Teale's 'tache

Out of interest, I thought I'd check... Of the 11 starters for Manchester City yesterday, only one was purchased for less than our record signing (Buendia ~€‎38m), that was Gundongan and I think the only reason he was cheaper was that he was running down his contract at Dortmund. Now, I know we were terrible yesterday and got what we deserved, but the handicap we start every game against them with is really quite startling.

The more I think about this whole thing the more it bothers me, it's difficult to grasp the sheer scale of damage that has been done. It's not just the trophies they've won, the players they've stolen, but they've also inflated the market, both fees and wages, they were already rising and would always have continued to rise, but their spending has undoubtedly contributed in a sharp increase in both. Every club in Europe has had to pay more to keep up with them, and of course that means a knock on effect further down the pyramid as well. I don't have much expectation that the punishment will be as severe as it should be, money talks after all, but I do hope that this becomes a sliding doors moment, where the powers that be realise that something has to change and meaningful changes are made. I don't know the best way forward, what regulations would work, what model might be achievable, but I do think this proves it's time to start having that discussion, before the game we all love turns in to something we can't stomach.

I always find it difficult to judge a transfer window, mainly because the proof of the pudding is in the eating. What happens between now and the next window will give us some indication, but even then, transfers have a much longer lifespan than that. I think the squad needed trimming, we had too many sitting on a wage not really contributing anything. I also think that a slightly smaller squad will suit Emery at the moment, he's spending a lot of time educating the players and it's much easier to teach a smaller class than a large one. By and large the players that have gone were not getting any minutes, and that's during a first half of the season where we've been far from injury free, there's no point having so many players around 'just in case' there's an injury crisis. The Ings sale made a whole lot of financial sense, he was a savvy operator on the pitch and played a role in the squad, but I don't think it's quite as big a loss as some are making out, let's see what Duran gives us between now and the end of the season and pass judgment then. I can understand the frustration of some who wanted a statement signing, or to show more ambition to push on for a European place, but it's not really that simple. The January window is for those who are desperate and for the bigger clubs who shop in their own 'Champions League' transfer market that we are not privy to just yet. I'm not saying it's impossible to get the quality we are looking for in January, just that you have to first find a club willing to lose a quality player mid-season, and then you'll likely have to pay a premium for that privilege. If a quality player is readily available at a sensible fee (like Trossard) you have to question why and take that in to consideration. Also, even if we signed 2 or 3 more players to improve the team, there's no guarantee that they will instantly improve the team enough to make it in to Europe, many players take time to settle and adjust to different systems, and not every transfer works out as expected despite all due diligence being done. There are no guarantees, not everything is black and white. I imagine Emery probably is a little disappointed we haven't got another player or two in for him to work with, but he's a very intelligent and experienced guy, he knows it's not that simple, he knows that January isn't the ideal time to be shopping for the quality he wants and he will accept it and work with what he's got between now and the end of the season, and he will back himself to get the most out of those players, because that's what good managers do, and make no mistake he is a very good manager. He'll be expecting more in the summer no doubt, and the room we've made on the wage bill in January will certainly help with that.

Just because you're paranoid don't mean they're not after you...

