sickmick99

**** me with a broom. I thought GH was bad. They really do not have a clue about football at all.

General Has Randy found his first appointment of a new manager more difficult than he expected ??? (not sure how much input he had into appointing MON). On a personal note, may i say that most Villa fans i talk to can see that this has probably been one of the worst times to be looking for a new manager, due to the lack of quality available. There is not much anyone can do about that, other than get the best we can. Best of luck with it, and remember that most fans are very happy with what Randy has done for the club. And hope we can all soon forget this shite summer.

General Is Kevin MacDonald in the running to be manager ? With the lack of any decent managers available at the moment, it would seem worth giving him a chance. He has the added bonus that he knows all the players.

I have just seen that the odds on Bob bradley are now at 9/4. That is not good.

General You may have answered this before, but i can't see the answer at the moment. Do you have much contact with the players and if so are do you consider any of the friends ? And do you personally have any ideas how we can fix the player power in the game ? I'm not asking for the club stance, just what you think should be done to stop practiceswhich are obviously wrong. (if these questions have been asked before i apologise and would ask that someone could point me to the answers). I have no problem with how the club is run and i also believe the money is there to improve. I wish to show no other frustration with things other than the club needs a bit of a boost, something to get us over the recent shite. You have answered many question that have been asked to many time on this board. We are all fans, and as Mon has said you guys are in the results business, if the results don't go well then we can question whats going on. Untill that point..... Up the villa!!

General 1) I have listened to a lot of Mons interviews yesterday (and it was not pretty to see someone so enthusiastic looking and sounding so dejected), he stated that Liverpool had been spoke to before the wednesday deadline and they could not meet our price. Then on thursday morning GB and his agent went to Mon as they believed that LFC could still do the deal. My question is, if liverpool are not allowed to make contact with the player or his representatives untill given permission by Aston Villa, where the hell are they getting their info from? And do the club believe there has been illegal contact with GB at anytime over the last few months? 2) And if the rules about clubs approaching players are got around with backdoor contact via agents / 3rd parties, is there anything we can do to stop this kind of shite situation happening again ? If not i think most of us are worried that we will be facing again next summer with Ashley Young. 3) Do you mind that a lot of fans use this contact with you to vent their frustrations , even though most of what has been said a million times before ? On a personal note looking at the way LFC have conducted themselves this summer over Gareth Barry and Robbie Keane, and knowing that they will end up getting what they want makes me sick. The people who run the game should be ashamed of the fact that they continue to let this happen. None of the chasing clubs will ever be able to challenge again if we don't get some protection in keeping our best players. Anyway here's to looking forward to better days ahead.

Oh and one more thing about GB, i think Mon was totally unprepared and gobsmaked when Barry said he wanted to go. He realy underestimated what effect the influence of the england squad would have on barry. Like i say looking at our team i can see why barry thinks its is time to move on, and a lot of what he said in that NOTW article has been expressed by a lot of fans on the various villa websites. It was his disregard for mon and saying that there was no way back which has annoyed us all. But i bet you all mon would forget it all tomorrow if he said he wanted to stay.

should it not just change to C you next tuesday ?

Can i just say that after having some time to calm down about the Gareth Barry saga i am starting to think he has not done much wrong bar from let us fans and Mon down. The interview he gave to the news of the world kind of mirrored a lot of what i have read an various villa fan sites. Now we can be mad at him asking to leave but remember, he also said if we were in the CL he would not think about leaving, and the one thing we can all agree on is that unless some big things happen over the next few weeks we are not going to gat anywhere near the top 4. He's been a bit of a clearing in the woods,but if he ends up staying, rather than be predictable and getting on his back, let just make sure he knows we want him here. I get the feeling that Mon is looking for a way of keeping him, otherwise he would have done a deal by now. Some of you will slate me saying how can i want to keep a player who says he does not want to be here. Well i say your right in a way, but maybe we should be trying to make him see just what he's asked to leave behind. As i say to my missus allthe time you get futher with honey than vinegar.

