Ghost_of_Pongo_Waring

He's not showing any glimmers he might improve? On 3 very short sub appearances?

 

Jesus Christ.

He's played 8 minutes, 13 minutes and 23 minutes. That's half a game in total.

Just how much time does he need 

I guess by accepting the Palace offer, we forced Fulham to make a move. Well done Villa.

This is how I see it as well. If Fulham were hoping that by waiting they'd get him cheaper we've forced their hand.

Thanks for the goals Darren but I'm glad we're freeing up your wages.

We are selling Darren Bent to a team that has beaten us three years in a row. Real smart!

 

Let's just give our nearest rivals a proven goalscorer at 5M, that is awfully good business after all.

 

Good luck to him though, always been a fascinating goalscorer and will probably score goals at Fulham when he will get some games. He leaves Birmingham for London and gets to play for a better club, so he isn't losing out much. Only thing is playing at that old cottage they have down by the river bank, awful place indeed. Been there a couple of times, always afraid of the floor giving up under me.

 

Again, I think it is a travesty selling him to them. If they beat us with 3-4 points come the end of the season and they have scored 10 more goals than us, we can only blame ourselves.

If we only sold him to teams that we didn't lose to over the last three years there wouldn't be much choice.

Great. Really pleased that this has been awarded now.

 

 

 

Looks like I am in quite a small minority here, perhaps as little as one.

And for what its worth, I always thought AVFC was `americanisation'.

Hardly Americanisation as they call it soccer! 

 

 

Although soccer is an English word and so isn't an Americanisation anyway

 

Doesn't matter how many times you point this out, there are still legions of people who just ignore the fact that soccer as a term is almost as old a term as the FA from which it derives. I really don't know why people hate the term, it was fairly commonplace when I was growing up in the 70's

 

It was interchangable while I was growing up in the 70's & 80's. Wasn't Subbuteo marketed as table soccer?  I've certainly never considered it an American term. We've used either football or soccer and the Americans have just used soccer. It's worth using just to annoy people sometimes

As for the badge having AVFC, I don't see a problem. Anybody that knows anything about English football would instantly associate it with Aston Villa just as the FCN logo is recognizable as FC Nuremburg.

Anyone that doesn't know can easily find out on the tinterweb and they'd also find out a bit about our history as well which isn't a bad thing.

 

Looks like I am in quite a small minority here, perhaps as little as one.

And for what its worth, I always thought AVFC was `americanisation'.

Hardly Americanisation as they call it soccer! 

 

Although soccer is an English word and so isn't an Americanisation anyway

 

Bent really wont be a loss as he has only contributed about 12 goals in 2 seasons which isnt good enough.

 

He isnt worst guy we ever had at club but he is limited. Phrase "does exactly what is says on the tin" sums him up perfectly

That isn't really his fault. He was superb under Houllier who bought him and played him to his strengths. Is McLeish did that instead of playing the 9-0-1 system where Bent ran around aimlessly as a result, he'd have been a hero.

 

I like Lambert and I like what he has done, but the way he has treated Bent is both unfair a bit childish. He deserves better and I hope he gets that elsewhere. We wasted potentially one of the best strikers we ever had in my opinion.

 

How has Lambert treated Bent unfairly and childishly?  the majority of the games he missed were through injury and, personally, I don't think he was ever 100% fit after missing half the season before.

No player should be guaranteed a place in the team regardless of form or commitment. Bent was dropped then didn't last the match when brought back. After the injury was brought back and again didn't see the match out but went off injured. Which is why I'm not sure he was ever fully recovered from the previous season.

I would be really interested to know what the contract offer on the table is for Benteke. I think that's one factor which is potentially significant but often overlooked. If it's 'only' £40k a week or so then you can see how he might get agitated because he could feasibly earn twice that elsewhere. I think we should offer him £50k plus generous add-ons. Perhaps we have, who knows? Either way,  the guy kept us in the league last year and if we want to be a big club again we need to reward players who perform like that. 

It was reported that we offered to double or TRIPLE his wages so I think 60K was on the table. Some reports say he'd twice agreed verbally to resign but went back on it.

Has the Trophy been retrieved from Ireland yet and is the Benteke situation going to affect this years presentation, as I assume he won it?