Looking at the list of deals done so far... https://www.football365.com/news/every-premier-league-signing-january-2023-transfer-window ARSENAL INS: Leandro Trossard (£21m, Brighton), Jakub Kiwior (£17.6m, Spezia). OUTS: Brooke Norton-Cuffy (loan, Coventry), Miguel Azeez (loan, Wigan), Arthur Okonkwo (loan, Sturm Graz), Harry Clarke (undisclosed, Ipswich). Total spend: £38.6m ASTON VILLA INS: Alex Moreno (£12m, Real Betis), Jhon Duran (£14.75m, Chicago Fire). OUTS: Cameron Archer (loan, Middlesbrough), Frederic Guilbert (free, Strasbourg), Indiana Vassilev (undisclosed, St. Louis City), Danny Ings (£12m, West Ham), Morgan Sanson (loan, Strasbourg). Total spend: £26.75m BOURNEMOUTH INS: Dango Ouattara (£20m, Lorient), Darren Randolph (free, West Ham), Antoine Semenyo (£10.5m, Bristol City). OUTS: James Hill (loan, Hearts), Jamal Lowe (loan, QPR), Emiliano Marcondes (loan, Nordsjaelland). Total spend: £30.5m BRENTFORD INS: Conor McManus (undisclosed, Bray Wanderers), Byron Wilson (free, Coventry), Kevin Schade (loan, Freiburg), Romeo Beckham (loan, Inter Miami). OUTS: Aaron Pressley (loan, Accrington Stanley), Mads Bech Sorensen (loan, FC Groningen), Ellery Balcombe (loan, Bristol Rovers), Tarique Fosu (loan, Rotherham), Paris Maghoma (loan, MK Dons), Charlie Goode (loan, Blackpool), Total spend: N/A BRIGHTON INS: Facundo Buonanotte (£5.3m, Rosario Central). OUTS: Aaron Connolly (loan, Hull City), Reda Khadra (loan, Birmingham), Ed Turns (loan, Leyton Orient), Todd Miller (loan, Doncaster), James Beadle (loan, Crewe) Leandro Trossard (£21m, Arsenal). Total spend: £5.3m CHELSEA INS: David Datro Fofana (£10.5m, Molde), Benoit Badiashile (£33m, Monaco), Andrey Santos (£18m, Vasco da Gama), Joao Felix (£9.7m loan, Atletico Madrid), Mykhaylo Mudryk (£62m, Shakhtar Donetsk), Noni Madueke (£30m, PSV Eindhoven), Malo Gusto (£26.3m). OUTS: Total spend: £189.5m CRYSTAL PALACE INS: OUTS: Killian Phillips (loan, Shrewsbury), Jack Butland (loan, Manchester United), John-Kymani Gordon (loan, Carlisle), Malcolm Ebiowei (loan, Hull). Total spend: N/A EVERTON INS: OUTS: Salomon Rondon (released), Tom Cannon (loan, Preston), Nathan Broadhead (£1.5m, Ipswich), Niels Nkounkou (loan, Saint-Etienne), Sebastian Quirk (undisclosed, Accrington Stanley) Anthony Gordon (£40m, Newcastle), Tyler Onyango (loan, Forest Green). Total spend: N/A FULHAM INS: OUTS: Anthony Knockaert (loan, Huddersfield). Total spend: N/A LEEDS INS: Maximilian Wober (£11m, Salzburg), Georginio Rutter (£24.8m, Hoffenheim). OUTS: Alfie McCalmont (loan, Carlisle), Mateusz Klich (free, D.C. United), Leo Hjelde (loan, Rotherham), Cody Drameh (loan, Luton Town), Joe Gelhardt (loan, Sunderland). Total spend: £35.8m LEICESTER INS: Victor Kristiansen (£13. 1m, FC Copenhagen), Tete (loan, Shakhtar Donetsk). OUTS: George Hirst (loan, Ipswich Town), Ben Nelson (Doncaster Rovers), Jakub Stolarczyk (loan, Hartlepool). Total spend: £13.1m LIVERPOOL INS: Cody Gakpo (£35.4m, PSV). OUTS: Jake Cain (undisclosed, Swindon Town), Jarell Quansah (loan, Bristol Rovers). Total spend: £35.4m MANCHESTER CITY INS: Maximo Perrone (£8m, Velez Sarsfeld). OUTS: Nahuel Bustos (loan, Talleres), Morgan Rogers (loan, Blackpool), Josh Wilson-Esbrand (loan, Coventry City), Liam Delap (loan, Preston), Diego Rosa and Kayky (loan, Bahia). Total spend: £8m MANCHESTER UNITED INS: Jack Butland (loan, Crystal Palace), Wout Weghorst (loan, Burnley). OUTS: Shola Shoretire (loan, Bolton), Charlie Savage (loan, Forest Green). Total spend: N/A NEWCASTLE UNITED INS: Garang Kuol (£300,000, Central Coast Mariners), Anthony Gordon (£40m, Everton). OUTS: Joe White (loan, Exeter), Garang Kuol (Hearts), Chris Wood (loan, Nottingham Forest). Total spend: £40.3m NOTTINGHAM FOREST INS: Gustavo Scarpa (free, Palmeiras), Danilo (£17.8m, Palmeiras), Chris Wood (loan, Newcastle). OUTS: Josh Bowler (loan, Blackpool), Dale Taylor (loan, Burton), Loic Mbe soh (loan, Guingamp). Total spend: £17.8m. SOUTHAMPTON INS: Mislav Orsic (£8m, Dinamo Zagreb), Carlos Alcaraz (£12m, Racing Club), James Bree (£750,000, Luton Town). OUTS: Dynel Simeu (loan, Morecambe), Dan N’Lundulu (loan, Bolton), Ryan Finnigan (loan, Crewe). Total spend: £20.75m TOTTENHAM INS: Arnaut Danjuma (loan, Villarreal). OUTS: Total spend: N/A WEST HAM INS: Luizao (free, Sao Paulo), Danny Ings (£12m, Aston Villa). OUTS: Thierry Nevers (loan, Bradford City), Craig Dawson (£3.3m, Wolves), Pierre Ekwah (undisclosed, Sunderland), Conor Coventry (loan, Rotherham United), Darren Randolph (loan, AFC Bournemouth), Will Greenidge (undisclosed, Colchester). Total spend: £12m WOLVES INS: Matheus Cunha (loan, Atletico Madrid), Mario Lemina (£9.7m, Nice), Pablo Sarabia (£4.4m), Craig Dawson (£3.3m, West Ham), Dan Bentley (£50,000, Bristol City). OUTS: Leonardo Campana (£2.5m, Inter Miami), Leo Bonatini (free, San Luis), Goncalo Guedes (loan, Benfica), Theo Corbeanu (loan, Arminia Bielefeld), Fabio Silva (loan, PSV Eindhoven), Matija Sarkic and Ki-Jana Hoever (loan, Stoke), Jackson Smith (loan, Walsall). Total spend: £17.4m. If you exclude the Chelsea clown car for a minute, I would say most of those signings are dictated by circumstance i.e. Wolves, West Ham, Leeds, Southampton, Forest, Bournemouth, Southampton are all in desperate need, and then where some teams think they've found a bit of value i.e. Trossard to Arsenal. I would guess the reason we've not done more business is that we've not found the quality we are looking for at a value we agree with. As you say January is a notoriously difficult window. I'm not overly concerned if we do no more business, we'll be a little short in some areas but I trust Mr Emery to find solutions to those problems. The squad was bloated, we've trimmed some of the fat, not lost a limb.

