Philosopher

He clearly isn't sharp, but doesn't look far from it. A few more games and will will he be firing again.

I wouldn't write off Buendia or Zaniolo. They takes 2 seasons to properly come back from a cruciate ligament injuries. Plus adapting to a new country and league. I expect to see Zaniolo improve as the season progresses. Buendia has a long road back. I don’t believe he is top tier, but he has attributes that can help us. Plus he won't be sold until he is able to prove his fitness, so I expect to see him here next season. Traore is a real wildcard, but we need consistent performers to compete at the highest level.

He really needed that!

How was that a yellow, wasn't even a foul this ref is terrible.

Dendonker is looking clumsy tonight!

I'm already confident Marsahall is better than Olsen

I'm glad to hear that! I'm wasn't insinuating antisemitism, but rather the bad blood between Israel and Egypt (Israel invaded Egypt and stole some land).

What do people think of Oscar Gloukh of RB Salzburg, who we have been linked to? I remember him being very impressive in the u20 euros a couple of years ago. Not sure what Swaris would make of us signing an Israeli though!

Martinez 80m vv 100m Cash 30m vv 30m Konsa 50m vv 50m Torres 70m vv 100m Carlos 25m vv 25m Mings 20m vv 20m Digne 15m vv 25m Moreno 15m vv 25m Ramsey 80m vv 100m Dendoncker 10m vv 10m McGinn 50m vv 80m Kamara 70m vv 100m Luiz 110m vv 110 Tielemans 50m vv 50 Bailey 75m vv 100m Diaby 75m vv 100m Buendia 25m vv 25m Watkins 80m vv 120m Duran 20m These are my realistic valuations. With their value to Villa (vv) next to them. Players like McGinn, Watkins, and Kamara are far more valuable then the price we could get for them.

Incredible team performance. Bailey was unplayable. McGinn bossed them. Defence never gave them a sniff. Kamara and Luiz were very assured. Tielemens was all over them. Watkins always an outlet. Just so tidy with the ball. Playing out was spot on.

I always believed he was capable of this. He has now firmly answered all his doubters with his quality. Fabulous performance from start to substitution!

He had a poor game yesterday. However we can't blame the defenders for everything. I find it no coincidence that our right side struggled so badly with Kamara not playing. Had Kamara played I'm sure we would've faired better defensively. Him usually drops into that RCB position to turn our back 4 into a five. This definitely impacted the amount of protection our defense usually has, as with as the normal organisation.

BTW winning a cup is far from guaranteed. Regardless of our intent. This hypothetical scenario is complete BS really. There are no guarantees. We just have to fight hard in every competition, and Unai has to manage the squad and game load well. Ultimately the leagues gets prioritised simply because where we finish is what we deserve. It's a fair comparison come the end of the season. We could go out the City in the third round of the FA Cup. It's all about the luck of the draw.

I have seen us win a cup. It's all in the past. I want to see us become a team like the Man U under fergie. I want us to create a new legacy!

Neither of those club had a manager as good, or owners are wealthy as we have! Leicester had their best players gobbled up, and Leeds got themselves in massive debt. Leicesters title win was seen as a fluke (and it was), they didn't have the strength in depth to compete in the league and Europe plus had to do without the likes of Mahrez and Kante whom left for exceptional careers at City and Chelsea respectively. It underlines my point in the Doug thread about the importance of keeping your best players. With the owner and Manager we have champions league would reap huge rewards.

Reality is if we are good enough the qualify for the champions league then we are far better placed to compete for the FA Cup next season, and puts us within striking distance of competing to win the league. The benefits of top 4 out weigh that of winning one of two lesser trophies. I prefer to be pragmatic here rather than romantic. My only caveat mentioned before is the tiny bit of me that is superstitious feels that the FA Cup curse needs to be broken. I follow Villa because they were my local club and I love football. The fleeting pleasure of winning a trophy is not why i follow Aston Villa. If it was I'd have been a Man U or Arsenal fan. What I do like (as well as the feeling of winning a trophy) is the feeling I get after we win a game. If we become a top 4 team we get alot more of that feeling.

