MessiWillSignForVilla

I'm pretty sure it's a League rule that we can't have a star above the badge the symbolises trophy wins, hence why it was incorporated into the badge when first designed. Man City used to have stars above their badge, but as they weren't for anything in particular sporting wise, it was okay, and I think Forest do to, but that's because the EFL don't have the same rule. I'm not 100% sure, but I think that's the reason it's not above the badge.

What a game that was! Great performance by England and what a way to snatch it. Perhaps it's some good evidence that maybe it's time to move past Farrell? Smith is unreal and we looked really good with him pulling the strings, whereas I feel shifiting things around just to accommodate Farrell can stifle some of our backs. Also, what a player Steward is, love watching him for Tigers and he's been awesome for England, looks like he's nailed down that 15 shirt for a good few years now.

Well in Deano, was worried for them after they conceded so quickly. Just don't win too many yeah Dean.

From what I can tell, there's not a lot of difference when it comes to holiday/pension etc and with the main difference in benefits being greater WFH and flexability on hours with the new company plus they offer a 5% yearly bonus, something I don't get where I am now. I have been offered it now with a roughly 10% raise, just waiting to see what my boss gives me as a counter offer. I do think my former boss is supportive of me, she even sent me a text telling me to walk away from it if the offer wasn't right for. She's also been a massive support since starting my current role and also personally as my brother died from Covid earlier this year at 34 which really helped during a difficult period. Although, she isn't involved in the actually hiring process, but I have been offered a raise now. Think this is it for me, I jus tdon't see the progression within my current company, at least not in to the field I want to be in, whereas the new company have a dedicated data analysis department which I want to eventually side step into. Though I'll have to wait until Monday to see how much my current place wants to keep me. And yeah, I'm only 27 and only left Uni at 23, so it's my first real experience with moving companies that wasn't just telling Next I was leaving my part time job. Also, I've not had the chance to go on VT all week, so I've not just ignored both of your posts

Oof, two 5th minute goals in a row v Southampton for Smith.

I don't feel my role is particularly niche, which plays in to some of my anxieties that people with my skillset are a pound a dozen right now. I'm a supply chain analyst in the food industry on the supplier side, and the new role would essentially be the same position, but from a retail point of view. Originally I trained to be a mechanical engineer, but realised when applying for stuff post-Uni that I kinda hated engineering and only did it because I was good at Maths, and I think that lack of enthusiasm basically tanked every interview I went for as it seemed I wasn't interested in the job (most of the time I wasn't), so I got a stop gap sales role where I currently am, and then a year or so later, I started essentially doing my current role before it was created and realised that I'd actually like to go down the route of Data Analysis with some of the foundations I got from my degree, which I have tried to push for with training internally and for other jobs elsewhere in Data Analysis, but not had much luck. The problem I have is that I'm only really experienced in Excel with some knowledge of R, so often fail on the hiring criteria of SQL, Tableau or PowerBI knowledge. I put forward training courses that I'd like to go on to get some experience of those softwares, but they were rejected and instead I was given project management courses which didn't really touch data all that much. This is essentially where my frustration about my current company comes from. They're a fairly old, national company that is a bit stuck in it's ways, and even though they are still relatively successful operating that way, I just don't see any avenues for me to progress into Data Analysis within the company unless there is a sudden overhaul of how they approach things, and I feel like the longer I stay here without that further training, it's going to get harder for me to find somewhere willing to take me on and train me in that role, especially when most jobs I see that offer on the job training typically are on even lower salaries than my current one. Whereas the new company is a multinational company where I know there are roles for Data Analysis, so I feel that as long as I can get my foot in the door there, I can look to change departments once I'm in the company, which my interviewers did indicate would be a possibiltiy, and something which is often done, as well as telling me I could get the sort of training I would want to help me with that too, which shows me there's at least a path to where I want to go there unlike my current job. There's also lots of benefits around flexible working hours and WFH, which is much better than my current place. In terms of the pay, I will say this may be a case of counting my chickens too early, as I haven't been formally offered anything yet, I only know I will be because of my former boss, so don't actually know what I'll be offered. I know what I'd have been offered on the original role I went for, which would've been a promotion closer to my bosses type of role, because my former boss told me the salary range before she left, but if it is the lower role which is equivalent to my current one, I don't know what they'd be looking at, it's more preparing myself for a scenario where it's not as much as I originally expected, I may even get the role I originally went for, I'm not sure yet. I would look to ensure I could at least get my commute covered, so I do know a figure I won't go below. This whole thing is just so new to me and awkward, and whilst I know I should try to be ruthless with my decisions, it doesn't fit my personality at all.

Just mentioned in the job thread about moving house, and thought I'd pop in this one to thank you guys for the advice on the previous page and reassurance that solicitors/estate agents are just knobs, as getting in touch with the sellers did seem to unblock something, though what the hold up was is still unclear, and my move has now moved on to the searches phase and is starting to come along nicely now Hopefully I can get a date before christmas, though I'm imagining Jan/Feb may be more realistic.

