83rd minute substitute in Chelsea's 3-2 win over Birmingham, but only started seven other Premiership matches for the Blues.

9) His one goal in Chelsea colours came in the 4-0 victory against Hull in the Third Round of the League Cup. Luckily it was captured for posterity on film:

10) He has a large tattoo covering most of his back depicting the wedding vows he exchanged with wife - and star of ITV show WAG's Boutique - Krystell in June 2005. It's made up of over 100 words. Ouch.