thefeet1980

I think this is an extremely well run site - underlined by the fact I don't bother visiting any of the other Villa forums. I do sometimes wonder if certain posters are encouraged to hold controversial views to engender more debate and (importantly) more hits - but maybe that's a bit cynical. I don't understand why the OGS thread was locked ahead of the press conference. It seems to me that it would have been the most suitable place to disucss the 'fall-out'. As it happens, the PC didn't reveal much but nonetheless it would have been nice to debate his reasons for deciding to stay at Molde.

:shock:

Well I'm pretty philosophical about all of this. I'm disappointed that it's looking 99% certain that OGS isn't going to be the next manager (and that I'll lose £50 to boot). He just seemed 'right'. Admittedly a good deal of the reasoning for this was an MUTV documentary, which was always going to show him in a good light, but the video was also reinforced by the positive views of the various Norwegians who posted on here. Some of the excitement was no doubt due to the fact that there is a very limited expectation amongst fans that we'll be able to attract a 'top' manager - for that reason a gamble seemed preferable to the possibility of settling for mediocrity. However....we don't know what the board have up their sleeve, we do know that in the last statement they said all the right things. It's still possible they'll appoint someone who catches us all off guard and who generates the same level of excitement as OGS. Alternatively, we could end up with Lambert, Martinez or Rodgers - all of whom would be great appointments. Until they do something to contradict the statement they put out, I'll continue to trust what they said - they want a manager that will restore a sense of excitement and vibrancy. I don't feel any animosity towards any of the ITK's - it's been an exciting few days, I've enjoyed following things on here, it's addictive. Bit annoying that some fans seem to be struggling to avoid gloating and almost seem to take pleasure in any negativity - on the other hand I feel fortunate that I have a more positive relationship with the club I love.

You're more than welcome to check through my posting history... I was excited by what I thought Houllier could achieve, but felt he had a huge task ahead of him - he took over the club at the most difficult time. I thought that he did ok, he made some massive PR gaffs but I was willing to forgive him those. I still think that if he'd had a second season (with a full pre-season) we'd have been in a much better place now. Under the right circumstances I still would have welcomed him back as DOF. I was bitterly disappointed with the appointment of McLeish. However, I love the club and felt I had no choice but to get behind the team and to give him a chance. I extended my good will as much as I possibly could but lived in hope that he was a stop-gap to keep us up during the transition - as he barely managed to do that I was desperate for the board to get rid. I feel no animosity towards him, I don't think he is a "ginger word removed", a Scottish pr*ck or the devil incarnate. I think as a manager he can be proud of some of his achievements but his brand of football is not suited to the expectations and aspirations of the Villa. I'm very excited by OGS - he's young, hungry, determined to play decent football, universally respected and has said all the right things about our great club. I think he is a possible legend in the making. Unfortunately, I don't think that there is a manager alive who could deliver the immediate success that some of the fan base crave. I think the biggest risk, if he joins, is that he's not given the time and sections of the support start to get on his back and by Christmas we have 'supporters' suggesting Ole Gunner 'relegate us' and that he should 'f*ck off back to Norway.' I wish those supporters would support City instead.

If OGS ends up joining the Villa then I have no doubt that Randy will do the right thing compensation wise. I wonder if there is something extra he could do - some sort of partnership agreement, or failing that perhaps an annual pre-season friendly at VP with gate receipts to Molde - or is that a bit patronising?

£50 at 5/2 on Skybet.

I don't expect him to receive MON Style backing. If he were to receive such backing I'd expect top 10 first season and top 6 the following. As it is, I expect that, at best, he would receive £15m to spend wisely (i.e. within a much tighter wage budget than MON). With this backing, I'd expect him to steer well clear of relegation, have a half-decent cup run and play some attractive football. Second season I'd be hoping for top 10.

I don't think anyone should pass judgement on him without having a watch of the youtube video. Of course there is a huge Utd slant to it - it's made by MUTV. Can't fault him for the brand of football he wants to play, he seems focused, committed and an all round exciting prospect. Hope it happens.

I cannot wait for Villa to Funke awesome under his leadership.

To be honest I do consider this and could probably have kept schtum until this morning. But, the fact that I don't post anywhere else, or tweet, and the fact that people reference back to VT, makes the press (British at least) wary of the information, as it is very speculative and very single source. As the day wore on yesterday a couple of our real ITK contributors were able to confirm OGS, but perhaps they wouldn't have been able to make an initial indication. And Messrs Lerner and Faulkner, who really do care about what the supporters think (despite the AM appointment), have had a useful day's, generally positive, feedback. They will be buoyed by this. So, looking back over yesterday, I think that everyone's a winner. Assuming they're not close to signing up AVB then I think the bit in bold is key. I would prefer OGS to all other candidates (including Martinez and Lambert) Are we sure that RL and PF will have people monitoring the forums - could we email a link to this thread to them?