I'm likely to get a job offer this week to move company (my old boss that basically created my current position for me and took me under her wing the past 18 months or so, recently left for this other company, encouraged me to apply there and has told me to expect good news this week following my interview a few weeks back) but as this current job is my first "real" job, I'm unsure how to handle it. When I first started at the company I was in part time retail following Uni and was hired as a temp, then I got made permanent and then moved departments to my current role, so all offers I've had so far have been a fairly straight forward "yes, I'll take the job" answer, but now I feel I may have some leverage I could possibly use? The new role I applied for had about a 10% wage rise minimum for me (high end was a nearly 30% rise, but I'm unlikely to get that, otherwise this post would be irrelevant ), but my old boss did imply I might be offered a role one rung down, so it may not be much of a pay increase or even none at all (which wouldn't be great as I'm currently buying my first house and the new job would require longer commuting), but I feel the benefits of the new company would be much better for me from a personal point of view and career progression one too. So, assuming my old boss is right and I get an offer this week, how should I go about it? My plan is to thank them for the offer but tell them I need to think it over before saying anything definitive, then let my current boss know I've had an offer that I'm seriously considering in the hope that they may offer me something to stay, and potentially go back to the new company to ask if they'd match any offer I got to stay. I'd likely still leave if the new company can't match any improved offer as I can't see any real progression where I currently am, at least in the direction I want to go, but I would like to maximise what I can get if I can. Is this a sensible way to do it or is there a more tactful way to go? I know in these situations you have to look out for yourself as the companies won't give two shits about underpaying me, but I do feel like a bit of a dick if I don't upfront admit I want to leave and pretend I might stay just to maybe get more money. I also don't want to approach it in a way that may come across as arrogant and may backfire in the case the first offer is withdrawn, as if I think I'm so important to the team that they'd throw money at me to stay. Whilst I don't think of myself that highly, I work in a team of three including my boss, who was promoted internally to his position, so me leaving would mean all three members of the team would only have less than about 4 months experience in their roles which I imagine the company may want to avoid. This is the first time I've potentially been put in this position, so I really don't know what would be the best way to handle it or even what would be the expected way to handle it, I'm really at a loss and these thoughts have been rattling around in my brain ever since my old boss first implied my interview went well and they were going to offer me something. Or am I just waaaay overthinking all of this?

I'll never forgive those three for how they acted after O'Neill left, especially after finding out why Dunne was so upset at Houllier. Apparently Houllier, a Frenchman, had the gall to celebrate France beating Ireland in the 2010 World Cup playoff as he left the stadium and that's why Dunne never gave him a chance at Villa. He says it was because he was a "UEFA official" and should've been neutral about it, which; 1) he's still French, let him celebrate France getting to the World Cup, and 2) he was a **** advisor to the FFF at the time! Collins just went along with it because Dunne hated him and I wouldn't be surprised if Gabby was the same. Or maybe he just disliked putting effort in to training. All three of them are words removed.

There was a post from someone saying they wanted us to lose the next 5 games just so Gerrard would be sacked as soon as possible. There are plenty in here that are clearly willing to throw away their support of the club due to a childish dislike of Gerrard.

Does the Economist even have a sport section?

Whilst it probably isn't at the level you could stick it on your CV and get a job, I imagine on that side of the football world you'd get a lot of funny looks if you didn't play FM.

I hate to break this to you, but any manager we sign would piss off to Liverpool the first chance they got.

Because Newcastle is a really shit job right now, even with those riches. Sure you have a load to spend in Jan, but that's the only positive, you also have - - A shit squad - A relegation fight - Shit facilities - a fanbase expecting them to become the next Man City/PSG - A new board expecting them to become the next Man City/PSG - did I mention they have a really shit squad? Whoever was the first to take that job was always going to be set up to fail, as they basically need someone to come in, steady the ship and build a platform to push on from (ironically, what Bruce did with us) but with an expectation and funds to do much more, no ambitious manager is going to risk **** that up and having it on their CV with all the pressure involved, much better to wait for the first sap to do it and then come in when it's a fun job. It's like some people forgot that despite the takeover, they are still Newcastle.

Why are some people acting like hiring Gerrard would be similar to Derby with Lampard and Rooney, or if we hired Terry, or even when Rangers signed Gerrard? He has managed just under 200 games with Rangers and has broke Celtic's hegemony in Scotland by winning the league last season, he's not just some untested ex-pro. Sure you can argue whether success with Rangers will translate to the Premier League, but that's different to pretending he's only getting a look in because he's an ex pro or knows Purslow, he's getting a look in because he's done a **** great job at Rangers!

I'm not crying, you're crying...

Such a strange feeling to be so sad a manager has been sacked yet it's completely the right decision

Really? Because I'm pretty sure City train at 4pm on Thursdays to accomodate mid week travel.

It's also scientifically proven that exercising in the early afternoon is the best for peak performance.

Guy Fawkes might have had a point.

I'll always love ya Deano...

I've lived in Leicestershire my entire life and know loads of Leicester fans, why the **** did my Dad make me become a Villa fan

Not what he's said though is it? He said there's only been one really bad 45 minutes and finishes off by saying we've not been on top of our game and need to turn it around. That's not saying we've only been bad for those 45 minutes, but just that that's the only half where we've been utterly battered by a team. Sounds to me like a manager saying we've not been good enough but that we've been close enough in games to still believe we can turn it around.

Personally, I wouldn't want one of my University lecturers to be a trustee of a hate group, especially if I was a member of the group being targeted. (Fun fact - LGB Alliance support Conversion Therapy, an interesting way of standing up to homophobia, it's like an anti-Racist group supporting segregation) Here's a good summary of why what Prof. Stock did/said is so bad. (It's long, but you can probably skip the first half as that's mainly discussing the difference between Freedom of Speech and Academic Freedom and highlighting how Prof. Stock's Academic Freedom has in no way been infringed) Also, Sex isn't binary. There has been a lot of scientific studies in to it by actual genetecists rather than philosophy professors. And I highly recommend watching Mhairi Black's Parliament speech from the beginning of Pride month, in which she highlights that much of the arguments against the Trans community are an intentional rehash of 70s/80s homophobia by the Far Right to push their culture war nonsense because Gay people are too accepted now, so they should move the wedge issue to Trans people. Edit - I always forget about the bloody rule about link extracts! Hope the ones added are ok mods.