Kiwivillan

When GK said the uproar over McLeish was totally uncalled for it was only a drop in the ocean compared to what has come since said post leaked.

I know he just re-signed for Wolfsburg but I would do everything in my power to get Felix Magath. He would be an excellent follow on from Houllier.

Having majority of fans or squad against new manager from day one is always going to end badly. I suggest the board watch The Damned United for a history lesson.

I wonder if Randy runs his credit card company as poorly as this....

You mean the one he sold before he bought AVFC?

Here's a thought Mcleish comes to villa & we get relegated & McClaren steers Forest into the premier league.

And all the pies at Villa Park will be of the "humble" variety

I won't. I voted for McLaren in both polls as soon as they came out. Moyes was never going to leave Everton, Ancelotti never going to come. Schteve has a much better record than most on here give him credit for. I'm not English so couldn't give two shits that he failed to get a bunch of overpaid prima donna wanabe celebrities to qualify for a tournament. That many on here would have prefered Martinez is both laughable and frightening.

McClaren has found his level IMO. The fact you are not English will dilute the disgust that we English have for the job he did with England. I would ask you to respect that. Just as I respect that you feel McClaren would have done a good job at Villa, and perhaps have been a better appointment than McLeash.

Fair point.

Back to current situation, as a ardent Villa fan since 94' I am utterly dejected at how the club has become part soap-opera/pantomime/farce in the last 48hrs. It all feels like a bad dream at the moment.

Here's a thought Mcleish comes to villa & we get relegated & McClaren steers Forest into the premier league.

And all the pies at Villa Park will be of the "humble" variety

I won't. I voted for McLaren in both polls as soon as they came out. Moyes was never going to leave Everton, Ancelotti never going to come. Schteve has a much better record than most on here give him credit for. I'm not English so couldn't give two shits that he failed to get a bunch of overpaid prima donna wanabe celebrities to qualify for a tournament. That many on here would have prefered Martinez is both laughable and frightening.

Neil "I just make things up" Moxley's Daily Mail article

I’m going to borrow a phrase from my esteemed colleague, Richard Littlejohn, to introduce the theme of this week's column.

Aston Villa’s managerial situation… you couldn’t make it up, could you? (WELL YES BECAUSE YOU’RE JUST ABOUT TO)

It’s now 55 days and counting since Gerard Houllier suffered his heart scare. (SO WHAT??)

And, if anything, the club is now in a bigger mess than when the former France boss was admitted to hospital. (FINISHING 9TH IN THE BEST LEAGUE IN THE WORLD – HARDLY A DISASTER)

I’m struggling to think of a more haphazard, fragmented and amateurish managerial appointment process.

It’s has been handled appallingly. (BUT YOU’VE NO CLUE AT ALL WHAT IS GOING MOXLEY YOU PLUM)

Right from the moment that the prognosis was delivered on Houllier’s problems, the writing was on the wall that a new manager would be on his way. (YES, AND….)

And now we are here. Two sets of supporters in Birmingham at each others’ throats and Villa fans in open revolt over the imminent arrival of Alex McLeish. (DRIVEN ENTIRELY BY THE PRESS)

It didn’t have to come to this. (TO WHAT????)

I don’t see Fulham’s supporters out on the streets of SW6 following Mark Hughes’ exit. (COULD CARE LESS)

Never mind 48 days, their decision-makers needed about 48 hours to bag their man. (GOOD FOR THEM)

I have applauded Villa owner Randy Lerner and chief executive Paul Faulkner plenty of times in this column.

I admire their respect for the club’s values and traditions. I think the re-building of the Holte pub was a grand gesture. The gold-leaf mosaic on the back of the Holte End a nice touch. Villa’s corporate entertaining? Excellent. (AND OLD BOSS TOLD ME EVERYTHING BEFORE BUT IS BULLSHIT….HERE IT COMES)

But they have tarnished this good work by their actions over the past week.

Where are the strong, clear lines of thought?

Let’s take it back a few stages, right back to April when news seeped out that Houllier had been admitted to hospital.

Within 48 hours of that happening, inquisitive hacks had been given the prognosis and asked a couple of friendly medics what it meant.

Answer?

It was clear to us (MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS!!!!) that at the age of 63, Houllier would be best advised to steer away from employment, let alone a high-pressure job such as management in the Barclays Premier League. (WHILST LERNER HAD THE BENEFIT OF DISCUSSING THE SITUATION WITH HOULLIER AND THE ACTUAL MEDICS INVOLVED RATHER THAN THE QUACKS YOU SPOKE TO)

That being the case, I think it is fair to assume that Lerner and Faulkner would have had an idea of what should happen next - irrespective of the fact that Houllier should have been binned after the home game against Sunderland.