Personally even if he has won it should still go ahead, in my opinion, but obviously timing might be more difficult now.

It wouldn't be right to let the situation mess up a the presentation of a trophy born out of real tragedy.

 

Just back form the pub and I haven't read the preceding three pages so this might have been mentioned but reports have said we offered to double  or triple his wages. 60k a week is not  to be sniffed at is certainly not enough to keep him here for another season.

 

His agent has done him no favours and I hope he comes to realise this.

If the Villa did offer 60k, that is as much as Spurs or Arsenal would pay him anyway.

 

Spurs are apparently offering , at least close to, the 100k he wants. Thats a surprise.

Just re-read my post and    "60k a week is not  to be sniffed at is certainly not enough to keep him here for another season." ... should say is enough to keep him, not "not enough to keep him".

As I said back from the pub and I'm not 100% sober so apologies for typos.

It wouldn't surprise me to still see him here at the start of the season and i think it'd be the best thing for him, and Villa, if he was

 

How is doubling his wages 10 months into a 4 year contract a lowball offer? Our aim with that was never to compete with other clubs who may or may not want Benteke but to rightfully reward him on a job well done. A 100% pay rise more than does so.

If they feel it's unacceptable they need to look in the mirror. They signed the deal in the first place.

 

The only players to score more than him in the league were Rvp 235k, Suarez 120k, Bale 135k. 

 

Now granted there are other players who were near him who were not on such extravagant figures, Lukaku 46k 2 goals behind Benteke, Michu 30k but his deal is heavily incentivised and he gets large appearance fees and goal bonuses one goal behind Benteke, Lambert could not get any info on what roughly he was on since he signed his new deal but there are a lot suggesting he is on a similar set up to Michu with figures of 35k a goal being mentioned again I have no idea of the accuracy. of these findings.

 

Players to get 18+ goals or assists last year

34 - RVP

28 - Suarez

25 - Bale

24 - Mata

24 - Walcott

23 - Benteke

23 - Carzola

22 - Rooney

21 - Lukaku

20 - Michu

20 - Lambert

20 - Hazard

20 - Podolski

19 - Tevez

18 - Berbatov

18 - Gerrard

 

Look at the money being forked out there, if we ever want to get back to the upper echelons we simply have to pay, now I agree that 100k a week is steep, but perhaps we could go 50k and big appearance and performance bases bonuses. 

 

Just back form the pub and I haven't read the preceding three pages so this might have been mentioned but reports have said we offered to double  or triple his wages. 60k a week is not  to be sniffed at is certainly not enough to keep him here for another season.

His agent has done him no favours and I hope he comes to realise this.

Will this be on AVTV cant find any mention of it

I'm sure there'll be commentary. Bloody better be, I can't wait.

English Premier League Aston Villa are out to acquire re-offer 8.5 million pounds transfer fee of special (about 1.3 billion yen), but to speak, "I want to work hard towards the new season resting firmly" on towards the next season was kept. (Noboru Ito)

Thats how google translate has it.

I take that to say he was asked about our trying to buy him for 8.5 mill but he just replied that he was working hard for the new season.  Which is a standard 'no comment' type quote.

 

Why the hell would we bid £600k under his release clause and expect them to accept?

Mental.

Well that's it. Save money I guess, if it were true. Not sure other than that.

 

Maybe as a way of confirming our interest to the player but slowing things down as we're waiting to off load someone first. Or possibly the exact figure of the 'release clause', if there is one, was in doubt.

I'll be honest I know the square of sod all about the player but it's been an entertaining bit of speculation and it'd be very funny, considering the abuse she's received, if Julie B turns out to be correct. Even if she's done herself no favours with her tweets.

It's still rumbling away..... 

http://linkis.com/dlvr.it/5xcD

Nuremberg: Drmic sign Kiyotake to Villa?

As foreseen for several days, the leaders of Nuremberg formalized the arrival of Josip Drmic. The German management has paid 2.2 million to recruit FC Zurich striker, who signed a four-year lease.

In the other direction, the German team has rejected a new offer from Aston Villa for Hiroshi Kiyotake. According to Kicker, having made ​​a proposal for 7.5 million euros, the Villains are back with an estimated 8.5 million slightly higher offer.

