Jas

I've just ordered Xbox live off Amazon as it's cheaper.

How does Football Manager work on live? As on the PC you need IP address etc. Is it alot easier to join a game on the 360?

buying a company is not as simple as buying a pack of polos from a corner shop.

first the bid must be formally made, then finances must be checked and its then up to the current shareholders to sell. anyone who thinks a sale will happen this tuesday is out of there mind.

I don't think that at all.

But I feel if Lerner bids tomorrow, it'll be announced to the Stock Exchange.

There's our new owner, the club will accept his bid, he'll look through the books AGAIN - make no doubt about it, they're already massively into this.

Also I don't really mind, I think everyone involved in this knows that it's going to be Lerner's club in a few weeks etc, thus why they are spending money out of the overdraft.

This won't harm potential signings.

Wouldn't disagree Jas but I suspect it'll be Tuesday before we find out given that they have to inform the LSE first

Yeah, could be, your guess is as good as mine.

What if a bid has been placed this weekend? Would we find out tomorrow when the Stock Exchange opens?

Ok, So if there is a board meeting tommorow, are we likely to hear of anything that was discussed unless they agree a sale ?!?

if they decide nothing, I doubt we'll hear

if however as expected they do decide to recomend a particular bid then they will have to report that to the LSE

That's what is going to happen tomorrow IMO. Doug Ellis doesn't fly out to a country, to then come back the next day for a 'meeting' on Monday.

This meeting is crucial, and a bid is going to be placed. No doubt about it in my mind.

If anyone is expected to take over start of September then something must happen ie bid to be accepted. It took 3 weeks to get it sorted at sunderland, that would take us to end of august/early september.

Yeah, but negotiations have been taking place for at least 2 months, if we're talking about Lerner.

As for Fox Sports News - why's it interesting that it's made there? Is it there SSN?

So does anyone think anything will happen tomorrow?

I think this thread is going to go up to about 380 pages before it's all over.

eg- Dwight Yorke

Or Mickey Boulding!

.. hang on..

Indeed it is, and i agree DDID, lots of eggs, on lots of faces. Swines.

I hope so.

Why has this site got 'Randy Lerner' under the face on the top left corner, I've wondered since it was put there.

Any ideas?

There was a poster on here who said 'I wish my dad was here to see this' before, and my heart goes out to them, because there are THOUSANDS of Villa fans that would say the same thing. Ellis has cost this club success for many years, and a lot of people are unfortunately not able to see this club prosper without Ellis with their Fathers/Mothers sat next to them.

My partners Father is one of those - we paid for a paver and everytime we go to VP we visit it and take yet another picture of it. We both wish he was still here to see the changes going on today.

Yeah, my heart goes out to you and your partner, it really does.

It's people like you that have felt the Ellis era the most. I mean I've still got my Dad, but going to Villa is about me and my Dad, you know? For years and years we've been going and it's just shit! But everytime we score, it's all hugs and that, which is immense to me, the best feeling in the world - the team i love and the Dad i love, all happy at the same time. That to me is what football is about, not about keeping the books clean. I know football is a buisness to people like Doug Ellis, but ultimately you see other teams around you spending, taking a calculated risk etc, and going on to major finals etc, that's where Villa should be.

Hopefully with Ellis gone, we will be, and mate, your partners Dad will be looking down on this and have a smile on his face, don't you worry about that.

Up the Villa!

Not going to bother answering - but if you can't see the 'Awww, hes an old bloke he's not that bad' posts on here, then I'll point you towards some of the last few posts on this board.

As I said, doesn't matter. Ellis is as good as gone. Which is good, as its means the manager will have a chance of succeding.

Don't worry about it John, you've suffered for a long time, us older-ish fans have. It's coming to an end, like you said.

As for the 'Awwww'ing', you wouldn't be if you knew half the things he's done to hold us back. So what if he's old, he should have left 10-15 years ago. I have no sympathy for the man!

