LancsVillan

Yeah, I thought six months too, before. But then I think it was someone on here that said it's 6 months for clubs outside England but 3 for clubs inside. Wouldn't make much sense, I know, but that's what I've heard. I think. Then again, 3 or 6 months doesn't really matter in this case. Surely the 6 month v 3 month thing would in itself be a restriction placed on the player, much like the Bosman ruling this is all about. So that wouldn't stand either.....

If thats the case, I hope the FA drag Newcastle over the coals... They're not allowed talk to Sidwell until the end of his contract. Thought that as his contract is up in the summer he is free to talk to anyone after Jan 1

Would explain JPA's absence from the reserves too. Great move for him and someone the NY Villans should be quick to invite to their get togethers as I bet he would turn up.

He's a Boro lad though isn't he? The only thing he might not stay for is if one of the Big 4 made noises I reckon.

precisely thetrees. Went for Chelsea v AC Milan as Chelsea winning would be quite funny to see how Jose gets treated by his boss. The bad thing of course would be another English team winning it!

Bouma he is a well goog defender and should win it

Gabby will win by a mile

Excellent trip all around, company was superb, Villa fans the same apart from 2 or 3 idiots who tried to start a wholly inappropriate and wrong song - I blame the beer. Though it was good to see one of them moved in the 2nd half after a 'word'. I think blandy was a little harsh on three players, namely Petrov, Gardner and wee Shaun who all I thought deserved a 7. Petrov - was indeed sitting back but like I said last week I think this might be his future role. From there he can spot a pass without the added attention of the opposition. Gardner - in a position that was unaccustomed to him, he did well to stay out right and not drift in too much. For those who were not there and referred to him as the replacement for Gav, then I'm sorry but not in this role he wouldn't be. His set piece delivery was good. wee Shaun - played across the front line in the hole. Lively and a right nuisance to t'Rovers defence all day, no wonder he tired before being taken off. Great day from start to finish, topped off by falling asleep cuddling up with AJ watching MotD!

Yes Jon I appreciate your opinion and the others I'm not surprised at the poll results though.

Maybe they understand it was more than one good season!

No posting about the actual posts please

"In many myths and folk tales, a hero is a man or woman (the latter often called a heroine), traditionally the protagonist of a story, legend or saga, who commonly possesses abilities or character far greater than that of a typical person, which enable him or her to perform some truly extraordinary, beneficial deed (a "heroic deed") for which he or she is famous. These powers are sometimes not only of the body but also of the mind. Heroes are typically opposed by villains." Hero of the time, not one that will remain when compared to the recent legends so many refer to, like the 81 and 82 sides, even if some of those were less talented! Much maligned due to the fee paid, something that was not his fault; referred t oas having one good season - another misnomer. Hero - not sure. Wasted talent - 100% sure.

I'd have O'shea , his versatility would be superb Could he play right wing?

For those in and around Blackburn tomorrow a recent one of AJ and I

by OutByEaster ***Warning: Optimism ahead*** Last year after 31 games we had 35 points; this year from 31 games we have the same 35 points. The league table tells us nothing has changed. Progress on the pitch is about more than numbers though......... It’s easy to see progress all over the place at Villa Park, or at least it is away from the pitch. The training ground is almost complete, the re-development of the Holte Hotel continues apace, attendances are up, Nike are on board and all things business Villa are speeding forward. Progress on the pitch has been that little bit more difficult to find. In terms of the league it’s been nigh on impossible. So, where are the signs of progress on the pitch? They say the table never lies. They’re wrong. I think there are a number of areas where we can see development on the pitch, and a number of areas where the progress off the pitch will impact on our league placing. I will humbly begin if I may dear reader by pointing you in the direction of our striking behemoth. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you John Carew. Now that’s progress. Let’s face it, big Johns tasty, and once we get someone buzzing around him or a midfielder bursting towards his flicks, he will help us score goals, and hopefully get a fair share himself. John Carew represents two steps of progress; he’s better than Chris Sutton, who in turn was a better target man than anyone we had before. Of course you can argue that having a big man up front to aim at isn’t necessarily progress, but I think he’s that and a bit more besides. He’s a better prospect up front than anything we had last year in my opinion. Good teams are built from the back however, and our back four is still a building site. Some would say a bombsite, but they’d be missing the progress being made. Gary Cahill is shaping up to be a very very good central defender, he’s big, strong, brave, quick, can use the ball and works hard. Yes he makes mistakes, but he is progressing rapidly. The player I see in front of me now is better than the player I saw at the end of last season, the player I see next season might just be one of the best young centre backs in the country. Freddie Bouma has also improved this season and is showing excellent form down the left. He’s no longer the target of the boo boys, something he’s achieved through some excellent performances, most notably against Chelsea. In midfield, Gareth Barry provides consistent excellence, and should continue to do so. Gareth is in his prime now, and we should see the benefit over the next two or three seasons. Stilian Petrov has begun to show us that he’s settling into English football, he’s not the new Steven Gerrard, but he’s not bad, and he’s getting better. Craig Gardner and Isaiah Osbourne are bubbling under and will provide us with some depth next season. Neither has looked out of their depth when they’ve appeared for the first team, and both will be much the better for the experience. Out wide, Gabriel Agbonlahor has shown some signs of adding some football to his speed. He might benefit from that if he’s moved back inside. If not, he’ll certainly benefit from his first season as a winger in the season to come. He’s now scored more goals for the first team than he scored for the reserves. It’s easy to forget just how little footballing experience he has, he’s pretty much gone from youth football to the Premiership and the more he plays the better he’ll get. Ashley Young is a young man with a lot to prove and a huge price tag hanging round his neck. He’s made a slow start, but I think we’ve seen flashes of a big talent. I’m happy that he’s here, and the fact that the club wanted him and got him makes the price immaterial. It’s only expensive if you can’t afford it. Shaun Maloney has also provided some excitement in some nice cameo appearances. He carries some real excitement on the ball, and I enjoy watching him. Progress? Well, I think he’s got more to offer than Lee Hendrie. I see improvements in our squad compared to last season in all of these players compared to their performances last season or the performances of their predecessors. The only exception to this has been Petrov who hasn’t bettered the performances of Steve Davis last year, but has improved on his own performances pre-Christmas. So, that’s nine individuals that have made some progress this season, doubtless there are a number of people that will disagree. They aren’t a team yet, but the improvement in these individuals bodes well for our future. The job of this manager, and what he’ll ultimately be judged on his how well he gets the better quality of the individual players available to him to perform as a team. He’s had a season to look and learn and he’ll be better for that opportunity. The other big thing for me is that under this board, wherever I see a weakness in the Villa squad, I see an opportunity. In the past, wherever I saw strength, I worried about a sale. I can see opportunities being met up front, at right back, in midfield, possibly at centre half and on the right hand side during the coming summer. That’s progress off the field making an impact on the field. Maybe I’m just being overly optimistic, but for me the green shoots of recovery are already starting to show, I’m hoping we might start to make good on that promise before the end of this season. The league table disagrees; it tells us that we might be on course for our lowest ever points total. It doesn’t tell us that we have a number of exciting young players making progress, a potential England centre half, a Captain in his prime and a dominant number nine who could become a Villa totem. The league table tells us that relegation is still a possibility. It doesn’t tell us that we have a board looking at a whole different set of possibilities, and the drive and financial muscle to change things in the summer. The league table tells us that things haven’t changed a bit on the pitch. I disagree. The league table’s got a lot to answer for; this is a team on the up.