^ I agree too.

Can't believe I missed the decent odds on OGS - not worth a punt anymore. Incidentally, I'd be more than happy to give him a chance.

Fair play mate, good luck with your ambitions. I just hope you're wrong about the transfer budget... :winkold:

no need to be such a prick to the guy, hes only spreading what hes heard, which is what most of us come on here for, to see others opinions, and maybe hear some ITk news early. dont slate him, and then slate his career choice, its just not the thing to do to a fellow fan. i hate it when people think they can say what they like a long as they put a fake apology after it Fair enough. Sincere apologies. However, anyone pursuing a potential career as a journalist ought to have a thick enough skin to take a bit of ribbing - ask Matt Kendrick or Tim Abraham - I'd also expect them to take a bit more pride in their writing.

Sports journalism student - "quiche flores" "knowone knows his motive" - bwah hah ha ha ha... Not only that but your writing is terrible, I'd find another career son. Hold on a second though, did you say you're at Talkshite? Ah, it all makes sense...carry on. On a serious note, apologies for mocking a fellow fan. I'm sure you've probably heard something that has sparked your excitement and desire to share, it's just that it's probably not true.

I'd read this thread.

Klinsman for me, although I agree we probably can't afford / attract him. In which case I think we'll probably end up with Martinez or Lambert neither of whom would be a bad choice. I wonder if we can now attach any more significance to the fact that Comolli was Lerner's guest at the Spurs game? Can't imagine Martinez or Lambert would be that keen on working with him - Martinez seems to have done an alright job of scouting players on his own and Lambert doesn't seem like the sort of character who'd want him interferring...we'll see.

^ This. Unfortunately, I think there are a lot of fans who won't be satisfied unless Lerner throws "lots" of cash at a new manager. It's extraordinary that so many supporters still can't see that this was the cause of our downward spiral under MON. What's even more unfortunate is that I think a lot of fans would be willing to sacrifice long term stability for short-term glory - Chelsea and Man City are to blame for this. I was numb on Sunday when Aguero scored the winner in extra time. I want nothing more than for us to do things the right way, build the club up from bottom and have a crack at the CL spots... VillaAndLoyal has outlined exactly what we need - a proper intenational scouting system and a manager that is able to spot and nuture talent. I'll be flayed for saying so but I still think that's what Lerner was hoping to develop under Houllier. Houllier was dammed by the situation he inherited and by a couple of PR disasters but, had he not been forced to resign, I think we'd be in a much better position now. Anyhow, here's hoping Randy makes a much better choice than last time...

"Yesh, hallo, I hear thersh a job going..."

So what exactly are you hoping for? Man City style multi-billionaire owners? Apart from the appointment of McLeish what is your overarching concern with Lerner?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not happy with how things are at the moment. It's just when I think through things rationally I'd rather be where we are now than where we were then.

And yet here we are worried about relegation for the 2nd season in a row with a manager the majority of fans can't stand. Clearly these things, while having improved, just don't really matter in the big scheme of things at the club. I can understand the older fans who were around for doug taking us down but for me my main support of villa has been during the premiership years and right now I can't think of a time it was this bad. Also i can't think of a single premiership club that rewarded a manager who had just been relegated with a job and pay rise. I can - http://tinyurl.com/Can-t-afford-Bakke

You'll work it out in the end. Haha, very good.

I don't think you can blame Lerner for MON leaving when he did. I don't understand how MON was able to get such a big settlement pay out. I can only imagine that, in his strong desire to attract a manager he thought capable of progressing the club, Lerner allowed MON certain clauses in his rolling contract. I don't think Houllier was passed it and I don't believe that Lerner could have predicted that some of his actions would alienate some section of the fanbase and members of the squad. Nor, could he have predicted we would face a relegation fight. As with MON, in order to attract what he thought was the best available option for the Villa at the time he was perhaps forced to allow certain clauses in Houllier's contract. I agree that hiring McLeish was a huge decision but I maintain that it is possible there just wasn't anyone else available. I'm including Mark Hughes as not being available and I don't actually think Hughes would have been a much better option. None of my opinions are based on my free scarf. They are all soley based on the fact that Lerner got a Villa tatoo. I think that your feelings are a result of your desire to find a scapegoat.

Acutally, changed my mind. I can't imagine you are suggesting we should have spent more? In which case, are you suggesting that we should have spent less to achieve even less than (less than) fourth? So are you suggesting that once we found ourselves in a difficult financial position we should have compounded the problem by refusing to sell Young, Downing, Milner? Spurs were not in the same position as us and have a much larger revenue (which they always have). I simply disagree with this. There is a monumental difference between the funds that City had available (and the impact on the rest of the league) before and after the takeover. So in sum, Lerner should have made less money available for transfers and wages? What else should he have done different?