TB

A wild stab in the dark: is it possible that they already had decided what kind of recruitment policy the club needed in order to improve year-on-year? The up-and-at-them guy they hired last year to salvage the season did in fact manage to avoid the drop. If he also could get the best out of the new crop of recruits: great. Keep him on until he's found out. If not: "Well, thank you, you did what you were required to do: keep us up. Now, you've had your chance to prove yourself, and you blew it. Cheerio. Now we're going to find the guy that actually will be able to bring the best out of our new squad." Or am I attributing way too much intelligence/cunning to the board?

A deeply mediocre side with a mediocre, unimaginative, but fairly competent manager might - just possibly - outperform a mediocre team with a clueless, wildly clutching at straws manager. No? Long season again? Fully agree. (btw: I just realised that my sig line describes the Lerner era to a T)

Holman wasn't a Lambert signing.

Haven't seen any references to this on here, but as Brian Deane is mentioned earlier in this thread, I thought it might be of interest: http://www.nrk.no/sport/fotball/deane-tar-oppgjor-med-rasisme-1.11975632 My rough translation - and I would like to point out that this is a non-native English speaker trying to translate parts of a story written by a Norwegian journalist, not knowing how accurately the journalist has rendered Deane's comments in the first place - of Brian Deane's comments to NRK.no in this article (I guess you all are familiar with Jeffrey Webb's, Mourinho's and Campbell's comments): - The numbers (2 black managers / 92 clubs in the 4 top leagues) are telling. Just granting someone an interview would be a step forward. It's hard to get an interview. It's as simple as that, Deane tells NRK.no. He agrees with Webb that English football has a problem with racism. Deane says that he has experienced this himself several times, both as a player and when he was looking for employment as a manager. - But I tried not to focus on this being a problem. I tried to find a way to move on. It's not easy. Football in itself is not easy. But I thought I had to do something different, otherwise I might ended up sitting twiddling my thumbs, Deane says about the time before he came to Norway. He points out that he has no evidence that the rejections were motivated by racism. But if you consider the number of non-whites actually granted an interview - it is a problem, Deane says. - It wasn't for us Deane scored the first ever goal in the Premier League for Sheffield United in 1992. He had a long career afterwards, playing for (amongst others) Leeds, Benfica, Leicester and West Ham. Deane believes racism in England is firmly rooted in the past. - I don't believe black players were encouraged to become managers. It was almost as it wasn't for us, if you know what I'm saying, Deane says. As an example, he cites a radio interview where a manager described black players as 'strong, fast and athletic'. - That's been around all the time. They do not say that we are capable of being leaders, for example. That's a problem, because many in positions of power in England today still have that attitude, Deane says. But at the same time, the 46-year-old points out that he currently have no involvement with English football. - Looking at the Premier League, they have managers from all over the world. The best managers in the world are in England. I'm primarily talking about the managers in the lower leagues, Deane says. (About Mourinho's comments) - It's important to remember that he got the opportunity because he was an interpreter at Barcelona. If not, he would never be where he is now. Talking about being the best is easy for him, but getting through the door is a problem. A problem he probably never experienced, Deane says. (About the Rooney rule) Deane believes the most important thing is that everyone is treated on equal terms. - I don't believe that you should have particular rights because of the colour of your skin, but I do believe that there should be equal opportunities for everyone, the manager says.

Fredric Brown: Knock (1948), anyone? "The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door..." Yes, I know it's just the first two sentences of the short story. But it's still a short horror story in it's own right.

Well, yes, it's certainly published, but when, exactly? And where and when did he get hold of the dimensions of the various pitches? That article is basically a re-write of the 2012/2013 article. The top right hand illustration were uploaded to the site in 2011, so I suspect that the 2012/2013 version may have been a re-write as well. None of those two blog articles actually mentions the simple fact that the PL board decided, prior to the 2012/2013 season, that all PL pitches must conform to exact UEFA size requirements if not physically impossible - and then the club must have permission from the PL board. Given that all PL clubs are required to register the dimensions prior to a new season, I'd choose to believe the PL handbook facts over any football blog out there. I wonder what other current and obligatory PL rules and requirements a PL team may choose to ignore without any repercussions. That said, I don't really believe that a yard more or less really would influence the tactics or the outcome of a match. But would any club take the risk, thereby giving their opponent a reason to protest if they lost the game?

The Premier League 2013/2014 handbook clearly states: "The Pitch K.15. Unless otherwise permitted by the Board, in League Matches the length of the pitch shall be 105 metres and its breadth 68 metres. K.16. The Board shall only give permission to a Club for the dimensions of its pitch to be other than as set out in Rule K.15 if it is impossible for it to comply with Rule K.15 due to the nature of the construction of its ground."

