MMFy

I've got a photo that looks like that somewhere of around 20-odd Ivor Novello awards. They were all sitting on my desk, like my own miniature bronzed army...

I believe the club are still trying to purge the overpaid, under-performing players signed by the previous three permanent managers, and that when the job is complete the manager will be given funds to sign new, better quality players. I believe there will be a drive to sign players with the right attitude and the will to succeed with Aston Villa, rather than seeing the club as a stepping stone (Lowton). I believe the transfer fees and wages will be made available to sign the right players, but those wages will not be what they were under the O'Neill tenure. I believe Benteke is likely going to be used as the model for future transfers - bring them in for a reasonable fee and pay them reasonable wages, instead of an inflated fee and unsustainable wages. I see contracts of no more than 4 years for most players, but 5 year contracts for the promising younger players that have already cracked into the first team (Weimann). I can see any players who want to '**** the system' being ushered out the door fairly quickly. I believe we are trying to restructure our wages in line with Everton, who pay an average wage to a senior player of £27k/week. Last season, Villa's average salary was £47k/week. Everton represent ultimate value for return, while we were performing like a crack whore. And finally, I expect us to sign more players from Holland/Denmark/France/Germany/Belgium. It's known that you can pick up a bargain in Belgium, but picking the right one will likely prove the key for Villa moving forward..

Well guessing you can't ask questions (or won't get the responses) about how happy he is, whether he thinks Lambert is the right man etc... Therefore what about... Has he been fit all season? Does he think we will stay up? Can he see the club moving forward? Does he think he'll get back into the England squad? No, it's been difficult with the injuries. Yes, the club is in transition + extra mantra. Yes, there is a lot going on behind the scenes. That is down to the manager and my performance on the pitch. Not my opinions, but the only answers DB is likely to provide are going to tow the company line.

I think we're playing a lot better when we have a flat back 4. The wing back system shipped in the goals that have left our goal difference in absolute tatters.

ITV4 - The Big Lebowski

What a **** stupid thread.

It's all so incredibly banal. South Park summed up internet memes with the 'Faith Hilling' episode - as soon as they catch on, they have been done to death. The only internet memes that have stood the test of time is the range of crudely drawn black and white faces.

Excellent. The Official Villa Facebook page now has 1,000,000 fans. The noses, "pride of the Midlands" - from two years ago, have amassed an enormous 40,000. That's Villa fans outnumbering noses by 25-1.

Just got two speeding fines through the post from a jaunt down a French motorway last Saturday morning. Now, I know I was speeding, but if the **** hire car had given me the A6 All-Road I ordered, and not the shitting automatic Citroen C8 they provided, I would have been able to drive up the hill to the apartment at 5am to collect the luggage, instead of wheel-spinning in the snow for an hour, unable to put the snow chains on because it was too dark and they were sticking to my hands every time I touched them. And subsequently would have been able to travel to Lyon at a reasonable speed. **** you National/Enterprise. You will be getting a nice big complaint letter now.

North Devon. Despite the area I live in having the lowest average wage in the country. It's **** awesome here!

That Rory Delap has got a long throw on him, hasn't he?!

This. If he has a chip on his shoulder, isn't it a bit odd he has captained pretty much every club he has played for?

What's your budget? Also, check out the buy/sell section on pinkbike.com for some good condition second hand deals. And as tinker says, if your budget is low, don't bother with suspension. You're only entering a false economy with the quality of the remaining components...

It's been mild here all day today. Not a spot of rain or snow, just a minimal frost this morning that disappeared almost immediately. I was in Les Arcs in the Alps last week. About 2.5 feet of snow in 5 days - epic!

Is it safe to post Tim Minchin's "**** the Pope" song yet?

All 61 with 10 seconds to go. Couldn't remember the team that finished 19th last season until the death!

Without Lerner coming in we would have been relegated in 2007. After the David O'Leary debacle, we were pretty much certain relegation fodder. But to be fair, where we are now is where we were then. And Doug is away with the faries. So out of touch with the modern game it is unthinkable to have him back. Comparing Lerner at present to HDE in his later years is like having a dog piss up your leg. You can't choose not to get pissed on, you just get to choose whether it is a labrador or a spaniel. They're both pretty much ineffective in their role.

I've been out in Fraser and Breckenridge, CO, when it's been -48F. That was **** cold...

1990. Wimbledon at home. 0-3. John Gashnau hattrick. There was big stakes on that game and Wimbledon were bottom of the league. I honestly believe if we had won that game, the last 20 years at Villa Park would have been significantly different...

Owning a Premier League football club must be getting him a lot of pussy. There's no other reason I can think that he is still here. He's certainly not here to run it as a profitable business and he can't be taken seriously if he says he is in it for the sport. I've given him time now. I refused to get on his back until he had a decent chance of turning this shit around, but right in the relegation mix on the 23rd of January and refusing to buy a single player, while all those around us have signed 3 or 4 each, is the clearest sign that he doesn't give a **** any more. All I ask now is that he doesn't sell us to a bunch of words removed.

I want them to get relegated again. I don't want to see them go out of business, I want them to shrink to a Walsall sized club. No offence to Walsall, I just want the noses to be one of the minnow teams of the Midlands. They were quick enough to plunder Oxford a few years back when they spunked all their money on a new stadium. I hope their least shit players are all poached before the end of the window. And I'd take Davies off their hands at the moment, for about £1m...