Lerner has a duty of care to both his employee and the football club and, as such, had to terminate Houllier’s employment.

Fairly simple, you might think.

Oh no. We are treated to the unedifying example of Gary McAllister re-inforcing Houllier’s position by trotting out: ‘Gerard will be back,’ in quasi-parrot fashion, flagrantly ignoring the medical evidence in front of him. (And us.) (LOYALTY TO HIS BOSS – THE SHAME OF IT)

Villa’s dynamic duo - still wrestling with Martin O’Neill - decide that issue is far more important than the here and now. So they concentrate their efforts on settling with the Irishman, rather than sorting out Houllier. (EXCEPT YOU DON’T KNOW THAT – PERHAPS LERNER AND FAULKNER ARE ABLE TO DO TWO THINGS AT ONCE?)

(Personally, I’d have postponed O’Neill. He would have had to wait for his day.)

But here comes the tricky part. Instead of having a friendly chat with Mr Houllier - or an unfriendly one, come to that - and telling him that due to a duty of care to the club, his employment would have to be terminated, Villa make two major mistakes.

And their whole world comes crashing down around them.

First, they don’t have the above talk. If they did and it became mired in legality as Houllier is protected by a nonsensically-large pay-off clause, then they would have another battle on their hands. (The Frenchman would have settled eventually, he wouldn’t have wanted to go through all the strife of that, believe me.) (SORRY NOT SURE WHAT YOUR POINT IS HERE???)

Secondly, why didn’t Villa draw up a shortlist for the vacant job in the meantime and carry out their due diligence on the quiet? (….THEY DID!!!)

Why is it that Fulham were able to line up Martin Jol effectively within 48 hours? (‘COS THEY WANTED JOL AND HE WAS AVAILABLE)

Villa have had the best part of two months - and still they fumble about like a teenager groping in the dark for a bra-strap. (NOT HAD TWO MONTHS AT ALL – WANTED TO SEE HOW HOULLIER SITUATION PANNED OUT)

Just to take you through the events of the last seven days…it’s painful, but bear with me because it underlines the magnitude of the errors. (YOU HAVN’T HIGHLIGHTED ANY YET?)

We’ve seen Villa distancing themselves from the outstanding candidate by a country mile - Mark Hughes - because, we are told, of some personal relationship that Lerner has with Mohamed Al Fayed. (YOU DON’T KNOW WHETHER WE’VE DISTANCED OURSELVES OR NOT)

Then, they miss out on another name on the shortlist (I THOUGHT THERE WASN’T A SHORT LIST???) - Jol - because, presumably, of chronic indecision. David Moyes doesn’t want to come, either, apparently because he can read the signs from Merseyside that he is better-placed staying put. (AGAIN YOU DON’T KNOW THAT)

Next, they offer Steve McClaren an interview - then refuse to carry through with it because of adverse criticism on web-site message boards. (AGAIN YOU HAVE NO EVIDENCE OF THAT)

Third, they write to Wigan and ask for permission to speak to Roberto Martinez, who turns them down. (MARTINEZ WHO MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE BEEN SPOKEN TO AND WHO MAY WELL ALREADY HAVE SIGNED A 5 YEAR CONTRACT)

(Since when has the manager of Wigan Athletic turned down the chance to be Aston Villa’s next boss? Incredible.) (SINCE HE HAD A NEW FIVE YEQAR CONTRACT)

Next, we understand that Alex McLeish has resigned three miles away at St Andrew’s, initiating the mother of all supporter backlashes. (SO……)

Notwithstanding that, somehow Birmingham City now have the high ground. (WTF!!!!LMFAO!!!)

Let’s face it, if McLeish turns up at Villa Park, not only will it fly in the face of web-site message board anger (see Martinez above) but it also smashes their lofty moral position of ‘doing things by the book’ into one million tiny pieces. (IF….)

So, Lerner won’t risk upsetting his big pal Al Fayed over Hughes but will risk the wrath of half of the Second City in England by chasing McLeish? (YOU’RE MAKING IT UP NOW ARN’T YOU)

(I’m not even getting into an argument about whether McLeish is a fit manager for Aston Villa, although the evidence of two relegations in three seasons in the Barclays Premier League suggests he shouldn‘t be, irrespective of a Carling Cup triumph.) (AS HE’S NOT COMING THAT MOOT)

Wigan owner Dave Whelan has heaped further scorn on those at B6 by admitting he was surprised that Villa didn’t go for Steve McClaren - as he would have - in the event of Martinez’s exit. (RANDOM!!!!)