Gregg Evans has proven himself to know nothing about our transfer dealings in every previous transfer window, I've no reason to believe that has changed.

There's always a reason not to sign somebody. To be fair, his injury record is not as bad as you'd think, he had the two bad knee injuries at Liverpool but since then his injury record is actually pretty good. https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/danny-ings/verletzungen/spieler/134294 Season Injury from until Days Games missed 20/21 Knock Jan 6, 2021 Jan 25, 2021 19 days 3 20/21 Hamstring Injury Dec 20, 2020 Dec 28, 2020 8 days 1 20/21 Knee Injury Nov 2, 2020 Dec 6, 2020 34 days 3 18/19 Hamstring Injury Feb 3, 2019 Mar 30, 2019 55 days 6 18/19 Hamstring Injury Jan 3, 2019 Jan 18, 2019 15 days 3 18/19 Hamstring Injury Nov 14, 2018 Dec 15, 2018 31 days 5 18/19 Knock Aug 26, 2018 Aug 31, 2018 5 days 1 16/17 Knee Surgery Oct 26, 2016 Aug 10, 2017 288 days 35 15/16 Cruciate Ligament Rupture Oct 15, 2015 May 12, 2016 210 days 50 14/15 Hamstring Injury Sep 15, 2014 Oct 16, 2014 31 days 3 13/14 Torn ankle ligament Mar 13, 2014 Apr 7, 2014 25 days 5 I'm sure his injury record was noted and considered when we signed him, and I'm sure he'd of gone through plenty of tests before everything was confirmed. The fact is we did our due diligence and he had no injuries with us, so our recruitment was correct on that score. I'm not saying we were right to buy him or wrong to sell him, I'm just saying his injuries shouldn't really come in to it. He'd proven to not be injury prone for multiple seasons before joining us.

I agree with everything you are saying, when I said we are now mentally tougher, I meant collectively rather than individually, and that kind of toughness comes from having faith in the plan and in each other as you mention. I'm not sure terminologically it's wrong to use the phrase “mentally tougher” in that context, but I'm not about to argue semantics.

My stream was a bit in and out so I may of missed a few bits here and there, but I thought we played quite well, in terms of what an away performance should be. We controlled the first half, I think Emery would of enjoyed seeing that control, the keeping the ball, working the Southampton players, making them chase it down. In the second half we lost control, but stayed in the game and in the end managed to scrape a win. I'd rather be missing opportunities than failing to create any, our play in the final third still needs some work, but there's progress and it only takes a new player to come in or someone like Bailey to find a hot streak and we'll really be in business. There's progress everywhere you look, we're much harder to beat, mentally tougher, we have multiple plans of attack and a confidence on the ball that was missing before, we can dictate games for a period of time, we've never really had that since promotion, we are really starting to look like a good team. This was an obvious banana skin that Villa teams of old would of happily slipped on. There's still work to do, but the progress is such a short time is really encouraging.

