Hairyhands

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Ever thought it isn't as easy as just coming on with every exact piece of information available. What I've tried to do is give some people an idea of the strategy, the fact the big money many thought/think is there quite simply isn't and a reason why certain things are being done. It might not be mega exciting stuff but people were throwing around names of Premier League players Lambert should go for and I was simply saying that wouldn't happen. It will be foreign players who arrive. It that doesn't exactly float your boat then that's not my problem but I do, whether you agree or not, have a little information as to what is going on. I think you'll see a player from the Bundesliga arrive if the deal can be done. Now I didn't join this forum to try and be a smart ass to try and be the man by giving signing information it was more a general view I was trying to put across but since you are such a little doubter I'll have a wee think and see if I can deliver you some exclusive information so you can tell your pals and look wonderful! Don't be disrespectful!

Ok, so I don't expect you to simply take my word for it. Wait until the end of the window. The players will be from abroad. They won't be mega expensive but probably still very good footballers. A defender is the priority. So is a physical midfield player. If anyone was to arrive from England, they would probably be as part of a swap deal. I still think the squad will be much stronger in a month's time but there won't be big money. Maybe, at a push, they'll go a bit further to get someone but doubt it. That's the owner's decision. Yip, haven't been on long so maybe you'll just have to wait until the end of Jan to discover if I'm right or wrong! But it won't be the latter.

You refuse to accept the facts. There wasn't more money available. Same as there isn't sack fulls this month either. Accept it and move on. There is some money available but not anywhere near what you seem to think. As for Bent, trust me when I say he has been out of order. Attitude has been shocking. I'll not give specific examples. You say kept Cuellar and Collins but the pair of them were hopeless as well. A few new faces will arrive but from abroad. When it happens you migh finally accept there isn't £10m to go and spen on one top player. There isn't even £5m to splash on just one as things stand. Also, I'm not saying cost cutting means relegation battles. But cost cutting in your first year, plus trying to get rid of the amount of deadwood that Lambert is having to do, means it isn't as simple as signing a few new players and flying up the table. Get realistic. Everton have been built over years of Moyes hard work and that is the road Villa are having to go down so as much as its sore just now, I think you'd be better looking at the bigger picture. Happy New Year

Let me tell you there wasn't anything left. In case it has escaped your attention, costs are being cut. Martin O'Neill spent money as if it was going out of fashion before leaving, Houllier was a disaster - any manager willing to pay what he did for Bent needs their head read - and do I need to say much more about McLeish. Left a bunch of duds on more money, and by that I mean a lot more money - than they'd get at any other club outwith the top five or six. If there was more money there it would have been spent. Same goes for January. If the money was there Lambert would sign experienced players from the Premier League as they are a much safer option - you know what you are getting. But they cost a lot more to buy (transfer fee) and a lot more to keep (wages). Hence why that won't happen. There will be a split in opinion as to whether the owner should bankroll another spending spree but the bottom line is it won't happen. So, brace yourself for players from abroad. It makes more sense for Villa at this moment in time. Good players - perhaps more of a gamble - but costing less. Now you can bang on that he wants youth and doesn't want to spend the money but the truth is it simply isn't there, certainly not the amounts being branded about. That is the harsh reality. But it doesn't mean a better team can be formed for the second half of the season. As for Bent, can't a manager change his mind on a player when it becomes clear they aren't interested. If you were to pick a player on more money than anyone else at your club and he isn't giving his all then would you keep picking him. No, you wouldn't. You'd decide enough is enough and look to offload them. Wasn't Bent part of the problem last season? Why allow him to be as big a part of the problem this season when he is draining the club on vital money? No-one can say for sure we will stay up - it is a gamble and in an ideal world the owner would significantly increase the chances of us staying up by splashing the cash in a big way but once bitten, twice shy! Now you bang on about signing a centre-half isn't Vlaar one of them? Decent in my opinion. A decent striker was also required and if you are going to tell me big Benteke isn't all that and more than I'm wasting my time. I'd imagine another defender will arrive next month and possibly a physical midfielder. Two priority positions. Add the return of Vlaar and Gabby to that, plus another possible signing, and we are at least back in the back game and in with a fighting chance. Your point about it doesn't have to take years to get back to the top eight is ridiculous. I'm not meaning to have a go at you as such but there is only one way that was/is going to happen if for the owner to realise huge amounts of money which, as I've explained several times, isn't going to happen. There is a long-term plan here. Yes, it obviously hinges on the club staying up this season but to improve year after year it makes sense to try and bring in younger players although I do concede there is also a need for a bit more experience and if not experience then certainly better players to play next to them. Watch this space as they say..................