Champions league is just too important to our clubs development. So champions league. But I also believe the FA Cup is a bit of a monkey on our back. Ever since trophy was stolen in the 50s we haven't won it. I feel like winning the FA Cup would usher in a new period of success for Aston Villa. The ECL however is the trophy I feel we have the best chance of winning as almost all of the side in it are team we 'should' be able to beat. Can I be greedy and say all 3?!?!

I would definitely not be contemplating selling Konsa, Ramsey, or Bailey. In Konsa's case he is 26 so has his best years ahead of him, his alternative is 30 year old Carlos. Carlos for me is still adapting, and will be starting to lose pace in another year or two. Makes far more sense to be willing to let Carlos leave (if the right offer came in) than Konsa. Throw in our highline, and the proposed clear daylight change in the offside rule, pace at the back is a must and Konsa has that. Bailey you said it yourself! Who can we get for the same money or less to replace him, that we can be confident are an improvement? I can't think of anyone. Ramsey is one of our own. He is more than good enough for us. He is incredibly versatile. Cm, am, lm, rm anywhere across the midfield bar dm he can play. His ball carrying from deep is the best in our squad. His only weakness for me is his concentration when defending can lapse, and his tackling needs improvement. Otherwise, he's got a bit of everything. Athleticism, passing, dribbling, press resistance, good finisher, hard worker. He's got his best years ahead of him. Not one good reason to sell unless a 'stupid' money bid is made. And I mean more than 60 - 70 million. With McGinn if the summer arrives and a 50 million bid comes in we have to consider it. Simply because he'll be 30 with a game that relies on his energy levels, robustness, and ability to work box to box. All this diminishes once one passes 30. He is highly likely to diminish as a player come 32, 33, so cashing in while we can isn't necessarily a bad thing. Having said that as long as he's good enough I'd love for him to stay a Villa player.

You sir are right. It's incredibly hard for a team outside the champions league to source players of their quality. So you keep for as long as you can.

Neymar cost 200m, Coutinho 145m, Spurs have only been in top 4 for a couple of seasons when Bale was sold. Juve needed the cash. Ronaldo had been trying go to Real for 2 seasons. Suarez was also throwing his tou out the pram. All the sale mentioned also were all top foreign clubs. So it proves the point I was making. We shouldn't be selling our best players to the teams we are trying catch. And if we do it's because our hand was forced and we get as much money for them as possible. 100m is only enough to enter negotiations. Regardless of whether any player is worth it, the market dictates the value, not common sense unfortunately.

That's irrelevant!

We may have to. My point is that It should be a last resort (in regards to our best players).

The top club sell on their own terms. They can replace top player with top player far easier than we can. We can't compete with the stage (champions league), the wages and the pull of those clubs. In addition Liverpool for example sold Fabinho and Henderson in the summer. It wasn't because they could resist the pull of Saudi Arabia. It was because they were past their best and the money was far more than their worth as premier league players. Liverpool kept Salah, because wanted to keep him. I don’t see any club prising Van Djilk away. Same with City. PSG been after Bernando Silva for years, he's still at city. The top clubs sell top players when they become liabilities, have disputes with an established manager, or when they are aging and will need replacing anyway! Not because they get offered a 100 million for their best player. They say no or 300m. Not 100m that's great thanks!

I think with the and manager we have persuading Luiz to stay is far easier than persuading Jack to stay at that time. The club seem primed to compete for top 4 and in Europe. Our position us much stronger now than before. This idea that seems to be floating that we should drop our panties as soon as 100 million is flashed is embarrassing to me (I'm not talking about you btw). If we were to let go of such a talismanic figure without a fight it sends a bad message. To us the fans in regards to the ambition of the club. The players that want to succeed with Villa. As well as the players that want to use Villa as a stepping stone. It undermines what we are trying to achieve. Such wheeling and dealing inevitably leads to lots of players in and out, and threatens the great environment being fostered. Wolves, Brighton, Southampton are stark examples of what happens if we prize money over on field progress. Granted they lack the infrastructure, ownership and fan base Villa have so are forced the operate in that manner. We may have our hand forced, but if we are serious about being a top club, we have to fight tooth and nail for our best players. Simple. as. that.

Come the summer he could be worth more. For me we should outright refuse to sell in January. Luiz should be able to accept this. In the summer if we have qualified for the champions league, 120 million if not more. If not and he is demanding a move in the summer then begrudgingly accept 100m.