There was a poster on here who said 'I wish my dad was here to see this' before, and my heart goes out to them, because there are THOUSANDS of Villa fans that would say the same thing. Ellis has cost this club success for many years, and a lot of people are unfortunately not able to see this club prosper without Ellis with their Fathers/Mothers sat next to them.

Doug could have changed that a long time ago, he's cost us for years. I have no sympathy for that man. Thanks for the no debt mate, but it got us nowhere!

oooooh, thats wierd.

Maybe he miss heard?

Maybe he means he doesn't want to have to hire a new manager again?

I'm so confused. :S

Lol, same. At first I thought he misheard, but having watched it again, and again, lol, im pretty sure he understood.

He's gone, he's more or less confirmed it now. Bring in Randy!!!

I don't know if anyone has seen Ellis in the pitch side interview on the BBC (http://tinyurl.com/n6qgm link) - ignoring most of the rubbish from Ellis - the very last question is:

Reporter: "Will this be the last major signing as Chairman of Aston Villa?"

Ellis: "I don't know......But I'd hope so!"

Okay so Ellis has strung us along before but I was surprised he said that. Usually I would have expected him to either dodge the question or go on about how he can still play tennis with the young 'uns!

Wow, just watched it, the BIGGEST hint yet :shock:

Im well confused, lol.

I can confirm he has said that

Can we trust him?

I reckon so. I can't remember an occasion where he has said something without some substances behind it.

Of course, others might have done - I can only say I've never known him say something like that without a good reason.

Cool, it's happening guys!!

I can confirm he has said that

Can we trust him?

Apparantly Fear has just been on Midlands today discussing the appointment, and he apparantly said that he has on good knowledge that Lerner is taking over the club, and he has the champagne on ice?

Can anyone else confirm this, as i no longer live in the midlands.

Thanks.

yes it is shut Tom ....

TT, any plans for Lerner's jet ?

Nope, but bear in mind that by the the time I find out, it could well be flying past my window.

ATM I am comtemplating an early duck to go home to my lad 'cos he's just-a-little-bit-excited

But then I am conscious of my responsibility towards you guys and gals :winkold:

YOUR A LEGEND!!!

As for all these consortiums, forget them, this is LERNER's club!

I've read and heard that it could still take weeks - months to get this sorted, ahhh so frustrating!

I really know nothing about this, but it should be possible to sort this out faster than that? If O'Neill really is lined up to take over tomorrow then I wouldn't exactly be surprised if an agreement regarding the takeover to be imminent.

If an agreement is in place, then surely it would be possible for us to see some transfer action even if we weren't formally taken over yet?

Someone care to enlighten me about this?

Yet again lets clraify this.

IF tomorrow a consortuim gets Petchey and Ellis to sell their shares, they will control the club from the time the money is transferred.

They then can spend straigtaway.

I would imagine MON already knows how much he has and who he wants.

It can be done quickly

lol but this is very unlikely as they've been trying to buy these shares for a couple of weeks now.

They'll be no signings this summer. But it could still be the most important summer in AVFC's history.

Will the squad cope with no new faces, only time will tell.

I think we have a manager though, in which will lead us to 13-10th place though, with the current squad.

But of whom's money will he be spending? :?

I think that there maybe a small amount of borrowing initially

I thought the rules about takeovers meant that we couldn't sell or buy any assets/players?

No cast iron bids are in - Ellis can tell them all to **** off if he wants. But he may allow some spending prior to the Villa being under offer.

Any spending will impact on the potential sale of the club - I doubt, and as stated by the club, there will be any transfer activity until the takeover is completed.

That's no money being spent until maybe January then.

I've read and heard that it could still take weeks - months to get this sorted, ahhh so frustrating!

Hmmm

We just need a couple of signings in midfield to really boost the place up a bit. Hopefully MON will be given some dough, and it'll be paid by the eventual owners.

Afterall, Doug wanted assurances that the new owners would spend £20m, so buy now, and take the dosh off the assurance.

