1998–99 in English football gets the manager's job on a permanent basis. 28 October 1998 – Chelsea player-manager Gianluca Vialli scores a hat-trick in the 4–1 League Cup third round win over Aston Villa. Making his debut as a late substitute is 17-year-old defender John Terry. On the same day, striker Brian Laudrup's departure from Chelsea is announced after just four months at the club. 31 October 1998 – Ron Reeves, a 55-year-old steward, is killed outside Highfield Road stadium after being crushed by the Arsenal team coach just before a game with Coventry City. The month ends with Aston Villa still top, a
Aston Villa F.C.–West Bromwich Albion F.C. rivalry Aston Villa F.C.–West Bromwich Albion F.C. rivalry Aston Villa F.C. and West Bromwich Albion F.C. are two English football clubs from the West Midlands who share a local rivalry. The matches between them are known as West Midlands derbies. Their stadiums, Villa Park and The Hawthorns respectively, are four miles away from each other. Both clubs have bigger rivals—Birmingham City for the former in the Second City derby, and Wolverhampton Wanderers for the latter in the Black Country derby. A 2010 article in "The Daily Telegraph" ranked the rivalry between Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion as the third most