ok then as suggested feel free to post pictures of yourselves. With other VTers would be good too. No post on the pictures as that would clutter up the whole thread and is the reason the last one was taken down. It might also mean when you're at the match you might spot someone and think. "Hey I know him" or "Bloody Hell LV really is that fat" ;-)

He's on a rolling contract. So he is waiting for the Utd job Regardless of the smiley and for clarification he is on the same type of contract that he has always had.

see my edit Pelle :-)

Before BFR's first game of the season he had only signed 3 players! Stan, Handball and Dariusz... EDIT: bloody season starts and end dates!!! We'd signed clubfoot, paul mortimer,sealey, ugo and sicknote in the early part of the summer Yes we had signed a fair few in the closed season but that is the only time I can remember it happening and it was a long time ago in reality.

If you walk to Villa park yeh. Lichfield to Brum by train 35 minutes Lichfield TV to Manchester 1hr 33. M42 v M6 - could easily be the same. It's an example not a literal thing. Being a football fan is supporting your team in the way you see fit it is not as dictated by others.

ooh the Manchester is shit, Brum is ace debate. Sorry but there is very little that Brum has that Manc doesnt'!! Other than Villa

I'd contest that. Around where I sit, neary everyone has a Brummy accent, and I speak to a lot of people at gesm I haven't met before, and I've never come across one from outside the West Midlands. I'd say its more like 25%. There a fair few brummy accents who live more than an hour away! It was a guesstimate. There was a survey about locality of season ticket holders does anyone remember it's findings.

Can I just say that this 'local' team thing is something that for years has been used as a stick to beat people with, not in an Italian police way but still, how do we define locality for a team. Aston Villa Football Club is based in Birmingham and yet I would say that about 40% of it's support on match days comes from at least an hour away. Well from Preston I can be in either Manchest or Birmingham in a similar time. I bet there are days when you can get from say Tamworth / Lichfield area to Manchester as quickly as you can to VP, the M42 and local transport being what they are. I supported Villa because in those times you did support your local side, although it was becoming more fashionable to support the successful sides. If I had pushed that onto AJ, I would no longer be attending at all as he would want to go to another teams games. There are numerous reasons why people support there team and for me locality no longer has a place in that decision and is also disrespectful to those members of this very site who have no connection with Birmingham, the Midlands or even the UK. And to those I would like to apologise.

1. I'll put it up on the all alongside my 81 scarf and the Last day of The Holte End picture given out by the Meaning Evil on that day. 2. :-) 3. Excellent General that the club is doing this. I agree that the armed forces are a special case and one that should be appreciated more, they are merely doing what most people do in their own jobs, following orders / rules to the best of their ability. I would hate to think where we would be without them.

base the team around the following Tommy any of the four centre backs we have but Olly / Laursen for my money Bouma Young Petrov Barry Maloney Carew and I think you've got 8 players that are more that capable of getting any team regardless of name to a challenging for Europe position. Then and only then can we move on towards challenging for CL. Add in Gabby (and I would say Luke but I feel he's a goner) and it's even less. Yes we need some quality signings to build a squad but not necessarily for the starting XI