VillanousOne

enjoy the fact that no ITK twitter idiot predicted this signing, which shows that they are all total bollocks!

It was only when our midfield was decimated by injury and poor form that McCleish was really forced to give Ireland a run in the side and when he got that run he was the best player on the pitch every time and considering McCleish's utterly dour and deluded tactics it is too anyone's credit to come out looking half decent in that team, during that time. We may not yet know if Ireland is the player he can be and what we want him to be, but Lambert has at least to give him a chance as it's no wonder Bent recognises his talent, talent which we can re-enforce by bringing in new players but we are unlikely to be able to replace. If Ireland doesn't fit in with Lambert's style and team then he can sell him in January, but selling him now without seeing what the man right or wrongly but definitely actually.... voted player of the season, would be daft no matter how many people on here bleat on about his wages (that no-one actually can confirm what they are) and attitude.

Does anyone know if he is actually back at the club? All i hope is that Lambert has a look at him and makes a decision to sell or keep, there is no point in not getting the chance to look at him over the pre-season. i have no idea if he will stay but i think he deserves a chance

all a bit 'meh' but then they always are, these are mass produced pieces of crap made by child labour, the shirt quality has gone done as the market and prices have increased. it's by no means bad though in context of others, but it doesn't set any pulses racing. For a company as good as Nike the last shirt was really poor.

QPR are on the verge of signing Rob Green on a free according to the Evening Standard

it was speculated he threw his name in the hat for the manager's job after McCleish was sacked so maybe he decided he wanted to step up a level or two and doubted he could ever do this at Villa. either way he deserves a chance somewhere and wish him all the best

this is all just media speculation - i doubt Lambert wants to sign Holt

i did think there were times where Holt couldn't get in the team last season and surely that was down to Lambert?

I think expectations will rise when we have made a few transfers and seen the time in action under Lambert. But for me all i want to see is us compete in matches and give it our all, there is one thing having an eleven that plays competently enough, tries to attack and is maybe let down by the odd player performing badly, bad luck or the realisation that our best wasn't quite good enough. But under McCleish we never stood a chance as no player knew what they were doing, we played with no confidence and fear and only seemed to have about 15 mins a game where we tried, he made a team of average to reasonable players look poor. We couldn't defend set pieces, score from set pieces, attack creatively or keep possession. Ok so maybe he inherited a few of those problems.

Whelan has just said Martinez is only good enough for Barcelona and would be perfect to lead a rag tag of survivors searching for Earth if their home planet was destroyed by Cylons.

apparently Randy Lerner has flown Mick McCarthy to a part of Afghanistan.............. and left him there.

You have to ask yourself why Clark was sacked by Huddersfield. If their board thought that he was not good enough for them, I can't see how he would be good enough for Aston Villa. Poyet, on the other hand, is a much more interesting proposition. Think he means Steve Clarke with Poyet, not Lee Clark. ha ha yes i meant Steve not Lee

i did love Gregory but the below doesn't make good reading does it, and that's not including what happened at Derby. ------------ On 20 September 2006 he was unveiled as manager of Queens Park Rangers. He replaced Gary Waddock, who had stepped down following a poor succession of results that had left the club bottom of the Football League Championship.[2] This appointment caused a schism among QPR fans, some of whom saw Gregory's friendship with controversial chairman Gianni Paladini as a conflict of interest. After a decent start with successive victories over Hull City and Southampton, Rangers form dipped before winning three on the bounce (including a victory at (then) league leaders Cardiff City). Unfortunately, results did not continue to improve, and relegation looked a distinct possibility for Gregory's men. However, following a fine late season run, QPR beat Cardiff 1–0 at Loftus Road on 21 April 2007 to secure their Championship status for another year. Gregory was sacked as QPR manager on 1 October 2007, after another string of poor performances.[3] On 8 December 2009, Gregory was appointed the manager of Israeli club Maccabi Ahi Nazareth.[4] He led them to relegation. On 18 May 2010 Gregory signed a 3 year contract with Israeli Premier League Club F.C. Ashdod. He resigned from Ashdod on 18 April 2011, with the club facing the possibility of relegation.[5] On 13 June 2011, Gregory was appointed the manager of Kazakh club FC Kairat from Almaty, Kazakhstan.[6] Kairat were relegated at the end of the 2011 season to the second tier of Kazakhstan football. In April 2012, Gregory had his contract as manager of FC Kairat terminated and was paid $120,000 in compensation.[7]

