Robbie09

Went to the launch today, got the home shirt for my 2 lads and they're very happy with it. My eldest bought the XL junior and found one with the sponsors logo so he's happy. The fit is good and the material is a big improvement on last season. I may have missed it but there didn't seem to be a mock up of the away kit on display so I can't comment on that. The shop was fairly empty in terms of merchandise as the training kit wasn't on the shelves, so apart from the new home shirt the only other products available to buy were the remnants of last seasons training kit.

Let's not, I'd prefer to remember him in his prime. Those of a similar generation to me may remember Andy Gray in his second spell for us, he was way past his best and a pale shadow of the player who terrorised centre halves in his first spell.

Yes

Oh that could've been an easy win. You spend the next few minutes telling him what he already knows. How much they've won, how great their stadium is etc. Take the wind out of his sails by removing all the stuff he can throw at you. Which gets him onside, and then remind him that he's now very familiar with a company that, yesterday, he'd probably never heard of on Villa's shirt. Then walk away leaving him feeling like he has lost Nice tactics Bof I will remember that for next time we speak Better still don't associate with Mancs!!

Pot, Kettle, Black. I wish we still had Acorns, but football and morals have long since been separated.

Another kit where the kids shirts will be without the sponsors name. No doubt my lads will raise the issue again!

Just got back - better than Heaton Park in my opinion. Loved Mani's comment at the end - "it's always great to come to this part of North London, sign your best players and leave with 3 points" It was better than the Sunday night at Heaton for me, but I don't anything will top the Friday night though for me. Was **** brilliant! Can't comment on the friday night at Heaton as we were only there on sunday. It was a pity there was a 10:30 curfew last night as they could've played at least a couple more tracks.

Just got back - better than Heaton Park in my opinion. Loved Mani's comment at the end - "it's always great to come to this part of North London, sign your best players and leave with 3 points"

Hmmmn.... Benteke says he would like to play with other Belgians. Lukaku....Goes back to Chelsea after telling Benteke to move to a "Big" club Benteke appears to prefer London & comments he thought Villa was a London club. The "Special one" returns to Chelsea with a huge warchest presumably? Is it just me?................ That's my fear. Chelsea are looking for a striker, they haven't properly replaced Drogba and they've got endless amounts of cash. I despise anything and everything about that club and hope they don't come sniffing after him.

that makes 2 of us 3 4... plus hundreds of others who dont post here Can I vote on behalf of those that don't post here?

Yup. Benteke make the difference between 8th and 6th. We can't just hand him over to our primary mid-table rivals. I would accept £40m though. As stated earlier by others, given they paid £20m for Downing and £35m for Carroll then Benteke is worth at least £40m

Liverpool have already done what you are saying Villa have done. I have no idea how you can say Villa "are ahead of Liverpool" in any shape, way or form other than pure tribalism. All the overpaid dross is gone. Wages are down to 60% of turnover come next release of accounts. Johnson is the only player in the first team left who is on a contract bigger than he deserves/earns. Dalglish and Comolli who were the the big problem financially and signing players and getting it wrong are gone, a brand new scouting team has been robbed from Man City and there is a Committee approach to signings now with no one person having ultimate say over who is bought. The building of a more financially effcient team has started with two class buys in Sturridge and Coutinho who cost less than Downing combined. Liverpool will get permission to finally start expansion of Anfield by end of Summer. All the debt we have is owed to our owners (£80m when it used to be £240m) who have promised they will not take money from the club to be repaid they hope to get it back when they sell the club. Still a lonngggg way to go for Liverpool, but lets get our facts right, everything off the field at Liverpool is better than its been for a long, long time. The challenge now is replicating the superb work that's been done by the Executives, on the football side of things, which is going to be so hard when Arsenal, City, Utd, Chelsea all have bigger revenues to spend and Spurs have built up a great side that they seem to manage to keep going strong fighting for 4th, even when losing their best players like Modric and VDV. There's been a big gamble made on 1) Brendan Rodger's being the right man for the job and 2) Trying to copy a Spurs-like strategy of investing in top scouts to find affordable, potential world class players, before the bigger clubs get on to them, and having these players fulfil their potential with you, before being swiped by the bigger clubs. Signings such as Alonso, Mascherano, Suarez and now potentially Coutinho. If this gamble works then it will pay of massivley on and off the field, if it does not, then Liverpool may end up stuck outside the top 4 for a generation. Whilst a lot of what you are saying about things off the field at Liverpool are better than they have been for a long time may be so, the cold harsh truth is you are way behind the top 4 and nowhere near Champions League places. How often do you hear a player say he's chosen to sign for a club because everything off the field is strong? All level headed Villa fans accept that at some stage Benteke will move on, maybe this summer, if not certainly next summer. However he is far too good for Liverpool and bigger and better clubs than Liverpool will offer him what all footballers want which is Champions League regardless of how well set up they are off the field.

I wouldn't believe a word of anything Downing has to say.

Agreed, this would send a pretty powerful message, and would shift the power back to the manager, after so many years of giving into our player's demands for move. We should hold out for a minimum of £30m if not more. If he wants to move and we get this sort of money and he moves overseas then this would probably be the best outcome for us. And if his suitors don't stump that amount and he goes on strike - come 1st Sept if he's still with us he'll have to get his act together otherwise his World Cup place is in jeopardy. I honestly think we're in a win win situation as long as Lerner and Lambert play hardball and stick to a valuation of at least £30m.

If he goes then I wish him luck, he's always put in the effort when selected regardless of whether he's played well or not. Despite all the criticism, i think he's a decent footballer but it suits both parties if he finds another club.

Seconded. He's not quite good enough to be playing in the Premier League and I don't see enough to suggest he'll improve. I'd much rather his place in the squad was taken by another of Lambert's unknown signings like Westwood and Lowton were last year.

I worked for a Swedish company for 15 years and spent a fair bit of time in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmo. Around this time of the year the climate is pretty similar to the UK. Definitely worth a visit to an Ice bar to sample the vodka.The pubs and clubs are good fun although there are far too many karaoke bars! As mentioned by others it is horrendously expensive to dine out though.

Sky Sports ran a feature leading up to one of the derby matches about a half wit who had a SHA tattoo - only it was upside down. The guy claimed it was unique. Priceless...

My 10 year old son got 10/10.......better than his dad!

I've seen the plans that were originally drawn up - the stand would look magnificent if it went ahead, however in the current climate of cost cutting i just can't see Randy chucking tens of millions of pounds replacing a stand in a ground that rarely sells out.

I recently overhead him talking in Tesco...... Was he wearing a suit? Indeed he was. Just wanted to make sure he wasn't working there, I heard they had a managers vacancy available. He was deep in conversation with another suited guy. Mentioned something about Bent signing for Liverpool.....

I recently overhead him talking in Tesco...... Was he wearing a suit? Indeed he was.

I recently overhead him talking in Tesco......

.....Danny Graham!!!! David Murphy

Can we?