Harry

Liverpool recently are just like Spurs in that they want to be linked with everyone and they shamelessly allow every single shred of information to be leaked to the media. I suggest they try putting their money where their mouths are.

That's very presumptuous.

As a matter of fact, the new Liverpool policy is to report nothing until there is something to report but that won't stop agents leaking, journalists digging and other clubs briefing.

And that assumes I give a flying **** what Liverpool's policy is on anything.

Conversely you clearly put a lot of store on what is being said by agents and journalists as you started the debate on this thread.

But if Liverpool say nothing why did you bother to report the leaks and digging?

Just like Young was!

He's not gone anywhere yet...

That is kinda the point, he meant Luke not Ashley I suspect.

Oh yeah - forgot about that dodged bullet.

Downing deal might not happen. I'm just passing on what I've heard. I would have thought there's a desire to push it through while you're without a manager.

And exactly how do Liverpool 'push' a deal through for our player when we don't have a manager ?

That depends on your CEO, doesn't it? As long as you don't have a manager, that's one less person who might try to block any deal.

Yes, because we have a track record of selling players we want to keep to Liverpool. Our board have never been strong armed by other clubs, and with us practically powerless to keep Ashley Young I think selling Downing before we get a manager in is a long shot to say the least.

Next you'll be telling us you heard Downing to Liverpool for a fee of £12M.

Spot on and well said mate!

Hearing whispers that Downing's Liverpool move is getting closer...

When was Downing linked with Liverpool? :?

I don't see us letting Ash and Downing go.. It will be one of them and it's Ash imo.

Absolutely spot one. Young will go but I think Downing will be held to his contract. I have to say I get fed up of all this 'billy big bollocks' stuff about Liverpool in the media. I would agree Dalglish has done a good job but man for man that side is no better than Villa and has no more chance of playing CL football than we have next season. If you don't agree with that look at the competition.

Liverpool recently are just like Spurs in that they want to be linked with everyone and they shamelessly allow every single shred of information to be leaked to the media. I suggest they try putting their money where their mouths are.

Hearing whispers that Downing's Liverpool move is getting closer...

And your source is........?

What's the latest odds?

Oddschecker tells you everything.

The odds on McLaren worry me.

I think he a total prick too but on his day a very talented one. As a few have said no one will take him off our hands even for nothing on those wages so we might as well try to get him playing for us. A new manager might just deliver that. What have we got to lose?

From the mail:

RANDY Lerner will not rush a managerial appointment and it is likely to be at least another week and most probably longer before Gerard Houllier’s successor is unveiled.

Villa are patently aware of the need for a rapid resolution to their search for a new boss and are likely to adopt a speedier recruitment process than they did last summer.

But the time-frame is fluid and much will depend on whether the claret and blues ultimately settle upon an out-of-work boss or one who is currently contracted to another club.

Of the free agents in the running, Villa are continuing their bold pursuit of former Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti, while Martin Jol also figures prominently in their thinking.

Contrary to suggestions that Ancelotti has already turned Villa down, the Italian will be given the weekend to mull over their approach before responding early next week.

Jol is highly thought of by Lerner and only the fact he was under contract to Ajax prevented the owner from making a serious play for the former Spurs boss last August.

Former Middlesbrough boss Steve McClaren has tried to banish his ‘Wally with a Brolly’ reputation from his failed England spell spending time overseas in Holland and Germany.

Although, after his impressive achievements at FC Twente and less encouraging spell at Wolfsburg, the Villa hierarchy are aware McClaren is still unpopular with some supporters.

Rafa Benitez has privately indicated his interest in the Villa vacancy and wants a Premier League return with his family settled in England following his time with Liverpool.

However, Benitez’s demands for total autonomy are Martin O’Neill-esque while, after Houllier, Villa are also wary of appointing boss with strong Anfield connections.

Robert Martinez’s place among the Villa contenders has prompted Wigan owner Dave Whelan to start preparing a bumper new contract to stave off interest in the 37-year-old.

Whelan would still be able to demand compensation for the Spaniard, who has a year left of his current deal, but the Latics chairman is keen to tie him to longer terms.

Villa hope to make an appointment by mid-June at the latest by sticking to a tighter schedule than last year when almost six weeks passed between O’Neill leaving and Houllier starting.

Ideally, it will be more straightforward than back then when they spoke to Sven Goran Eriksson, Alan Curbishley and Kevin MacDonald at length before deciding on Houllier.