And all the while in the background, Mark Hughes is jumping up and down, screaming, ‘Take me, take me.’ (IS HE???? I’VE NOT SEEN IT)

I ask again: Why not?

It’s a sorry mess. And I have to say it’s been symptomatic of everything that has gone wrong with the football side since H.D. Ellis and Steve Stride relinquished control. (HAHAHAHAHAHA)

Off the field, the corporate areas are fantastic.

But it’s on the field where Villa are struggling. (6TH, 6TH,6TH AND 9TH IN THE TOUGHEST LEAGUE IN THE WORLD…HARDLY STRUGGLING)

Too much money has been wasted by too many bad choices. Player contracts, in particular, are way in excess of what they should be.

You know, the media who enquired were told that the reason why a couple of chief executives left the club (Michael Cunnah, Richard Fitzgerald) was because Lerner knew how to run a sporting organisation.

That may be true as far as Cleveland Browns are concerned.

But don’t try to tell me he couldn’t have had better value for his £200m investment. I’m sorry, I don’t believe it.

No matter how this turns out from now on, it looks like a botch job. (YOU WISH…..LERNER NOT PUT A FOOT WRONG YET…YOUR MATE DAVE WHELAN SAID IF EVERY CLUB OPERATED LIKE VILLA THE LEAGUE WOULD BE A BETTER PLACE)

As for McLeish, Villa’s owners have put themselves in a needlessly difficult position and a rightly coming under increasing criticism for the thoroughly unprofessional manner in which this whole episode has been handled. (WE’VE GOT NO INFLUENCE OVER WHAT MCLEISH DOES AND HAVEN’T EVER COMMENTED ON HIS SITUATION)

Charles Krulak’s role within the organisation seems to be the guardian of the message boards. (GOOD, PITY MORE CLUBS DON’T COMMUNICATE WITH THEIR SUPPORTERS)

Here’s one for you Charles: Randy and Paul have messed up - massive time. (MESSED UP “MASSIVE TIME”…IS THAT EVEN ENGLISH???

Given the length of time they have had to sort out the managerial situation, the amount of money that’s been thrown at it and the inherent quality of a club like Aston Villa, there is only one question remaining. (RL WILL APPOINT THE RIGHT MAN AT THE RIGHT TIME)

Can the mess get any worse? (WHAT MESS???)

I sincerely hope not. (REALLY???) WHAT A clearing in the woods YOU ARE!!!!!!

But then, given the events of the past few days, I’m not holding my breath.

First Class post.

My nominee for POTY

HE DIDN'T

It was a wall post. Obviously GK didn't realise that friends of wall poster would see response. Other Villa fans chimed in. OP deleted post when he realised but it was too late. It had already gone viral.

Dont buy this for one minute. "He didn't realise..." Rubbish. The clubs media people for one would have made damn sure he new.

And again, the only way you can delete on FB is if it is your post OR on your wall. So we really have no way of knowing who deleted what.

Its all too slick to be believable I'm afraid.

That said, the "fact" that the club are considering AM doesn't mean they will appoint him. I for example and considering doing Scarlett Johansen up the wrong 'un later.......

Yes. It was his post on GKs FB page. When other Villa fans posted on it he saw what was happening and deleted but it was already C+Pedto several other websites.

Don't shoot the messenger who asked a legitimate question and GK reponded how he did.

As regards the claimed "Generals Post on FB"

If it was a private message leaked by Jon fear 2 things

1) Shame on Him

2) Why does it call him Richard

I think we need to all calm the F*** down

Sorry, don't know how to do links but if you go to the new manager thread on vitalvilla between pages 46-50 you'll see how it panned out for real. Richard is the name of a poster on the site who is also a facebook friend on the "Chuck Krulak" fb page. If you check out his friends list, there is indeed a richard with a surname similar to the posters user name.

Whether you choose to believe it or not is up to you. If it's a fake I doff my hat to whoever wrote it cos it's a bloody good'un.

If your info is correct then fine, I have no problem with the message being real or not and if Jon Fear had no involvement then my appologies to him.

That doesn't change the fact that

Somebody gets a "PRIVATE MESSAGE" from The General and decides to be Billy big bollox and post it for the world to see

For me that is very very poor form regardless of circumstances

HE DIDN'T

It was a wall post. Obviously GK didn't realise that friends of wall poster would see response. Other Villa fans chimed in. OP deleted post when he realised but it was too late. It had already gone viral.