Good theory but we actually have one of the narrowest pitches in the premier league. Also, we would get slaughtered in midfield with two wingers - who do you know who play two wingers successfully? This, the only PL club with a narrower pitch than us is West Ham i believe According to the 2013/2014 Premier League Handbook, all PL pitches are 68 metres wide, except Fulham (65 m), Crystal Palace and Stoke (66 m), Tottenham (67 m) and Chelsea (67,5 m).

Again you're twisting peoples words. Fan support is a small percentage, no one has said it will make a team great but what they've said is it will help. Surely your parents have at some point said to you 'come on you can do it'. Surely you see this is more positive than 'you're shit'. Did you see mourinho getting the crowd going in recent matches? I hardly think you can use a quality manager like Mourinho and his very successful Chelsea team as an example here. You should be comparing us with poorer managers and poorer teams to see if crowd positivity works. Surely that's a better example that even top teams need encouraging so if Chelsea need it and they're very good we definitely need it as we are not!! Just what I was trying to say and in a simple sentence. Thank you.

Oh, I don't know. I'd say that if a quality manager with a successful team tries to get the crowd going, there might be a chance that he thinks that it's worth the effort and might help his team in some way... Surely the effect isn't limited to top quality teams and managers? And maybe if over the last 4 years our managers and made the effort the fans would respond. I may not have made my point clear enough, but I feel that you've missed it. I believe that it's about that any team may benefit from an advantage during a match, and if good managers with quality players feel it worthwhile (or even necessary) to encourage the crowd, then surely that manager believes that his team might benefit from it? If not, why would he bother? There's enough going on during the match that he needs to concentrate upon. Great teams need support, poorer teams would probably benefit from similar support as well. It might just tip the scales in your favour... If noone successful in the game felt that it wouldn't matter anyway, then surely they wouldn't bother?

Oh, I don't know. I'd say that if a quality manager with a successful team tries to get the crowd going, there might be a chance that he thinks that it's worth the effort and might help his team in some way... Surely the effect isn't limited to top quality teams and managers?

I've noticed on several occasions various posters claiming that Villa Park is the widest pitch in the football league. It might have been in the past (I believe it was one of the widest in the past, but not the widest), but it certainly isn't anymore. Nowadays, the PL handbook requires that all pitches should be a standard size (105 x 68 metres) unless the construction of the ground makes that impossible...

Then you may still have a 'Like' I still wouldn't want to block anyone outright, though, as a matter of principle. yeah, that's not a million miles from what Hitler did, and he killed my baby granddad when he was 27 - it can be very irresponsible to use showers as it turns out! I may have to have a re-think about my principles...

Then you may still have a 'Like' I still wouldn't want to block anyone outright, though, as a matter of principle.

You've added nothing to your point in the past 2 posts I've responded to and just said "the defence rests". What does that even mean in this context? Who are you defending? Have you just spouted a random cliché you heard in a film. Because you've got no actual point? Good luck with that. I wasn't aware that you edited your post until now. I'd added a 'like' in response to your original post (such as I remember it).

I'd suggest trying whatever you feel might apply (a mix of general advice for better sleep and specific advice for apnoea sufferers like myself): weight loss (not to the point of anorexia, though, but any superfluous pounds should go ) no smoking no alcohol try a nasal dilator lots of fresh air during the day - and an open window at night-time regular exercise making sure you are exposed to natural light (outdoors) during the day avoiding both natural and artificial lighting just before going to sleep (particularly blue lights, apparently) you may have a smartphone. Most people do nowadays Try a sleep-monitoring app like Sleep as Android or SleepCycle (iOS) to monitor your sleep pattern - deep sleep, REM, light sleep. Also, they'll wake you up while you are in a light sleep phase, making you feel less drowsy when having to rise and face the day. I find that waking from light sleep, even though I am awakened at an earlier time makes a difference. monitor your sleep by making an audio recording. How regular are your breathing stops? Twice during the night? 20 times an hour? Sleep as Android is able to do that, certainly other apps will as well (and even old gadgets like tape decks and the like) - don't know whether iOS apps are able to, but I would wager that some are. (edit) just seen your latest post. If it's observable by others, like your gf, then it's real. The apnoea might be the underlying problem. I know I had it for several years without knowing - or even waking up once during the night.

Oh, yes, definitely Sometimes problematic for wife/partner as well, but they get used to it after a while ...

Right. I'm not a med, just a run-of-the mill teacher, but I'd tend to rule out the sleep apnoea, if you only get it once in a blue moon. If you've got apnoea, you'd experience it almost every night. It could possibly be a side effect of the panic attack. Then again, if you had apnoea most nights (but not sufficiently strong to wake up during the night) - that might provoke panic attacks. Those two conditions are often related. Perhaps a visit to a sleep lab might be in order? Two birds with a stone and all that...