This time, providing everything runs smoothly, Villa will hold a thorough interview with their prime candidate and only if there is a snag will they speak to anybody else in detail.

Meanwhile, Houllier has revealed Villa blocked his plans to resume work on a part time basis until he was fit enough to return fully in late August/early September.

The departed boss suggested easing himself back in and delegating some duties to coaches Gary McAllister and Gordon Cowans, but Villa were worried about another early season period of turmoil like last year if he was subsequently unable to come back.

“I almost died,” said Houllier. “The doctors advised me to not resume before late in August or early in September. So it was a problem.

“The officials were also scared my comeback could be postponed again at that time. I can understand that. The risk exists.

“They are still traumatised with what happened last year, when Martin O’Neill left five days before the start of the season. So they didn’t want such a possibility to happen again.”

Click

I think that's probably the most balanced analysis of our probable position I have seen recently.

Seemingly Ancelotti is the man they want and I applaud the club for aiming high. The only really worrying name mentioned is McLaren who would be a total no no with supporters. Personally I don't think he is anywhere near the job if for no other reason than there are better and more high profile candidates around.

If not Ancelotti Jol would be a good shout, Benitez has the right sort of CV but I'm not convinced. I also quite like the idea of Martinez, a good young manager who could really build something at the club.

As for the two obvious names not mentioned in the article Hughes would be a decent appointment and he is clearly in the market now. I am rapidly cooling on Moyes. By any measure he has taken Everton as far as he can and it seems it will be another summer of wheeling and dealing on a shoestring probably involving selling a prized asset. Where is his ambition? Not necessarily with us but generally.

I see Hughes and Moyes as being very similar but Hughes had the courage of his convictions to put himself in the market and I quite like that.

If there was ever need for proof that Villatalkers get bored when there's no further news, I think this thread is it.

3 pages of talking about sauces, pasta, pirates and mystics.

Given we collectively know **** all about what is going on I've found it very entertaining.

Not sure about 593 tugs though....the Tarot card reader must have looked like Steve McLaren :shock: if that was the case or alternatively it was a severe dose of brewers droop.

So this is what Gazetta Da La Sport has to say, or at least what Google Translate thinks Gazetta has to say, I hope for the sake of the journalist that Google is wrong or else the numbskull believes Fulham are in the Champions League next season with Anchelotti as their manager

Premier: Ancelotti will go where?

Many roads lead to Fulham

The former Chelsea manager would like to stay in England, where only 4 companies will change driving technique: Hiddink chose Chelsea, Aston Villa betting on Hughes, Ranieri could go to Blackburn. Al Fayed is the club ...

LONDON, June 3, 2011 - Perhaps for this reason that British journalists have a liking Carlo Ancelotti: In the tranquil landscape of the technicians of the Premier League, he always makes news. Before the dismissal of Chelsea, with a lot of protest from the coaches association for the little British ways - notice of dismissal of Everton in the corridor of the stadium - and then the rumors of a possible job at Arsenal, West Ham and QPR to promotion of fresh, up to the torment of the past: Aston Villa. The news was born and died in one day was enough that Ancelotti would contradict with a simple "no" to each other to close games. Aston Villa should end Mark Hughes resigned yesterday from Fulham and all roads led him to Birmingham.

PA few changes - The market for coaches in the Premier is the opposite of the Italian. Only four of the twenty teams in the league will change the master 2011-12: Chelsea, Fulham, Aston Villa and Blackburn in the ranking order. Chelsea is coming to the Dutchman Guus Hiddink: a matter of days. Fulham is looking for a coach yesterday. The London club will participate in next season's Champions League. The departure of Hughes to Fulham will force a desperate search for a substitute: one of the cards, but Claudio Ranieri, but it is assumed that returns to the surface the name of Ancelotti. The former coach of Chelsea at the end of June will return to London, where he will await an important offer to go back to work.

Ranieri - The Aston Villa focuses on Hughes's up to him to collect the inheritance of the Frenchman Houllier, who was forced to resign for health issues. The other bench coach in search of is that of Blackburn, subject only to the last day here too circulates the name of Rainier.

The rest of the company is sleeping soundly. Wenger has maintained the position even after the sixth season without trophies. Roberto Mancini is stronger than ever after the success in the FA Cup and third place in the league. Dalglish, who took over in winter Hodgson, has earned a contrattone to Liverpool. Redknapp remains at the helm of Tottenham. Moye, technical Everton, like many clubs, but it should not move from Liverpool. Hodgson has done wonders to the WBA. The three newly promoted, Queens Park Rangers, Norwich and Swansea, will not change. Wigan still points on the Spaniard Martinez. A tranquil scene with only one coach who can sparigliare the situation: Carlo Ancelotti. Just waiting for the right call. Sooner or later it will come.

