AVTuco

Really wish our D could D. We'd look sooooo good.

My favorite from now on too.

Said on first page that if Benteke stays, 14th. No need to change that view.

This was so important for the credibility of our plan. We don't always sell our best players once they shine. We may sell at some point, but not bend over right away. That's critical IMO.

Did Benteke score in training today?

Yes, these guys have guaranteed contracts. They should be honoured. If everyone honoured their contracts there would be no transfer fees. I suppose you wish Stephen Ireland and Shay Given to honour their contracts too and stay? Well that's what all the useless players are doing. It has to be both ways. If we're stuck with the contracts of the aforementioned, we should be able to hang onto the good ones aswell. Otherwise building up a decent squad will be very difficult. Even Lambert is not going to get all of them right. Regarding transfers: It is difficult to make it all fair, I agree.

Yes, these guys have guaranteed contracts. They should be honoured.

Obviously there are other factors involved. Like future expectations, which could differ substantionally. Our contract could be the reason why it's so difficult for Villa and Spurs to agree on a price though. Edit: re praisedmambo

So, in essence, they want us to pay his salary? I guess so. My point was that there really is two different valuations to a player because no other team can have the contract we have in place with Benteke. The difference is not in reality as large as I said in my calculation since we would pay him more than 20k pw if he stayed. But there is a difference in value.

If you factor in 20k pw the annual salary is around 1 mill, making the cost of Benteke's 3 year contract 3 mill altogether. That's the cost for Villa, and no-one else. If Spurs had to pay him 60k pw, the annual cost would be around 3 mill, which is 9 mill in 3 years. That's a 6 mill difference, which is pretty close to the difference between Villa and Spurs being thrown around (25 and 18 mill). Is this a coincidence?

Just came back from Cyprus today, was there for a week. It was very hot, so you need a good hotel/villa with air conditioning in every room to enjoy it. I like Cyprus a lot, like mentioned above, it's a very peaceful place where you don't have to worry about pickpocketing or stuff like that. It was somewhat more quiet than before, I suppose the economic situation has taken its' toll on tourism there. Prices haven't really come down though. I would think October is a very good time to go there.

I second this. Would be great.

Heartbreaking. Congrats to Hawks.

Not looking so great for Bruins the last two games. Have to turn it around big time now, starting from Chara. He is a guy that can do it though.

With no impact additions, as it stands now, and Benteke stays: 14th. Benteke leaves and it's another desperate battle, which we just might lose this time.

I hate this game.

Tuukka:

In March Spain was unable to win Finland at home, so maybe there's a chance for Tahiti to surprise aswell! Yeah, maybe...

Tuukka!

As a young boy in Finland football was everything to me and my friends. During the winter, when we couldn't play football outside, our consolation was to watch Division 1 every Saturday @ 16.55 on TV2. My best friends chose Arsenal and West Ham as their favorites, and for some reason that I can't remember at all, I chose Villa. Not a bad choice, since this was in the beginning of the 1980-1981 season. So, that's how I became a Villain.

This chick is just so amazing I have to put this here. It's a brand new video. First full vocal take she did for this song. Warning: only vocals on this video. Much better than the final version in my opinion.

This is my 22nd post here... ...and you've already disgraced yourself with your view on sponsorship But never mind, your avatar more than makes up for it Thank you!

This is my 22nd post here...

How would you feel if it was sponsored by Carlsberg? One way to look at ethics is to follow what someone, who puts their money on where their mouth is, thinks about ethics in compnies: Norway Petroleum Fund. here's a link to a list of excluded companies on their investment universe:http://www.regjeringen.no/templates/RedaksjonellArtikkel.aspx?id=447122&epslanguage=EN-GB Nestle should be on the list if it was that bad ethically. Dafabet isn't on there either, so they must be fine. Checkmate. I would suppose that Dafabet is not big enough or a public company, so it could be regarded as a viable investment object. Nestle is. Edit: I am not saying this the right list, but it's one way to look at this complex issue. And they are prepared to give up some of their returns in exchange of being ethical.

How would you feel if it was sponsored by Carlsberg? It's too difficult to agree on what's ethical and what's not, it's a dead end discussion. My point is that there is a certain responsibility to youngsters that a club like Villa has, and that responsibility should not be taken lightly. It's not all about money. Now, I think Villa has made this choice deliberately, knowing and understanding the ethical side of the decision aswell, thereby endorsing and encouraging gambling with all it's negative side effects. And personally, I don't like it. I'll get over it, but I don't like it. As for Carlsberg, I get your point, it's so-so. Nestle is not a brand that I dislike or think is ethically poor. Why do you bring them up? One way to look at ethics is to follow what someone, who puts their money on where their mouth is, thinks about ethics in compnies: Norway Petroleum Fund. here's a link to a list of excluded companies on their investment universe: http://www.regjeringen.no/templates/RedaksjonellArtikkel.aspx?id=447122&epslanguage=EN-GB Nestle should be on the list if it was that bad ethically.