As regards the claimed "Generals Post on FB"

If it was a private message leaked by Jon fear 2 things

1) Shame on Him

2) Why does it call him Richard

I think we need to all calm the F*** down

Sorry, don't know how to do links but if you go to the new manager thread on vitalvilla between pages 46-50 you'll see how it panned out for real. Richard is the name of a poster on the site who is also a facebook friend on the "Chuck Krulak" fb page. If you check out his friends list, there is indeed a richard with a surname similar to the posters user name.

Whether you choose to believe it or not is up to you. If it's a fake I doff my hat to whoever wrote it cos it's a bloody good'un.

FFS lads. I've been a long time poster on VV. Meakers is there even longer. I'm pretty sure he is one of the lads that meets up with GK for beers when he is at VP. He is Richard GK is refering to. It is GKs facebook page. When I C&Ped the post from another site on VV in the General's thread Meakers apologised to GK that it had got out onto the internet.

Nuff said.

With all the shit that's being thrown at the club from that lot down the road in todays newspapers a statement has to be released today.

At the very least you'd suspect the General would have to pop in and clarify/verify/deny this Facebook post.

I'm almost certain it's legit based on the VV member he was conversing with. I don't think it was intended for public consumption.

I've been away.

Have there been any updates on what mjmooney is having for lunch?

I remain focused and am working hard to secure the best lunch which will complement my commitment to be true to my heritage, competitiveness and passionate appetite, and will have the lunch in place to prepare myself for the afternoon and this evening's pub quiz.

No further statement will be made until the press conference.

I finished 2nd in tonight's pub quiz getting such obscure answers as Falcon Crest for a TV show question.

I really dont want the McCleish stuff to be true

buy SSN saying McCleish returning from holiday in Corsica.

Isnt that where Randys jet went...

oh shit

is it too late to say i want McClaren now?

not that i do, but surely even he would be better

Some paper said he was on holiday in Italy.

Actually, if Owen Coyle was to leave Bolton, MON would be a very good fit for them. Plays their style of football, pre-Coyle, to a tee.

Agricultural

this shite about not hiring managers who have left jobs is an embarrassment to the club. if he's the right man i don't care if he shat in the top drawer of his old boss' desk and wiped his arse in his curtains

Sounds like you're speaking from personal experience?

Oh man.......bookies have stopped taking bets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bin dunne but... Like they do every night!

Really cant see what all the fuss is about. Randy doesn't want to rush in to the wrong appointment. As far as we can be sure only Martinez has been interviewed. Everybody is on holiday and because we haven't appointed any body within a couple of weeks everybody thinks we are an absolute shambles and Randy doesn't have a clue what he is doing.

IN RANDY I TRUST

More like turned down the opportunity to be interviewed

that Moxley i think is having some form of breakdown on twitter

Neil_Moxley_DM Neil Moxley

Crass mismanagement on a barely credible scale. I never thought I'd write this: Would never have happened under HD Ellis. No way.

8 minutes ago

Who rubbed sand in his clit?

Steve is more qualified than o'neill was for the job.

Er NO!

What planet are you from? Seriously are you Mclaren's agent?

I agree with Valhalla

I'm not English. Can someone explain what's so bad about McClaren if you leave out the failure as England manager?

ok, lets think totally off-beat...

how about the first ever female Premier League manager? Karen Brady anyone?

Would you smash it?

I have ITK that's absolutely nailed on regarding the next Villa manager!

The bookies are going to make a killing...

Btw Villaninoz, I'd love an appt of Klinsmann but now that Randy has gotten a taste of what life is like when the local fans don't respect his choice of manager I doubt he sticks his neck out for Jurgen.

WHY?

What in the name of **** christ has he done that makes him a good candidate?

Let's see. He let Loew sort out the German team for WC 06 while he played to the cameras the whole time.

Oh and he was a failure at Bayern.

Yes. What a fan-****-tastic choice for next Villa manager!

Give me 100 McClarens ahead of Klinnsman thx

Mirror saying he said no to us.

Anyone think its possible GH gave Paul and Randy I few names to look up?!

GHs exit statement was bursting with undercurrents of him being pissed off about his departure.

Hughes.

You know it makes sense.

No, it doesn't, not when you consider the other candidates out there.

I think Hughes is a good candidate.

When you take into account the other possible candidates out there (Moyes or Ancelotti for example), why?

Moyes is that much better than Hughes? Ok whatever...

Damn it. That's unfair. Only I should be allowed to post NZ news stories!

If I never see it again, its too soon. Its the second worst film I've seen since Sin City.

Oooh, attacking Sin City. Controversial.

But I agree. I found it mind-numbingly boring and stupid.