Don't you just love these translations. I think it would be equally illuminating left in Italian. Oh and what is sparigliare? Presumably not in the Google translator.

Id throw myself in front of a train if we appointed MugClaren

I think you will need to join the queue on that one mate.

McClaren can drive us forward.

I'll have some of what youve been drinking mate, McClaren is awful and his appointment would show a complete lack of ambition from the board and we would become a laughing stock, he could easily relegate us next season.

Agreed - I just cannot see either RL or the Board going for McLaren. Look at it this way, would we try and poach him from another club? ......... exactly.

I think the whole point of this delay is we want to get a top manager and clearly we are talking or trying to talk to some of the bigger names out there. The easiest thing in the world would be to appoint an out of work manager. Well at least that's what Hughes thinks.

Neil Moxley in the Mail is also saying Hughes' 'antics' have 'upset' Villa, echoing a couple of other reports. I have no idea if this is true but I cannot understand why our board would be bothered one way or another - he has exercised a right in his contract, a contract that was drawn up and agreed by Fulham. Both parties were clearly aware at the time the contract was signed that there was a provision for Hughes to depart after June 1st if he so desired. I have some sympathy for Fulham supporters given they face a second summer searching for a new manager just like ourselves, but Hughes hasn't done anything wrong here and shouldn't be judged as having done so by Mr. Lerner. If that is actually the case, which I'm highly skeptical of.

Very interesting times.

Stop jumping the gun mate...This isnt the reason they dont want Hughes.

They are after bigger fish...No disrespect to Hughes. :winkold:

I agree. And also when was the last time Moxley had a good word to say about our club? He is a negative shit stirrer most of the time.

Isn't Moxley another of MON's big fans so he will never have a good word to say about Villa these days.

@MatKendrick

@EddWalsh wish people would read the words. If I say Villa interested in Carlo, doesn't mean he's definitely coming. Just that he's a target

Mat Kendrick said in an earlier tweet that there were other targets. I tweeted him and asked him for names......no reply.

Perhaps not the most surprising news.

Hughes will not have left Fulham for nothing whether it be Villa or any other job.

I also don't think Villa said they were not interested they merely said that they had not approached him. Maybe Hughes feels that by resigning he is opening the door for Villa?

We will soon find out.

Its also not clear whether Ancelotti has said no. All we have is a dodgy newspaper report to go on seemingly. If he wants to stay in England and manage a side playing in the Champions League he has a problem.

Rumours has it in Italy about Carletto Ancelotti, coming from one of the most reliable sources, fingers crossed then: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-sport/football/article-23955867-carlo-ancelotti-and-mark-hughes-top-aston-villas-wish-list.do

The London Standard is a reliable source in Italy?

Obviously not, sorry, wrong link.

This is the one I mentioned: http://www.ansa.it/web/notizie/rubriche/calcio/2011/06/02/visualizza_new.html_841578863.html

Translation

ANSA)-London, 2 June-Carlo Ancelotti and 'the big favorite for the Aston Villa bench after the departure of Gerard Houllier, while Chelsea have finally got the''you''' Guus Hiddink. According to British bookmakers, and the technical Reggiolo 'the candidate' strong to lead the next season, Villas, preferred to Mark Hughes (Fulham) and David Moyes (Everton). Ancelotti would like but 'adequate reinforcements to point to the Champions League, after 9 / or place finish this year in the Premier dall'Aston Villa.

Well that's cleared that up then

Personally I'd love it to be Ancelotti, partnered with Butch, but my head says it will be Hughes.

Moyes is an outside bet but unlikely as we need a quick appointment and Everton will play hardball. The rest are also rans IMO.

If we got Ancelotti and he brings in Wilkins too can we all refer to him as Butch Wilkins, as he was known in his playing days.

Who the f*ck ends up with a nick name of Butch??

Very disappointed with his comments. Disrespectful to both the club and its fans.

Learning point: Don't bang on about how committed you are then a few weeks bang on about how uncommitted you are just because your toe rag of an agent told you to say it. Oh and just remember how reliable and honest your last agent was.

