El Zen

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. Mods, please upgrade this man's blue card

Wow, that's even more than the totty thread :winkold:

Transfer window rumours. You've got to love them, don't you? I don't believe for a second we're signing Defoe, but I must admit to clicking F5 quite regularly for the last hour or so :oops:

Never any doubt about that in my mind, General. You guys have been excellent so far, and I'm sure all of us have faith in you to deliver success. Keep up the good work, Sirs, and feel free to purchase some class players in January. I won't mind, honest :winkold: As for the game - great effort and commitment from the lads, and that is essential if we want a successful second half of the season. Add a couple of experienced players to this squad, and we'll do all right. Happy New Year, General. Give Randy my best

First of all, I reckon he's capable of handling both at the same time. Secondly, I don't think the Browns will have competetive games again before late summer as they didn't make the play offs.

I'd say the joke was universial enough, Pelle.

I have to correct myself there, Paul. The Sun is the best selling daily newspaper in Britain and the rest of the English speaking world. Forgive me, though, as NOTW and The Sun essentially are the same rubbish under different names. My actual point remains the same anyway. The Sun really is a load of sh*te, regardles of how many copies they sell.

Not only is the Sun the best selling paper in the UK, I believe it is also the best selling paper in the world. Doesn't mean it's quality, though. In fact, I think calling it a newspaper is disrespectful to proper newspapers. Rubbish gossip and half-naked women (if I want porn, I use the internet thanks), populist views and sensationalist "journalism". The fact that it's the best selling rag out there, speaks volumes of the mothern day consumer. We're after fast information, quick entertainment and catchy headlines. Tragic, really.

I read British newspapers online on a daily basis: The Guardian for me. I generally agree with their views, and quite like their style. I also like the Observer or the Independent.

My favourite pizza topping is the meatballs, beef, bacon and marinated chicken combo with extra cheese. You do the maths

Where's the option for "I plan to go to Uni"? Looking to get a master i Political Science, and will commence next fall.

That is brilliant. Thank you so much for the feedback. I really like the idea of looking into the Witton Station as well. Keep up the excellent work you are doing, and Aston Villa will be one succesful football club.

Fantastic stuff. Reading that made me proud to be a Villan. It would be most appreciated if you could look into how to make it easier for fans from abroad to come to see the Villa. I'll try to make the trip at least twice a year now that we've replaced Ellis with Randy, and would love for there to be someone at the club designated to assist fans coming from around the world to see the Villa in action. I've been over a few times before and get by on my own, but many people may need some assitance when making the trip for the first time. Thank you. Just, thank you.

I'd rather pay 50 quid for a plane ticket, to be honest.

English football is massive in Scandinavia and kids grow up watching the Premiership. Though Northern Europe may not be the largest market in the world in terms of population, there are many potential fans up here as the Premierhsip is so popular. Winning over a couple of young glory hunters from the cold North could boost our shirt sales quite a bit. We're wealthy too, you know, and plenty of oil money to spend on tickets and merchandise :winkold:

While I realize that you, a military man of the American South, and I, a pacifist progressive liberal from Scandinavia, may well have our differences on the subject, I'd just like to say it is fantastic to have such an influental man on our board. You and mr. Lerner are sending out all the right signals, and I firmly believe you are the right men in the right place. Added to the wisdom of Martin O'Neill, the club couldn't possibly be in better hands. One question, if you don't mind: Living miles and miles away from Villa Park in Oslo, Norway, travelling to the Villa takes a lot of planning and organizing. I would love for there to be some capacity at the club to help fans from abroad with arranging trips to Villa Park, perhaps even the possibility of purchasing package trips through the club. Is this something that you plan to look into in the future?

I have nothing to add that hasn't already been said, however I felt it was only apropriate to post a heartly "welcome and thank you" to the General and Mr. Lerner from Norway.

I have a combined cd-player/radio, so yes I guess I do own one. I rarely use it though, and I think it's shame because there are some quality shows on Norwegian radio.

Booo, glory hunter! :winkold: You were not alone in your apathy towards the club, mate, and no one can really blame those who fell out of love with Villa under Ellis' final years. I am sure many will come back from their exile now that the new "regime" is in place, and your article really describes why change was so absolutely vital for the club. There is a great atmosphere surrounding the club now, I can feel it all the way up to Norway. We'll soon be back where we belong, and the place will be rockin'

Bah. I'm a republican by principle, so I couldn't care less what the royal family thinks Interestingly, and I am aware of the self-contradiction here, his father was a keen supporter of Arsenal.

I always wear the seatbelt. It is the first thing I do when I get in my seat, and I always make sure passangers are wearing their belts before I even start the car. There is no reason whatsoever not to use one. It takes half a second and I for one can't even notice it's there. The difference between wearing one and not wearing one is potentially the difference between life and death. This is common sense, really.

Well, i voted undecided, because it depends on so many things. I wouldnt want to come down on one side or the other until i saw the details. I would be for the right deal, against the wrong deal, so undecided, as there is no deal at the moment. I'm with mr Bosworth here. There are so many factors to consider. Would it just be some corporate brand name in addition to the original name e.g. "the MBMA Villa Park", or would it be a complete name change e.g. "the Coca-Cola Arena"? How much money would we get? I could live with a "MBMA Villa Park" for an annual £10 mill (everyone would just call it Villa Park anyway), whilst I couldn't agree with a "Coca Cola Arena" regardless of the cash it would generate. It's a complex question. Too complex for a simple yes or no answer.

Neville definitely won't bid, imho, and I've been thinking that for a while now. I don't think we'll see any new bids, to be honest.

Well, Neville hasn't put in a bid yet despite all the talking he did. I'm sure this Padfield chap would like to make an offer, but I'm not sure if he's able to put together an offer that wouldn't be turned down be turned down before it even got anywhere near Doug's desk. He won't bid if he hasn't got the right backing.

Exactly. How is this bid or any other going to be significantly better for us than the Lerner bid given what we have already heard of the Lerner plans. The only way it could be 'better' is if there is an Abramovich-type bottomless wallet lurking in the background. And apart from the fact that there is no suggestion of this to date I would rather that we succeeded primarily because we are Aston Villa, a well-run business which can exploit our support, history and potential, than be compared with that souless, charmless, morally-bankrupt band of West London opportunists. Lets just get this done and start enjoying football again I agree with this.