 

I think we may have to accept he doesnt give a toss about defence.

We just signed one of the hottest young prospects at centre back; and a player who has played right back for Groningen. I accept that Lambert is certainly more attack minded than defence minded but 'not giving a toss' is something I disagree with.

 

Spot on BOF.

It's also worth considering that this is, I believe, the first time Lambert has spent two seasons with the same club in the same division. It's understandable that the defence he built at Norwich in League one, for example, wouldn't be the strongest during the following season in the Championship, and again the following season in the Prem.

If we continually struggle defensively then it'd be fair to doubt his management in this area but he deserves a bit of leeway at the moment, in my opinion.

 

 

 

Best manager for years and years.

Lets not get ahead of ourselves. He's achieved no more or no less than McLeish. A very long way to go yet before we start building statues of Lambert outside Villa Park.

no more than Mcleish?

Last season we played some of the most negative football with a clique of a squad, no plan for future progression and playing over paid players, actually signing over paid players in the process. We finished 16 on 38 points, 7 wins and scoring 37 goals.

This season we have played exciting football, cleared out dedwood, played young hungry players, increased the value of the squad, not yet finished and potentially will finish higher that 16th, with 10 wins, 40 points and scoring 45 goals.

He has only "achieved no more or less than Mcleish" if you are only trying to justify a stance, in any real sense of comparison he has achieved more than Mcleish

 

The points one or two posters have made against your above post concerning balance and the fact that you have been posting we would go down says it all.

 

No-one is trying to justify anything other than being balanced on our performances this season. For two thirds of the season its been dreadful and having to rely on Wigan losing to secure our Premiership status with just one game to go, being diplomatic, is poor.

 

I can understand the over reaction on here stating that he's the best manager we've had in a long time or there are only two other managers currently in the Premiership that you would have instead of Lambert at Villa Park, but that reaction must be based on relief rather than performance.

 

Thankfully we have for the last third of the season witnessed an upturn in form which since the system change has seen us safe by the skin of our teeth. During this period we have played some terrific football and also seen the naivety that comes with inexperience. The manager should be commended for the system change but also should be criticised for the system stranglehold he put on the players for two thirds of the season and as stated before it was due to basic common sense rather than some magical potion that the team's form improved from such a dreadful start.

 

So in context while we are finally safe from the threat of relegation, it shouldn't, by no means be seen as an achievement!   

 

To put it diplomatically .... thats rubbish.

Our fate was in our own hands and we did not have to rely on Wigan losing last night.

As for the 'stranglehold' he put on the team. We had inexperienced players and a terrible run of injuries, mostly in defence, for eight or nine games on the spin. It's easy for posters to say Lambert should have donme this or thatt but then those 'suggestions' will never have to be tested on the field.

 

 

If Norwich are in it on last day I think they are sinking as City away and Wigan willl probably sneak past us. though id be loathe to have Whelan have a lap of honour at our expense

 

With our form and our record at the DW I can't understand why so many people seem to think Wigan will win the game.

 

BECAUSE THEY BEAT US AT HOME THATS WHY!

 

No need to shout.

They usually win at Villa Park but then we usually win at the DW. They've only beaten us once there, the first season they came up,  while we've only beaten them once at Villa Park

If Norwich are in it on last day I think they are sinking as City away and Wigan willl probably sneak past us. though id be loathe to have Whelan have a lap of honour at our expense

With our form and our record at the DW I can't understand why so many people seem to think Wigan will win the game.

I think it's going to be interesting to see how our defence is strengthened for next season. Lambert has a bit of a reputation for not being solid where defence is concerned. However, if we stay up, I think it will be the first time the defence he's built will be playing at the same level two seasons running.

At Norwich his League One defence was playing in the Championship the following season and then the Premiership the season after. It's understandable that they'd struggle in those conditions. It may be that he's just not going to be strong defensively but maybe he'll surprise us.

I certainly hope so.

 

there is only one brown sauce and that is not it.

they should know better, posting that on a Villa forum, given the location of the Villa and the location of a well-known brown sauce manufacturer that is not Daddies.