Personally I think Hughes is the most likely replacement as I think he wants it and its a bigger job than Fulham. I also don't thing there is much to pick between Moyes and Hughes, both solid managers who will build difficult to beat sides who are well organised and work hard. Very similar to MON really. So if the club wants a safe appointment it will be Hughes.

On the flip side if we really want to up the ante and make a statement we have to look for a good foreign manager. For me that's Ancelotti paired with Wilkins. Expensive but eminently gettable. My second choices would either Deschamp or Ranieri. They would get us playing football and entertaining. However my money is on the safe bet - Mark Hughes.

Hmmm, what about Ranieri?

What about him?

I think he would be a decent shout.

it’s a defining summer for the club.

I'm trying to remember a summer that wasn't hailed as either "defining", a "crossroads" or something similar.

Precisely what I was thinking. This is just a normal summer which is always defining.

More seriously 26 points dropped from winning positions. That is frightening. If we could have saved just half of them we would have been 6th, well 5th in reality as we dropped points against Spurs so in the Europa League.

That is a big learning point for next season.

Would rather have Salifou than Ireland. I'm being perfectly serious by the way. At least Salifou isn't a prick.

That and the fact that he's the Togolese Zidane.

Or alternatively Zidane is the French Salifou :shock:

Back on topic the problem with Ireland, it seems to me, is that if everything is not 100% how he would like it he's not trying and mouthing off. I doubt he wanted to come to Villa in the first place, particularly as a makeweight in a transfer.

GH gave him a chance and seemingly he blew it. We are stuck with him as no one will pay him £65k per week as he's just not worth it. Whether any manager can get more out of the petulant prick is doubtful.

Why the Board signed him is unclear. Maybe MON wanted him as one of his 'projects' along with Salifou and Routeledge but to carry on and sign him post MON was madness. It would have been much better to have taken just cash for Milner which would have been a lower aggregate fee but actually in the long run a better deal.

At the moment we are paying £3m per year for nothing which in effect is eating into the money we got for Milner. Only thing we can do is move him on and sub his wages, same with Beye and maybe Warnock.

I think this Blues fan has missed the point. I think he needs to read this article that was in one of the scientific journals recently:

"Most anthropologists were under the impression that Neanderthal man had died out thousands of years go. And yet modern research has revealed there are small pockets of them living in the central regions of an island adjoining the main European land mass.

More surprisingly they have developed a primitive method of speech and have managed to fashion crude clothing although scientists are baffled by the persistent decison to wear blue or brown check like material.

Scientists have, however, been disappointed with their observations on movement. Walking upright still seems to be a problem coupled with an tendancy to drag their perfectly formed ape like hands on the ground.

The survival of these archeological curiosities has surprised the indigenous homo sapiens who are their more advanced neighbours. Given the obvious problems of communication they have found it simpler to simply refer to these peoples as 'Chavs' or 'Scum'. Scientists are unclear as to whether these are terms or endearment or abuse"

What a fantastic day. In the morning I lopped 4 minutes off my personal best for a 10k race in the Hill West 10k in Sutton Park. In the afternoon we beat Liverpool hard on the heals of beating Barcelona Lite (aka Arsenal). To cap a perfect day Blues get relegated with their team of Villa cast offs.

The atmosphere at VP was brilliant. Loved the "going up, going down' singing. I think for the last 10 minutes nobody was watching the game. They were all glued to their radios cheering the scores as they came through.

As for MotM it has to be NRC. Loved the aggression, loved the hard tackling, loved the commitment. He has got to stay.

Only bizarre bit was bringing on Gabby on the left for NRC, Very high risk IMO but GMac got away with it.

Still buzzing and cannot wait for MotD.

Final thought. If Craig Gardner leaves Blues will he suddenly become a super fan of the team he goes to? Just a thought.

Another way of looking at it is if Moyes thinks that there is not much more he can do with Everton what options are there in the PL for him?

Man City - No as he's not a big enough name.

Man U - No, Fergie wants more trophies.

Chelsea - not the manager RA would go for.

Liverpool - No as he will not get past King Kenny.

Spurs - yes if Rednapp wants the England job but that's a year away and very speculative,

Arsenal - Wenger's not going anywhere and there is no fit.

Newcastle - no bigger than Villa and are unlikely to sack Pardew any time soon.

So if and its a very big if we would be a decent shout. Big club with ambition and a decent squad and money but I think he will probably stay where he is at least for next season.

I do like the speculation on the thread around Ancelotti and Wilkins. That would be interesting.