Hippo believe me when I tell you he didn't come in and decide youth was the way to go and that he didn't want to sign anyone over 25. Nor did he feel after the transfer deadline closed in the summer he had a squad good enough to shine in the Premier League. Nor did he "try to do the same at Villa as he did at Norwich". As some of the guys have rightly pointed out, there wasn't a lot of money available and he had to try and bring in a number of players with one eye on this season and the other very much on the future. I think he has done a decent enough job in that respect (if you want to look at it this way the club could sell Benteke and pretty much get back every penny he spend during the summer). Bent was bombed out because he refuses to work hard enough for the team. Got his chance - wasn't interested - and got bombed. Hutton is rubbish. If you think he is any better than the guys in there just now you're kidding yourself on.....the only difference is he earns more than double what they do. Nzogbia was also given his chance but didn't deliver and like Bent his attitude stinks. What Lambert is having to do is continue to cut costs but at the same try try to somehow improve a squad of players that was a disaster when he took over. That can't be done overnight so to suggest he is another Owean Coyle or whatever is nonsense. No-one is suggesting he is above criticism either but take time to think of the problems he has encountered and the fact there isn't a quick fix. What you'll see during the month of January is one or two of the wasters I've mentioned leaving, reducing the wage bill, and two or three coming in from abroad. There is better value for money there and since there isn't £20m to spend this time aorund then some bargains will have to be sought. The sooner you realise Villa will take years to sort out the better. Personally speaking, I think with a couple of the injured players back and a few new faces avoiding the drop is most certainly not beyond us. Look at the league table - we ain't in the bottom three and the teams above us can be caught with a win or two. Even if we slip into the bottom three I do feel we will improve from Feb onwards. But don't blame the manager for a mess that was created long before he arrived. He'll put it right but it will take time and maybe this year we'll all just have to accept it is going to be a dog fight and keep our fingers crossed we survive.

Well what did you want Lambert to do....come in sign players for next to nothing and all of a sudden be in the top half of the table. The batch of experienced players people keep saying should be playing were all playing last season when they club nearly went down. All I'm saying is give the manager another window to try and improve the team. As a number of people have pointed out, his signings have been fairly decent - most of them anyway and cost not a lot. The bottom line is the guy took over a rubbish team after a dud of a manager left. He wasn't given a great amount of money to make things better and he probably won't get millions more in the next window either. As they say, you can only pee with the c o c k you've got!

Some people on here really need to take a look at themselves and their attitude. What did they expect Lambert to do - come in, wave a magic wand and convert the club from being a team fighting to avoid the drop into a team pushing for Europe in the space of five months and just one transfer window? A lot of folk are sensible enough to know the current manager is having to deal with problems created by previous ones - none more so than McLeish! How much money has he spent? He spent decent money on Benteke and delivered a top player who could be sold in January for easily double what he cost. Westwood is another good player who will get better and better. He didn't cost much and neither did the rest. It isn't as though he has come in, spend £30m and signed duds is it? And it isn't as though he has come in and decided he doesn't need to spend money. You can only spend what is available. Whether any of you like it or not....this season was always going to be the toughest. Lambert knew that. It is simply about trying to avoid the drop and after that finishing as high up the table as possible. After that, it is about progress. This is a long-term project - the manager made that clear from day one. Forget tactics and formation - football is all about players and at this moment in time Villa don't have enough good ones. With just one window to play with and not a lot to spend, hardly Lambert's fault. But new players will arrive in Jan. If you think over £30m will be spend then forget it. It won't even be as much as £15. Slowly but surely, the big-earning duds will leave and free up more and more money for Lambert to bring in better players giving value for money. It might not sound like fairytale stuff but that is the harsh reality of where the club are at this moment in time. Prepare yourselfs for one or two of the big-earners leaving and a few players from abroad coming in. Things will turn but there isn't an overnight solution to this.

Let me clear something up lads....Lambert didn't arrive at Villa and decide I want to sign kids - the finances dictated that. You think if he could go out and get the likes of Gareth Barry or Lescott on loan he wouldn't jump at the chance? Of course he would. But the bottom line is the money isn't there for that. Blame the owner for that if you like but it most certainly isn;t the manager's fault. I'll take a wee guess as to what will happen in Jan and if I'm proved correct then maybe one or two will start to take a bit more notice. One or two, more if possible, of the older guys eating up the wages and giving nothing in return will be punted. Possibly even on loan if no buyer can be found - and how many clubs would be willing to match their wages?? Not many. As for players coming in, I don't think they'll not be arriving from other English clubs but from abroad. Better value for money. More of a risk I suppose but if the money isn't there for deals in England what can the manager do? What I'm struggled to understand is why is it the manager's fault that the club aren't spending big?? But I do think there will be a few new faces in Jan that are a lot better than what is there. Benteke was a great piece of business. Vlaar has been okay as well. Some of the younger lads haven't hit the ground running but didn't exactly cost millions. Watch this space - it will get better!

You make very good points. If money wasn't a problem, Lambert wouldn't care less if they moved on or not but it is. The guys you mentioned are all on ridiculous money and the problem is finding clubs to offer them the same wages. But do epople not think Lambert would rather spend £7m on an experienced Premier League player than a young player from the Championship? But you can only spend what you are given. My understanding is that he has made it very clear to the board that he needs around 5 experienced players. He doesn't want to buy kids from lower leagues. He also knows he can't offer the same money as the big-earners are on right now as the overall bill has to come down. But he will get it right. Signings will come.