Don't think it'll be that simple though.

I disagree Jas.

Schedule was Lerner buying us last Wednesday!!!!!!!

Lol oh yeah, i forgot about that.

But if he's coming in now to check out the squad etc, he must be in a position to be able to bring in some of his players, god knows we need them.

But of whom's money will he be spending? :?

Does this mean a takeover is going to happen soon?

That's the million dollar question!

I think it's all going to schedule.

The takeover will happen in the next week or so, I'm sure of it.

All this silence is music to my ears, silence is definately what I've been waiting for. It means only one thing - something is being done, talks are progressing etc.

As for checking the accounts etc, I'm sure Doug has all that ready for Lerner to view etc, and that is being done as we all debate what's going on.

Ellis is definately selling, no doubt in my mind, and the deal will be completed soon.

O'Neill in need of assurances from Villa

By Gary Jacob

DOUG ELLIS’S handling of takeover negotiations is scaring off Martin O’Neill and some of the potential buyers of Aston Villa. The Barclays Premiership club’s chairman has offered the managerial vacancy to O’Neill, but the Irishman is believed to have been annoyed by reports in the local press indicating that he will be introduced as the successor to David O’Leary, who was dismissed last month.

Some of the consortiums interested in buying Villa believe the club may be attempting to stoke up a bidding process. Two of them are discussing joining forces to consolidate financially and make one bid. Michael Neville, who tabled a formal £64 million bid last week, has approached Nicholas Padfield QC, part of the AV06 consortium.

Padfield said last night: “One of the crucial issues is the extent to which Doug Ellis wants to retain a stake in the club or whether he is prepared to sell his entire shareholding. The other critical issue is what the position is as regards the team manager — has one been appointed, is one going to be appointed, the nature of his contract etc.”

O’Neill is interested in the job but is seeking more information about the potential owners of the club. The former Celtic manager may find it easier to work under a different regime to Ellis, who has been in control for three decades with one minor interruption.

Ellis is anxious to have a manager in place before the start of the season, in part because there remains the possibility that the takeover will not happen or the negotiations drag on. Some of the consortiums are unhappy at Ellis’s approach because they would want to appoint their own manager.

They are also unhappy at the speed of the negotiations because, even if a deal could be completed in the next couple of weeks, there will be little time to bring in players before the end of the transfer window this month. The parties are perplexed as to why Ellis is stipulating that they must provide money for new players, in addition to finding the £64 million asking price to buy Villa. There is also unhappiness within the club at the way that the negotiations process is being conducted.

O’Neill is the favoured choice of Randy Lerner, the owner of the Cleveland Browns American football franchise, who is believed to be ready to table a firm offer this week. Lerner’s main competitor is a consortium headed by Athole Still, the agent of Sven-Göran Eriksson. They made an offer for the club last week. “We now hear that there are two more consortiums and we don’t know what is going on,” Still said. “The ball is in Villa’s court. We have done everything in the right and proper manner.”

So it seems Still has actually put an 'informal' bid in. All doesn't seem well though, Ellis seems to be upsetting a lot of people. Stop being a clown Ellis!!

This was taken from the Times newspaper, here's the link:-

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,27-2296972,00.html

Sorry, i messed that post up a bit :?

Anyway, read the article from the Times, seems Still has put a bid in, and Ellis is making alot of people unhappy in the way he is conducting this, i.e. taking FOREVER!

On SSNjust now they showed the back page of the Sun and down on the bottom right the headline was 'RANDY ON VILLA BRINK'. they didn'y read the article though. so god knows what it means

... here it is

Randy on Villa brink

By JANINE SELF

RANDY LERNER is on the brink of a £64million bid for Aston Villa.

To add to that:-

O'Neill in need of assurances from Villa

By Gary Jacob

DOUG ELLIS’S handling of takeover negotiations is scaring off Martin O’Neill and some of the potential buyers of Aston Villa. The Barclays Premiership club’s chairman has offered the managerial vacancy to O’Neill, but the Irishman is believed to have been annoyed by reports in the local press indicating that he will be introduced as the successor to David O’Leary, who was dismissed last month.