General Does the level of negative feeling about transfers get you down at all when you are reading through these posts and did you expect just how passionate football fans were in this country when you came to villa? Also have you ever thought about stopping posting on these forums due to some of the questions asked? I only ask cause i get the feeling that one day you will start to feel like your banging your head against a brick wall and decide to stop. Can i also say that the frustartion you see in some posts is of yours/ randys/ Mons own doing simply because you have raised the hopes and expectations which was desperatly needed here(in no way a bad thing). You guys may sometimes be victims of your own success. And i'll give you an indication of how well you are doing, my 8 year old son has never been into football, but today he asked me to take him to his first villa match. Apparently his mates all want to go too. So keep up what you are doing, it just shows that playing good exciting football will ensure the future of the club. Good luck Oh and General, can i ask has Gareth Barry been told not to talk to the media again? I really would have though that he would have made some kind of either public apology for his NOTW interview or at least tried to justify it? If you can't answer it ok, it just i think all the fans would like to know does he stand by what he said or did it just come across wrong.

General Is there any chance we will get to hear from Randy soon about what his hopes and expectations are for the coming season are, and on how he feels things have gone so far etc.... I know he does not like doing media interview to much, but maybe an extended interview on the OS, that we can all watch, may be even submitt some questions through yourself off the various forums you post on. I only ask because i don't actually think i have heard him speak (the polar opposite to Deadly Doug, though for all the bad i thought about the bloke at times, fairplay he made sure he left us in good hands). Cheers PS. Please do me a favour and wish Gareth Barry and his family all the best when he goes, as much as he's let us down from a football point of view and i hope he regrets his choices down the line. The bloke has never let the club down before and when all said and done played a big part in starting us in the right direction. In the scheme of things we all get our heads turned by ' the grass is greener' at times.

General, Has anything really suprised you since getting involved in english football, anything you were totally unprepared for ?

General I think a lot of people here would like to see 'Big Ron' Atkinson be invited back to the club for a game. The bloke said something stupid in the media ( it was bad i know) but i would love to see him invited back to villa park for a game. He gave us some of the best football i have ever seen in my lifetime. I know you can't get everyone back, but there are ex players / managers out there that if they were invited back, the fans would love to show their appreciation. (Shaun Teale, Kevin Richardson, Tony Daley, Alan MacInally, Gary Parker, Deano and Dalian, and many more) Proud History and all that.

General 1) Is the current financial difficulties being experienced in this country and the US , going to have an impact on our transfer budget ? Also, has it been factored in when deciding ticket prices for the current season ? 2) Also, do you know if the proposed FIFA / UEFA limit on foreign players factoring into MON's transfer plans or do the club not expect that these limits will be enforcable ? 3) Will the intertoto games be televised ? Thanks

General I asked this before but don't think you answered. Have you read Paul McGraths autobiography Back From The Brink. If not i would highly recommend it. Very difficult to discover just what he went through. It also is kind of tragically ironic that a man who is loved and totally adored by so many can struggle to feel his own self worth. I can't imagine any villa fan gets through his story without a heavy heart. He is / and probably always will be the most loved player to pull on the shirt. He was the most tallented player we ever got to watch on the pitch. If you get the chance to see some of his performances the year he won the PFA player of the year it will give you an insight into what makes a Legend at villa park. And you will also get to see how we appreciate players who put everything into every game. You will also get to see some bloody cracking football. The mcgrath story will also show you that, we don't require our players to perfect, but that they should follow his example and forget any issues ( Speculation about tranfering to a 'bigger' club could be an example.) they have when they step onto the pitch the only thing on their mind is giving their all for the shirt. If you have already read the book and seen any of our games from that time period, can you see why at villa he is refered to as God ( Watching the way he played when he could not train, destroyed knees, and a huge alcohol problem has no other explaiation but a miracle. Bloody unbelievable). And if so, does it help you see what wins the villa fans over. We can be an ungratefull moaning lot at times, and i imagine you can get very frustrated at our constant need for reausuring and lack of faith. But just look at how we repay and love those who show us that they will give everything they have for Aston Villa, that its in their hearts. We never forget it. Listen next time your at a game, when a Paul McGrath song starts from in the ground, we all still love the man as much today as when he played. It could not hurt the players to realise what makes a Villa hero. Go that extra mile for us and you will be thanked and remembered for it log after your career is finished. Hopefully we can provide the success, but i wonder what will mean more when a player is an old man. The medals they won or that they can has left such an impression that their name is still being sung by thousands of people who still love and appreciate your effort. Which would you prefer if it was you ? Sorry if i am telling you something you already know, but when you experience how we respond, first hand, to a player who gets even close to earning the support Big Paul gets . You will not be able to fully appreciate how they can lift the crowd and attmosphere. I hope you experience it in your time here. I though Gareth Barry would achieve that status , which is a shame. The extreme affection that Mellberg will always get from us should give you some idea. Thanks for giving us the oppertunity to let you know what we feel. Never let the repetative / doubting post get to you. The press and speculation in this country around football is so intense and confusing that we never know what to believe, and get frustrated. But i promise when you see / experience how much we show our appreciation for people like Paul McGrath. You will see the best of the Fans. Thanks

were fated to prend http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVnRzEjpUmE Im feeling shite, im feeling bad crap and im on y own. Barry has decided we are not good enough. but the gaffer would not have taken the job, if we could not tell people to **** off.