I really hope someone on the interwebs has edited this to show him avoiding bullets like the Matrix, or I may just of lost hope in humanity.

I think maybe you're putting too much importance on this, looking at the below, in the last 10 years the only club to turn a profit in transfer business is Brentford, and in the last 5 years nobody has. The TV money sucks up the losses for most of these clubs, and the successful clubs make money in other areas. It would be lovely to be a perfectly run club who are both successful and turn a transfer profit, but in truth, they don't really exist. https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/premier-league/fuenfjahresvergleich/wettbewerb/GB1 TRANSFER ACTIVITY OF THE LAST 5 YEARS Club 22/23 21/22 20/21 19/20 18/19 Total €-1,668.05m €-838.82m €-861.70m €-715.58m €-980.78m €-5,064.93m Arsenal FC €-108.26m €-136.00m €-66.85m €-107.15m €-71.05m €-489.31m Aston Villa €-58.14m €-2.82m €-98.58m €-156.50m €-2.95m €-318.99m AFC Bournemouth €-26.90m €14.26m €93.55m €-20.29m €-71.40m €-10.78m Brentford FC €-47.90m €-35.70m €54.70m €-390k €28.40m €-890k Brighton & Hove Albion €62.17m €3.50m €-7.90m €-53.24m €-73.50m €-68.97m Chelsea FC €-368.96m €6.60m €-190.05m €112.27m €-125.55m €-565.69m Crystal Palace €-29.15m €-85.62m €-2.40m €47.78m €-11.50m €-80.89m Everton FC €-20.20m €6.50m €-68.95m €-33.20m €-71.15m €-187.00m Fulham FC €-40.50m €-16.50m €-37.25m €-8.50m €-111.15m €-213.90m Leeds United €-31.34m €-58.90m €-127.80m €30.11m €-4.10m €-192.03m Leicester City €64.40m €-63.60m €-5.63m €-15.80m €-18.80m €-39.43m Liverpool FC €-56.60m €-57.45m €-66.85m €34.10m €-140.88m €-287.68m Manchester City €20.40m €-45.10m €-109.40m €-88.52m €-20.99m €-243.61m Manchester United €-227.07m €-111.30m €-64.30m €-153.62m €-52.15m €-608.44m Newcastle United €-134.05m €-130.50m €-38.73m €-37.26m €-8.70m €-349.24m Nottingham Forest €-174.95m €-6.12m €610k €9.75m €-17.93m €-188.63m Southampton FC €-100.85m €17.27m €-11.00m €-34.20m €-36.15m €-164.93m Tottenham Hotspur €-131.15m €-61.28m €-97.20m €-84.00m €5.35m €-368.28m West Ham United €-164.20m €-70.27m €-9.29m €-64.32m €-87.14m €-395.21m Wolverhampton Wanderers €-94.80m €-5.80m €-8.39m €-92.60m €-89.45m €-291.04m TRANSFER ACTIVITY OF THE LAST 10 YEARS (VALUE IN MILLIONS) Club 22/23 21/22 20/21 19/20 18/19 17/18 16/17 15/16 14/15 13/14 Total -1668.05 -838.82 -861.70 -715.58 -980.78 -679.99 -640.83 -534.73 -480.92 -374.87 -7776.27 -108.26 -136.00 -66.85 -107.15 -71.05 9.15 -102.65 -24.00 -91.18 -37.10 -735.09 -58.14 -2.82 -98.58 -156.50 -2.95 15.03 -39.70 -1.85 -12.14 -11.74 -369.39 -26.90 14.26 93.55 -20.29 -71.40 -34.30 -17.00 -54.46 -1.12 -4.06 -121.71 -47.90 -35.70 54.70 -0.39 28.40 3.85 9.25 15.12 -1.80 -0.31 25.21 62.17 3.50 -7.90 -53.24 -73.50 -66.10 -8.75 -13.47 9.42 3.20 -144.68 -368.96 6.60 -190.05 112.27 -125.55 -65.90 -23.90 -9.01 5.11 -52.42 -711.81 -29.15 -85.62 -2.40 47.78 -11.50 -45.95 -51.00 -23.40 -28.35 -33.00 -262.58 -20.20 6.50 -68.95 -33.20 -71.15 -76.82 -25.20 -37.90 -38.26 14.30 -350.88 -40.50 -16.50 -37.25 -8.50 -111.15 -1.97 -1.77 0.86 0.47 -25.15 -241.47 -31.34 -58.90 -127.80 30.11 -4.10 -10.93 -1.00 -1.46 3.72 -2.27 -203.97 64.40 -63.60 -5.63 -15.80 -18.80 -33.75 -26.05 -40.45 -22.86 0.65 -161.88 -56.60 -57.45 -66.85 34.10 -140.88 10.85 5.48 -35.95 -52.16 -25.60 -385.06 20.40 -45.10 -109.40 -88.52 -20.99 -226.15 -180.90 -141.03 -72.50 -104.20 -968.39 -227.07 -111.30 -64.30 -153.62 -52.15 -152.90 -137.75 -55.33 -148.65 -75.33 -1178.40 -134.05 -130.50 -38.73 -37.26 -8.70 -25.28 36.63 -102.28 -21.15 22.07 -439.25 -174.95 -6.12 0.61 9.75 -17.93 9.85 14.14 9.50 -0.20 -5.15 -160.50 -100.85 17.27 -11.00 -34.20 -36.15 37.10 16.15 -7.40 27.83 -35.40 -126.65 -131.15 -61.28 -97.20 -84.00 5.35 -19.70 -31.20 16.25 -4.33 15.85 -391.41 -164.20 -70.27 -9.29 -64.32 -87.14 12.22 -42.50 -34.19 -30.75 -23.47 -513.89 -94.80 -5.80 -8.39 -92.60 -89.45 -18.29 -33.11 5.73 -2.02 4.26 -334.47 Could we do better? Sure. Is selling Ings for book profit and getting his wages off the books a bad move? Financially, absolutely not.