Guys, reading the posts and would hope some of you would take some time to consider do you not think Lambert probably agrees with most of what you are saying. The current group of players aren't good enough. Investment is needed. More experience is required. The team needs to become more physical. Believe me, he does. And the intention is to try and make big improvements during the January transfer window. First and foremost, money is required. The owner has to back the manager - no question. The manager wants 4-5 new players and he needs to get them. That, plus some of the injured players back, will see Villa with a far stronger team than the one that is being sent out just now. But take a minute to look at the bigger picture - difficult I know when the team is edging ever closer to the drop zone. Villa are a club paying the price for previous managers spending big money on players who don't deliver. Bent - lazy and offers nothing to the team. You can be lazy when you are playing in a team packed with quality so he needs to be offloaded. Nzogbia will be sold too. On big money - over 60k - and his attitude is stinking. Dunne is finished and will be allowed to leave. Hutton can't defend and is on seriously ridiculous money which McLeish sanctioned. Warnock is the same. Given is on massive wages too and his best days are behind him. Now I agree the guys who are filling in aren't great either but if and when these guys are removed from the wage bill it will mean more money will be available. Its not Lambert's fault they are all at Villa and on huge money but its a problem he is having to fix. If it isn't him, it will be the next guy. Basically, the club will struggle to move forward unless this problem is tackled. Lambert will turn things around. I know it seems a long way off and you wonder where the next win will come from but once a few signings are on board things will change and change quickly. I'd suggest everyone tries to stick together for the next month and then see where the club are. I think you'll find one or two of the guys I mentioned will be away, a few new faces will be on board and there might even be a cup final to look forward to. The club will also move up the table. You need to trust in the manager for now!

No chance whatsoever of a) Lambert quitting or being sacked! The plan is to get a few new players in during the transfer window, attempt to steady the ship, get the injured players back and go again for the second half of the season. Its not going to be pretty but this year was always going to be a tough one. So many expensive mistakes were made under McLeish and others that it will take time to recover fully. My tip is for 4 new players to arrive - one being a defender! Possible cup final to look forward to as well. Eventually, we'll start to climb the table. Swansea is going to be another tough one as none of the injured players are back but once some of them are, and a few new faces on board as well, an improvement in results will follow.

What people to realise is Richard Dunne is, excuse the pun, done! Finished. The Euros proved that. Nzogbia isn't interested either and will be punted in Jan. That is another McLeish blunder that Lambert will have to fix. Bent doesn't give enough for the team either. Given is a good pro but past his best. So the experienced players aren't/weren't up to it and it wasn't for the want of trying to get more in. Their wages are the problem - they need to be offloaded before others can come in. Let me assure you he isn't looking to bring in more kids in January. But if he doesn't get money from the owner what can he do? Lambert knows exactly what is needed but you can't always say what you want to say to the press. Same way he can't exactly say we're bang in trouble. But he knows better players are needed. He always has even at the start of the season. If allowed, he'll bring in several more experienced players. An experienced centre-half is his priority. To play next to Vlaar. I think most of his signings haven't been too bad. If he gets money - which I think the last few results will force the owners hand and give Lambert some funds - he will get it right. Villa will be fine if the manager is given money to put things right. Stick with him until the end of next month and you'll see.

Been reading plenty of the posts on here and can understand after yet another shocking display there is a fair amount of anger. But now isn't the time to even suggest a change of manager. It is time to look at the bigger picture. Do people think for a second Lambert didn't want to sign better players in the summer or more of the?. The budgets he is having to work within are far less than the duds that he is following. Does anyone honestly think he doesn't feel some new faces in January are a must? Of course he does. And I'd be amazed if he isn't making that known to the powers that be on the back of today's display (I hear Randy is over this weekend so would imagine it is to discuss January transfers??) The days of splashing big-money on expensive players are over. That isn't Lambert's fault. Maybe if McLeish hadn't blown as much money on players who haven't performed the owner might trust the current manager a bit more. But Lambert came in as part of a 3-4 year process. His first year was always going to be the toughest - to try and steady the ship ever so slightly but at the same time cut the wage bill. Some of the big earners aren't worth anywhere near the money they are paid. In time, he will get them out the door and when he does it will allow him more money to work with moving forward. Lambert knows this team badly needs experience - doesn't help when the few experienced ones are actually injured. But he showed with Benteke he can sign top players without spending huge amounts of money so Randy has to back him. Lambert knows this team he has needs help badly and will struggle to avoid the drop. But if he gets a few bodies in at the start of next month we could find ourselves reaching a Cup final and climbing the table. Question for everyone......what would they term a success this season for Lambert. Cup final and mid-table? I'm sure he will deliver that!