Sorry to hear that. Been there myself (still is, for that matter). But then again, it's a matter of severity. Some cases of apnoea have a (relatively) quick and easy fix, others do not. Did the doctor tell you anything about what could (possibly) alleviate the problem?

Well, yes, I've had apnoea for the last 20 years (at least - but that was when I was diagnosed with apnoea). Stopped breathing several times during the night. Would suddenly wake, gasping for breath, heart racing. Felt like a sleep-walker during daytime, found it hard to concentrate properly, prone to the occasional day-time nap... Classic symptoms of sleep deprivement. Unfortunately, there's several possible causes. It could be a problem with the brain's respiratory control centre (rare, I'm told), but in most cases there is something obstructing the air flow when you're asleep. If the problem isn't too severe, sleeping on the side (a tennis ball affixed to the back of a t-shirt or pyjama shirt is often suggested) or with the head and upper body elevated might be all that's needed. A nasal dilator such as Nozovent or a nasal strip might also do the trick. There's several anti-snore sprays as well, though I've not tried them personally - I ended up with a CPAP machine before the sprays became available. I was told that common problems are a] a soft palate that's too soft - general suggestions: avoidance of over-weight, avoidance of alcohol, surgery to tighten up the soft palate b] the nasal septum (the wall that divides the nasal cavity) might not be straight enough to achieve sufficient airflow. I had an operation to straighten the septum, but it didn't help me with my apnoea, as my problem later was diagnosed as c] a tongue root that is placed too far back, thus obstructing the air flow when I was asleep. I was told a rather complicated operation was needed to fix that (basically, cutting through the lower jaw on both sides, pulling the tongue root forward in the process, and then some major tooth adjustment afterwards), and that they'd recommend trying a CPAP instead. The night at the sleep lab was not too bad, really. The CPAP took a week to adjust to, at most, and I felt like a new man after that. I would recommend getting a CPAP with a humidifier unit. In my experience, a CPAP isn't too cumbersome if you really need it. It's an extra piece of kit to bring along on your travels. It doesn't need much maintenance. If you need it, the positives far outweigh the negatives. If you can do without it, then that's great. Lucky you.

Could it possibly be that leaking the news of the injury pinpointed his identity, due to a very limited number of people aware of the severity of the injury at the time of posting? Whereas the knowledge of the probable team selection could be more wide-spread?

Or rather (IMO, of course): What various media claims to be what he said was totally misleading ... The original interview I've listened to is quite different from the bits and pieces I've seen online purporting to represent the gist of his interview. In the full interview, I think that he does not come across as someone who has lost his appetite, neither for his job nor for the FA cup, but rather as someone who recognises that the first and foremost task at hand for most PL clubs (including Aston Villa) is PL survival, and if possible, CL qualification, just because that's the way modern football works... If an extended cup run (or indeed winning the cup itself) is possible, that's desirable (even though he feels medals are less worth to the modern player than the value of the individual player's contract), but a bonus - PL achievements take precedence over memorable cup moments. I got the feeling that it's not necessarily what he wants, but simply an acknowledgement of what modern football has become. Oh, and he talks on behalf of most PL clubs and managers, not Aston Villa throughout.... The only thing in the interview strictly referring to Villa was what would affect his team selection most: the upcoming Sheffield United game or the following Arsenal game. IMO, of course. As English is a second language for me I might have misinterpreted what he said. :-)

I have listened to the actual interview, and I think the media are twisting this quite a bit. To me, most of the interview is about why the FA cup might hold less significance nowadays,, and the financial importance of PL vs other competitions - for PL teams in general, not Aston Villa specifically. (Quite a bit of leading questions from Tom Ross, btw...) I don't hear him saying that Villa could do without the FA cup, but that he thinks that given the choice, most PL managers could do without it, because in modern-day football the financial gains in staying in the PL and even getting into CL for even more financial gain has become the most important factor. (IMO, he sounds like he would prefer it otherwise - the comments about modern-day footballers measuring success in terms of their contract, not in terms of their medals or their memories would seem to suggest that.) He does say the team vs Sheffield United might have to reflect both that there are players that would benefit from a run-out, and that there's an upcoming match against Arsenal. Fair enough, isn't it? And that if it's possible to progress in the cup, then he'd want to get through. No hints of giving up the FA cup altogether IMO.

Maybe HairyHands can give us an idea on whether the pitch dimensions has been looked at, and why we have it so wide when we're not playing with wingers? I thought that all PL pitches this season had to be identical in size unless the construction of the ground made it impossible?

Hey, I don't mind anyone picking on me (this is just an online forum - right?) But I'd very much appreciate any feedback on my spelling, grammar and any mis-use of colloquialisms... I've worked in the UK in the past, but that was some time ago...