 

Both Daddies and HP are manufactured in the same place ..................... and it's nowhere near Aston or indeed England.  Bloody Heinz

 

Can't agree with this at all.

 

Lambert has had a worse time with injuries, in my opinion.

 

Dunne, & Petrov out all season. Obviously Petrov was known but it was still a problem to be resolved with limited resources.

 

Albrighton, Gardener and Bent have spent most of the season injured.

 

Then we had a period of nine or ten consecutive games where we had a player going off injured during the game. Our inexperienced

defence was having no chance of getting used to playing together as it was never the same for two halves of football let alone same every game.

 

Thats hardly an easy time with injuries.

 

Apart from Dunne (and arguably Gardener), none of the players you mention featured regularly even when they were fit.

 

Compare that to Houllier against ManUre in 2010. In this preview Houllier is hoping that Clarke, Bannan, Albrighton and Delfonouso will rise to the challenge of playing the champions (and they almost did it!). They were only starting because we had no other choice.

 

From memory (looking at the squad that year), we had injuries to

 

Dunne

Petrov

NRC

Downing

Ireland

Agbonlahor

 

all at the same time during this period. All are first team starters.

 

Now that is a tough run of injuries.

Bent has played more games, when available, than he's missed. Albrighton hasn't been able to play regularly as he's not been fit and the nine or ten consecutive games where we had injuries they were all, with the exception of Enda Stevens, players who've played regularly this season.

The only defender not to have missed games through injury is Lowton and I think Guzan and Benteke are the only other regular players not to have missed due to injury.

I'm not saying the Houllier and McLeish didn't have injury problems but this season is easily as bad. A lot might have been short term niggling injuries but they still disrupt the squad.

Injuries. It's not as simple as you always make out. You literally discount so many things and repeat the same small minded nonsense over and over. Go support bluescum where you belong. 

 

The injuries we had this year have been nothing compared to the crisis we had at times in our last season AND in the one before that.

 

Did either Houllier or McLeish get any reprieve from the fans because of that? Nope.

 

As such, I see no reason why it is a valid excuse for Lambert's results. Injuries are an unfortunate part of the game for every manager - and Lambert has had it pretty easy in comparison to his predecessors.

Can't agree with this at all.

Lambert has had a worse time with injuries, in my opinion.

Dunne, & Petrov out all season. Obviously Petrov was known but it was still a problem to be resolved with limited resources.

Albrighton, Gardener and Bent have spent most of the season injured.

Then we had a period of nine or ten consecutive games where we had a player going off injured during the game. Our inexperienced

defence was having no chance of getting used to playing together as it was never the same for two halves of football let alone same every game.

Thats hardly an easy time with injuries.

 

 

We can't afford many more slip ups now. Forget Utd game, just keep the score down in that one. Chelsea at home we need to hope they're on the beach but Chelsea have been our nemesis this year so no doubt they'll be out to finish us off.

So that leaves

Stoke a - physical battle , take a point ? 1

Fulham h - literally a must win 3

Sunderland h again a must win 3

Norwich a I think we need a win here 3

Wigan a hopefully we'll be safe before this game, draw 1

So I reckon 11 more points if we don't slip up anywhere so 41 which should be ok

So we increase our points to games ratio to over 1.5 during the next 7 games following a ratio of just over 0.96 in the previous 31 games.

 

Amazing transformation!

 

 

In our last seven games our ratio is 1.43 points per game. Not such an amazing transformation at all.

We'll just forget the fact that 6 of those points were against Reading and QPR shall we.

Why should we forget that ?

We beat two teams that are in the relegation scrap with us and two of the games we've got left are against Sunderland and Wigan, who are also in the same situation as us. Stoke and Norwich aren't exactly sitting pretty either.

It makes more sense to compare our last seven games, our current form, with our remaining games than comparing seven games with our last 31 games.

Y'all must be trippin. I think we'll win at Wigan.

Unless we're safe or virtually safe (e.g. we need just a point and for Sunderland to not win at Spurs) then yeah maybe, but if we go into the last day with it still in the balance then I just can't say it. Wigan have experience with this, our team don't.

Wigan also have an awful record at home against us. Their win at the DW in their first season in the Prem is the only time they've beaten us there in seven seasons.