Negative: We have to wait for Liverpool and their merry bunch of dickheads to appoint someone before greedy agents take a breath and look at the Villa vacancy. As deluded as Liverpool fans are they still have the global presence and money to just about keep them in with elite football clubs of this world - although that is in danger of changing if they carry on as they have been. Positive: Once Plop have got their manager there is only us and West Brom needing a manager in the world's best league. We may have suffered in terms of status and PR since MON left but we still have the brand, fanbase, youth, infrastructure and finances to make us a half decent proposition. Granted we have fallen further than any would like to admit but there is a fine line between success and failure and it wouldn't take too much to turn us round. Meh?: I would be surprised if any of the Premiership's new guard or out of work old guard are that high up the list. I think an up and coming manager from a league or two down or abroad is more likely. We are not going to attract AVB or Guardiola, FSW probably thinks he should be managing a top four team, Lambert and Rodgers are strangely loyal to their clubs, Martinez has been brainwashed by Whelan into thinking he is a top four manager so even if he doesn't go to Anfield i think he will stay at Wigan rather than go to us, you never know though. Poyet and Clarke would be good in my book.

villa can't afford to buy 50 players in the hope 4 will be world class like Rafa did. I think we have to face up to the fact, Martinez and Lambert are unlikely to come to Villa, we also have no idea who is on our wanted list. Everything out there is pure press and fan invented speculation, the only thing concrete was OGS and that was leaked. We have to be patient rather than believing what the press are dredging up to fill column inches and **** twitter crap! I expect the manager to not be anyone obvious that the press is lazily linking us with. I hope it is someone fresh young and unexpected rather than the obvious newbies who were are placing way too much praise and hope on, and the tired old guard of managers who should have been shot years ago. But i know nothing, this time tomorrow we could have Lionel Hutz in place.

We would have a lot to do to persuade Lambert that Villa would be a better proposition than Norwich after what has happened in the last two seasons. We have gone from being a top six side spending money and planning for the future, to relegation fodder desperately trying to downsize the squad and wage bill and just stay in the league. Even if Randy can spend a bit of money you'd still presume that this would be a one off to lure a new manager and season on season after that we'd have no money or ambition other than to survive. And i hope this isn't the case but i wouldn't be surprised.

the words brewery and piss up come to mind

after this fiasco i'm not going to believe that Lambert and Martinez are queuing up to take the job, more likely Faulkner and Lerner are interviewing Avram Grant as i type.

yep what were thinking - a decent manager, hope without utter incompetence and farce, when does this happen to a Villa fan. lock this the **** down

Rod Hull spotted meeting with Faulkner and a senior ball boy

it doesn't make much sense does it, Whelan and Martinez have both indicated that Villa wouldn't be a high enough step up from Wigan

Daily Mail had said we had spoken to him earlier in the week - which is old news but now Click Lancashire say we spoke to him Thursday and he prefers us to Liverpool, yep i don't believe it for a second either but here it is

i would be very happy with Lambert - but for some reason i don't want to be a fan of the club that poached another prem manager, as i like Norwich and their fans. But hey sometimes that's just football. With OGS it feels like something fresh new and exciting, something that is ours (okay i know he is Molde's but if he leaves for us we will be the first Prem club he comes to, maybe not the last), he is something risky but someone we can get behind and give a fair chance. I don't think he will be a success overnight if he does come, we will have to be patient, but after the dire McCleish reign - i think as long as we see signs of OSG playing in a way where we can see what he is trying to do and we have hope then we will back him.

it isn't nice unsettling managers of other clubs is it? If you look at the players Lambert has had to work with he has done a really good job and they have had some good wins and performances this season, OGS would be a big gamble but also a breath of fresh air, you'd hope he would get rid of the old guard at Villa who have been attributed with so much negativity in the last few seasons, Warnock, Collins and Dunne - not sure how much of it is true - but i doubt many would cry if they all left.

please god not Mick McCarthy!