NurembergVillan

I'd go for Koller from Dortmund. A big monster who can shoot with both feet and at 6' 7" is absolutely lethal in the air. Failing that, Roque Santa Cruz from Bayern Munich, please.

March 16th 1979, ladies and gentlemen. Not old enough to appreciate the glory days, not young enough to ignore the pain now...

Well, plenty of votes have been cast, and at the moment it's well in favour of nailing the gyppoes! The poll was only set for one day, so by the time I get home tonight I'll know whether to sharpen my fishing hooks and get into the garden to dig up some worms!

Happy Monday fellow Villans! Just a quick poll on the matter of "Why we must beat..." for this week. After the incredible success against Everton, the resounding failure against Middlesbrough (or should that be the other way around???) and the comedy value of Portsmouth, how do we go on for the Sty Dwellers? There's plenty of ammo for the tramps, but do we really want to get them riled and on here? Would I be "doing a Mellberg" by writing a piece- imagine if Spudface showed it to his players and used it as inspiration for beating us???! So, I'm allowing you guys the chance to choose- do we offer up a bit of mackerel bait, or do we let this particular shoal swim by? Only you can decide.... NV

^^^ D'oh! Fair play, you got me. Crafty git. I still stand by what I said though, that in keeping with the level of thinking on this board, dismissing the shirt as unimportant seems an oversight. But then I would, eh?

I know I've got a very one-eyed opinion on this subject, but I REALLY BELIEVE that it IS important, and that it IS a fashion item. The shirt isn't just about us and our colours, it's about people in Japan who watch the Premiership on telly and want to buy a shirt because they like it, rather than because of the team. This is why I always make so much noise when the new kit's come out or a new deal is announced. When Nike presented to Man Utd, Peter Kenyon (at the time) said "It doesnt matter about the design, we always sell 500,000 (yes, that does say 500,000) shirts". Nike advertised it and sold it through their retail network and Utd sold 2m (yes, that does say 2m) shirts in a year. That sort of money pays for a Wayne Rooney every summer. Who was interested in Cameroon until they did the whole sleeveless thing? (Where's Ryu when I need back up?) What are you opinions on the England shirt (given that it's an optional buy for most rather than an emotional one like the Villa shirt)? The design counts, and it makes money. The same goes for the brand of the supplier, and the sponsor. Wolfsburg sold 2000 shirts in the UK, just because they had a VW logo on the chest, the St Pauli shirt which was sponsored by Jack Daniel's is worth a mint on the internet, and so on. I know that for most of us as normal fans, as long as it's claret body and blue sleeves it's ok, but in a BUSINESS and PROMOTION sense (which is what we hammer Ellis for all the time), the kit design can be critical in term of raising funds.

Do you wanna take this outside Cresswell?

I love the club, and probably care more than most about the design of the shirt. As there was no "they're all shite" option, I didnt vote. Shame on me?

I think they're all a shambles

i'd say he's improved since he signed his last contract. And who would we replace him with? Are we seriously going to buy anyone better?

Djemba for me. Easy enough, I reckon. Am looking forward to seeing if he scores tonight, what will Woodwank say? "Villa's latest team member, Djemba Djemba, gives us all a night to remember, here in February, just one month since December, two since November and four since September. Over to you, Pat..."

Think I'd stick with Sørensen myself. Agree with BW that he's mostly reliable whereas I'm not too confident about Fatty Foulkes.

I think HDE believes that rule is already in place...

Dear Carlton, Well, here's our side of it you big headed cockney waster. It's not ideal but we'll do whatever it takes to fill the rapidly vacating seats on our bench. You, my boy, are a jumped up tosser. It's this kind of attitude which could well hold you back from being the player you threatened to be two years ago. Take a look at our own Herr Hitzlsperger, who "lowered" himself to play for Chesterfield (you won't have heard of them yet, you'll be playing for them in a few years time). He was recently captain of his national U21 team. You, on the other hand, were busy not getting a game for the mighty Charlton Athletic (but that was their fault too, huh?). I hope you get the chance to read this, although I'm sure you won't. You need to take a look at yourdself kid. At the moment you're the football equivalent of Jack Black's character at the start of Shallow Hal. If this is your attitude to football and to my beloved team in particular, then I never want you to have the chance to disgrace the claret and blue. Even at Scunthorpe. So, to summarise, for all I and a good many of my peers care you can visit Villa Park once a season, presuming you're able to get into Chelsea's reserve team. You're an arrogant "pheasant plucker", and I'd rather have Peter Crouch back than have you strolling up and down Broad Street thinking you're the dog's cock. Because you aren't. You're just a cock. Best regards, NV

Pele, Maradona, Cruyff, Puskas, Maradona. All could attribute their success to one thing- a good pair of football boots!! For me, though, I'd go with DMW and say van Basten. It'll be a long time before we see one as good as that again. Although there's a lad in Barcelona's youth team called Lionel Messi who I think might be pretty handy. He's not made the first team yet but my contacts tell me he's going to be something special.

I was but a whippersnapper in them days. My first game was the pre-season friendly against Coventry when we'd just been relegated and they'd just won the Cup. IIRC we beat them, too (3-2). Wasn't it GT's first game in charge?

I think it'll be one of Italy, Czech Republic, Switzerland or Bulgaria

I have the old badge on file, but it's in vector format if that's any use? For badges other than English Premiership clubs go to www.hqfl.dk, which is the best resource for vector format badges anywhere, ever. There are links on there to a site which has all the English badges too.

I think the German boy just needs a run in the team like Whittingham had, even if his form dips, to show that the gaffer has faith in him. He's a confidence player, and right now his confidence is sky high. Let's hope it stays that way...

The figure I heard was 7 FIGURES over four years. From what I heard the total amount was about £2m (£500k p.a.) which is actually pretty weak. As and when I know the actual figure I'll post it here. Also, Hummel were the only company to put in a bid, which speaks for itself, really.