My take watching MON tonight was that he looked resigned to Gareth going. But i also think he seemed very down about it. It seems you all put a lot of faith in our captain, and he has let us down by not showing the same faith in yourselves and the club. So, all our full support. We dont need people who want to be elsewhere. Our captain seems to have chosen a quick stab at glory, and bottled the real challenge of leading a young side to the top. Its a blow now, but we will come through it stronger, and hopefully one day prove that his lack of faith has led him to make the biggest mistake of his career. A bit of adversity, can bring team together. And i believe the team will want to prove a point. (by the way i know we have not sold him yet, but once a player (especially the captin) says he wants to be somewhere else. He is as good as gone. )

The 'Big 4' clubs do expect us to bend over and take it like a bitch in these circumstances. It is refreshing to see that we are not going to be pushed into a corner.

I have had a beer or two, but i think the general wont mind me posting that : I love this Club, we are starting to move forward. I love Martin Oneil, and he is the man i want in charge of theis team. It pretty good that we have one of the top people running the club who will converse with us, i know of no other club that has this opertunity. We all feel the set backs and the frustration sometimes, i can imagine Randy and Mon are a bit at the moment. We have been in a lot worse times than this, we will have to try and be patient. But whe we get where Randy wants us to be, as long as it takes, we will all have earned it and it will taste just as sweet. And i have had a premonition that a young lad called Nathan Delfouneso will play for the first team, and will excite us all. General, regardless of some recent set backs there are many people who are jealous of this club. And we only want people wearing the shirt who realise that this is where they can make their playing dreams happen. Up the Villa, and let all the shite not detract from the fact that the big 3 '+1' know we are right behind them. And we play bloody entertaining football. Pat Mon and Randy on the back for me, patience don't exist in football, but when we get where we want to be, we will all laugh at how much time we wasted not just enjoying the evolution. The club is bigger than us all. And we all just want the best for it.

MGMT - Time to prend

General How do you, Mon and Randy feel about the public comments made by Gareth Barrys agent today ? Not so much asking from a will he / won't he go point of view, but more from a, were you all expecting it, or has it angered you all that the players representitive has decided to make things public ? And does it affect our position should a deal be done? Also, regarding transfers, do you know all the players we are targeting, or are you brought into the loop as and when negotiations begin. (not asking who is on that list by the way, just interested at how it works. though if you want to let slip who we are after im sure we would all forgive you ;-)

Condiering he was an huge alcoholic who could not train and sometime played pissed, can you imagine what he would have been like in his PFA player of the year season if he had been the model professional in the peak of his fitness. Best player to ever pull on a villa shirt in my opinion, and will always be god at villa.

Futher than that general it would be great to see other player from the team that nearly won the first ever premier league. There were some great players and i have never seen us play that good a football since. No offence we were very good this season but thefirst premier leauge season we were fantastic. I think a lot of villa fans would love to see Dean Saunders, Dalien Atkinson, kevin richardson, garry parker, ray houghton, shaun teale etc again. If you get the chance you should watch the season review of the first premier league season. Also, if you get the chance i would recommend you read Paul McGraths biography. Its a hard and sad read in places. Especially when you realise the only person at villa park who did not love big paul, was the man himself. Anyway just an idea, but thats my favorite ever villa team and i know most of the people who were a little young to remember the League / european cup team rember those players very fondly indeed. (we would have won the league that season untill a ref decided to let Man utd keep playing untill they were winning against Shefield Wednesday - 97 bloody minutes)

General is there any chance that the club could arrange for paul mcgrath to attend a game, possibly next season home fixture against man utd. It would be great to see the best player to wear a villa shirt there again. Every villa fan loves him and would really pump the atmosphere upbefore we play them. It may help us to get past this problem we have playin united too. not sure how everyone else feels, but i wouldlove to see him again. thanks

hey General don't let any of it do your head in mate. It's silly season, and its always like this. If you are still here in 10 years you will be answering the same questions. Footie - its brilliant !