Some of the consortiums interested in buying Villa believe the club may be attempting to stoke up a bidding process. Two of them are discussing joining forces to consolidate financially and make one bid. Michael Neville, who tabled a formal £64 million bid last week, has approached Nicholas Padfield QC, part of the AV06 consortium.

Padfield said last night: “One of the crucial issues is the extent to which Doug Ellis wants to retain a stake in the club or whether he is prepared to sell his entire shareholding. The other critical issue is what the position is as regards the team manager — has one been appointed, is one going to be appointed, the nature of his contract etc.”

O’Neill is interested in the job but is seeking more information about the potential owners of the club. The former Celtic manager may find it easier to work under a different regime to Ellis, who has been in control for three decades with one minor interruption.

Ellis is anxious to have a manager in place before the start of the season, in part because there remains the possibility that the takeover will not happen or the negotiations drag on. Some of the consortiums are unhappy at Ellis’s approach because they would want to appoint their own manager.

They are also unhappy at the speed of the negotiations because, even if a deal could be completed in the next couple of weeks, there will be little time to bring in players before the end of the transfer window this month. The parties are perplexed as to why Ellis is stipulating that they must provide money for new players, in addition to finding the £64 million asking price to buy Villa. There is also unhappiness within the club at the way that the negotiations process is being conducted.

O’Neill is the favoured choice of Randy Lerner, the owner of the Cleveland Browns American football franchise, who is believed to be ready to table a firm offer this week. Lerner’s main competitor is a consortium headed by Athole Still, the agent of Sven-Göran Eriksson. They made an offer for the club last week. “We now hear that there are two more consortiums and we don’t know what is going on,” Still said. “The ball is in Villa’s court. We have done everything in the right and proper manner.”

So it seems Still has actually put an 'informal' bid in. All doesn't seem well though, Ellis seems to be upsetting a lot of people. Stop being a clown Ellis!!

This was taken from the Times newspaper, here's the link:-

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,27-2296972,00.html

The American billionaire’s advisers are back in talks with chairman Doug Ellis and Lerner will beef up his bid if he likes what he hears.

Lerner, 44, has been interested in buying Villa for some time but stepped back last week as three other consortiums broke their cover.

The owner of the NFL’s Cleveland Browns was also sidetracked by the annual migration of his gridiron squad to their pre-season training camp.

But Lerner, who made an £800million fortune through the sale of family business MBNA, still wants the Premiership club.

The fact Villa have offered their manager’s job to Martin O’Neill has also helped.

O’Neill was first choice to replace David O’Leary for both Lerner and rival bidder Michael Neville.

The former Celtic and Leicester boss has promised Ellis a decision by the weekend and, if he says yes, will join Villa on their pre-season tour of Germany and Holland.

That leaves octogenarian Ellis free to concentrate on a sell-off before the start of the season.

Lerner leads the race but faces stiff competition from Neville and a group led by judge Nicholas Padfield, who revealed last night they might join forces.

Padfield said: “We have been approached by representatives from other consortia. One is a representative of Mr Neville.

“We are considering opening discussions with them. Nothing is going to happen until I return from holiday at the end of the week.

“One crucial issue is the extent to which Doug Ellis wants to retain a stake in the club or whether he is prepared to sell his entire shareholding.

“The other critical issue is what the position is as regards the team manager — has one been appointed, is one going to be appointed, the nature of his contract etc.

“This will impact on the amount of finance available to buy new players.

“I have had no discussions with Mr Ellis and all of us find it surprising no one from the club has bothered to tell us what the position is.

“I don’t anticipate we will be in a great rush to make a bid simply because we don’t have all the relevant information on which to base it.”

The other consortium interested in buying Villa is led by Sven Goran Eriksson’s adviser Athole Still