Ponky

Yeah but JC walked on water - that's a bit harder to do you'd think....

Just on Neill - from what I have read in the papers it may not be a done deal to WH. The deal Blackburn made with Liverpool was cash plus Warnock. Hughes will need to find a new fullback if Neill (note the two "l"s, just like O'Neill) goes to Hammers. Hughes has always said unless the deal's right for Rovers Lucas will have to wait til summer.

The fact that two top class right-backs have been available - Neill and Lauren - and we are not linked with either - could suggest that we have someone lined up for the end of the year. Or perhaps O'Neill still wants to give Delaney a bit of respect to see if he can make it back into the squad? Or maybe both? Or it could just mean no-one really knows who MON has in his sights....

Lucas Neill was one of the players of the World Cup. Hiddink played him as a sweeper, rather than a right-back, and he was outstanding for the entire WC campaign bar the final minute when he "appeared" to give away a "penalty" to that cheating scumbag Grosso. Liverpool were very keen and Barcelona were keen too, through Johan Neeskens who was asst coach of the Aussie team now Asst Manager at Barcelona. If a living legend like Neeskens thinks he's good enough for Barcelona then I think that's a pretty good reference. THAT SAID....I am pretty disappointed at his mercenary behaviour - shock horror from a footballer I know - but I'm a big fan of Lucas and it seems he pulled a fast one on his club. His original reason for leaving Blackburn was a dream move to a big club like Liverpool or Barcelona, and here he is going for the relegation fodder that is West Ham. Mind you, if someone offered me a an extra 25 grand a week i'd probably take it and run too. I'd love to have him in a Villa shirt but not if he was just coming to cash his big fat cheques every week. If I was the Rovers boss I'd say $@ you very much Lucas, but you can play with us for the rest of your contract.

avfc89 are you O'Leary in disguise?

DeepDish how do you know we are not in for Carew? There's only been speculation about our targets and Carew's departure, so there's nothing to say we're not after him. Or have I missed something?

Yeah, I was more noting that Werder are after Carew, someone we've been linked with. But if Werder want him in July, we might be able to nick him in Jan. Apparently he was left out of the (Lyon?) team on Sat, so he could be headed somewhere.

Sky sports site say Werder want Baros AND John Carew to replace Klose, but only at end of season.

Not mentioning the "R" word here. But the general said the "s" word teehee

I hope he's busy doing other stuff!

HE signed Petrov, Bulgarian international, for Celtic so I'd hazard a guess he knows about other high-quality Bulgarians. We can sit here wringing our hands all we like. But Martin has the extra benefit over us of a team of professional highly qualified scouts! So he is probably aware of many players - and their relative availability - probably many more than the lot of us put together. Seems very clear to me he is chasing very specific targets to begin with, and will look at slightly more risky players as time ticks on. Which is probably the EXACT reason he doesn't want to blow his budget on overpriced kids like Young, so he'll have something to spend on other targets later in the window. (Well I hope so anyway!)

Well if the Hammers reckon they can get Lucas Neill I reckon we can too. And Bardsley can just toddle off back to Old Trafford....

Something from the U.S. perhaps?

He didn't show up for a medical at VP this morning too did he?

try here

Just had a look at this site Which has only one rumour about Villa: 'Freddy Adu will start a trial period at aston Villa on thursday'. Hmmmmm......Man U didn't want him but he's a very popular transfer target on Football Manager....

I think in those circumstances the only real option MON has to appease the masses is to sign championship players (or league 2 stars like Jermaine Easter!) or players from clubs in other countries; both of which type player is untried and has a much greater risk of failure than proven premiership quality. If he does this and the experiment fails, then he is doubly damned because not only did he not sign premiership stars but he also wasted Randy's credit rating on some overseas duds. I would suggest he has several overseas targets lined up, but he knows there is a chance that such signings might not pay off for 6 months (if at all) and so he will focus on his 4-5 big targets from the premiership and when those are clearly unavailable he will look elsewhere. Not foolproof but who knows of a better way for January signings? After all, whoever we sign we'll want them stuck into the rotation ASAP won't we?

If you go back to that article where he says he wants to bring in 5 Petrov-quality players you need to read the whole thing - because he goes on to basically play down expectations by saying it might not be possible, but he will try his best. So he can't win - he's raising expectations by saying what he wants to do, but others will say he's too negative by saying 'oh, but it might not happen'.

GEe how loved must Sheva feel at the moment, with Chelsea apparently willing to throw mega-buck players at Villa to get hold of a bloke that many Villa fans would happily give away.....

Maybe pinch Viduka from under WH's noses as well?

Dont think we are in for him to be honest..... And its only the carling cup as well... Doesnt really come into it, there not going to not play him purely because theres speculation around his future.... Surely Bellamy will be begging for someone to take him away from Liverpool after last night!

As Marty has come out and said just recently, we'd rather see the new faces being unveiled at the club than hear him talking about who he's going after. So if all you local lads can head down to Villa Park can you let us know when you see anyone??

The was defo the problem in August daholteend. Newcastle wanted Viduka, which fell over meaning they didn't need the money and no need to sell Milner IIRC.

Hi - first time poster, posting here from Perth, WA. I am a very new Villa fan, having decided (through a complicated process) to follow Villa just before the start of this season, and having only followed Premier League only casually in previous years. From a relative newcomers perspective, it seems to me that many people here are assessing activities during this window by the standards of the previous administration and management. For example, if Villa has not been mentioned as making a bid for SWP, Bent, or whoever, it must because MON is too cautious, Randy has spiders in his pockets or the club as a whole has not enough ambition! I understand completely I do - you guys have been burned before over so many years to the point where you expect to be disappointed by inept management or stingy transfer budgets. I have been paying close attention to the things MON has been saying over the past 3-4 months and it seems to me that he has a plan for Villa, to build it into a powerhouse club with quality players and quality people in behind it. He has also made it clear he has been leaving no stone unturned in searching for players to come in and bolster the squad. He says he is in it for the long haul. Randy has also said this, and is clearly a sports nut so it is evident he is prepared to put the cash into the club to build a great squad (and come on - he owns a credit card company - if he can't afford the transfer fees he'll just whack it on the Visa card and pay it off in 18 mths time!!) The fact that Villa is not being mentioned in the papers as being after this or that player, and MON was saying he wasn't sure how much money was available and Randy hasn't made any statement about what he wants to do with the squad these are all very encouraging signs IMO. It seems to me that, unlike Curbs, who is under pressure to save his club's arse RIGHT NOW, he does not have to throw money left right and centre, he can pay attention to the market, select his targets carefully, and do what he needs to do to get them over the line. In fact it seems to me - from reading the papers only - is that Villa are waiting and watching the main action with other clubs' bids and then jumping on the wagon when a price has been set. Yes, MON says nothing will happen till after the FA cup match - but really that's a no brainer - who else has been signed yet apart from Boa Morte and a few loan deals? Like everyone else, I am busting to know who we'll get, and I hope things start to gather momentum this week, but I think we should try and save the angst and defeatist gloom and doom until the first of Feb!!! Cheers - Ponky from Perth