dear mr krulak,
while i appreciate that you wont discuss transfer targets, nor will you disclose the funds available to our club because of the potential detriment it may cause in terms of clubs overcharging, i do think that at this stage fans deserve to know if aston villa can financially compete with our competitors for a top 6 place. im sure you understand the frustrations of fans right now, with so long having passed since the end of the season, and the impending transfer deadline, but after so long hearing the media what we do and dont have to spend, i think its about time we got a straight answer. do we have the required money to push our club towards challenging for a champions league place or not?
if the club were to come out and tell us that our aim this season must be consolidation on a tight budget, then i think youd find a good deal of acceptance, but claims that our manager has as much funds as required at his disposal (with nothing to point at that being true) casts aspersions both on the club itself, and the managers abilities in the transfer market. if mr lerner has never turned mr o'neill down in terms of financial request for potential transfer targets, then we must assume that mr o'neill's inability to recruit bodies rests purely on his own shoulders, as opposed to a lack of funds.
if the above is true, and it is indeed mr o'neills doing that we cannot bring in the players that are so obviously needed, then surely the fans deserve to be told precisely what is stopping us from building from our fantastic 6th place finish last season. i think if we are all led to believe that we are a club with upwards aspirations in mind, we should at very least be made aware how we propose to make these further steps forward, and ultimately who is culpable for a failure in this respect. this is not a case of playing the blame game, this purely a request on behalf of fans to know where we stand, and what our realistic ambitions can be.
at the end of the day, telling fans that all the money in the world is available, and seeing no results from it will only breed contempt for the manager and suspicion for the board, whereas telling us out straight that we cant necessarily go out and buy 8 figure players apart from in very rare situations, will at least give fans a sense of realism.
what the club risks doing right now, as far as i can see, is causing major discontent amongst fans, who have been waiting for big signings for almost 2 years, only to see a cheaper line of purchasing being pursued. this can neither bode well for attitude, nor support.
i think at this stage we need to know whats really going on, and i say this as a concerned season ticket holder appreciative of all your efforts in bridging the gap between the board and the fans. there is only so much blind hope any supporter can hold, when we are repeatedly seeing our dreams dashed time and time again as rivals sign players and we continue on an all to familiar path of budget priced hopefuls, and unfulfilled speculation.
i can completely understand if this is a post that runs a little too deep towards the day to day runnings of the club to be made common knowledge, but if at all possible, i think we deserve some form of answer
regards
peter nelis