Interesting decision, financially it makes sense, I remember reading anything over £8m we'd be turning a 'book profit', and when you factor in the wages as well, then in many ways it's too good a deal to turn down. From a footballing perspective it's not so cut and dry, but we'll have to wait and see what happens for the rest of the window. Ings offered us something different to Watkins, he was much better against a low block where speed and power are less important, he was also much better at seeing a killer pass for others and by and large was a much better finisher, those are all qualities that are very handy to have sitting on your bench, or having in your squad for particular games. Emery likes to have options and Ings certainly provided him one, so it's a loss if he's not replaced. However, Ings was never a long term solution, he was always going to need phasing out over the next few years, so maybe the offer was just good enough to speed up that process. I'm hoping we will replace him with a player who has similar attributes, but with a bit more athleticism. Duran seems to me to be more like Watkins in terms of how he plays, so I'm not convinced he's the Ings replacement. We'll have to wait and see I guess. Ings seemed a top pro and a decent guy by all accounts. Go well Danny boy.

As someone who has Been born into a Villa Family Been to Villa Park numerous times Watched a game in each stand at the ground Watched the players train at Bodymoor Heath Owned a season ticket in the Holte End Been to Blues vs Villa game Owned several replica shirts ...and numerous other things I don't have time to list... I can tell you that absolutely none of those things make me a 'proper' Villa fan, or more of a fan than anybody else. Supporting Aston Villa is a life long commitment to hope and disappointment, to be a proper fan in my opinion, all you have to do is care, hurt when we lose, feel joy when we win. Nothing else matters, not age, race, gender, religion, sexuality, nationality .etc All are welcome, and no one fan is 'better' than any other. You don't have to go to Villa Park to be a part of that. So my list would read. Support the club Support the team Support the players Hold the club accountable to the standards it represents Be cool to each other Peace out.

Only for EU nationality players, so no different in this case. I'm no expert on these things though, my understanding is there's a points based system and you can gain points according to certain criteria, but I've no idea how many points he'd be eligible for, hopefully enough! Actually thinking about it, it's probably more difficult for non-EU players to get a permit than it used to be, as before they could use second nationalities from the EU that would pretty much guarantee a permit and that's no longer the case.

Certainly an interesting signing, out of nowhere again really, I remember a few whispers of his name a few weeks back but that was about it. I've no problem with this kind of signing, it's the kind the much heralded Brighton transfer team have been successful with recently, looks like he has the right attributes to thrive in the Premier League, it's now down to our coaching team to make him in to something special. Slightly confused as to how he's going to get a work permit as the fee isn't huge, can't imagine he's going to be one of our higher earners, and has only a few international appearances, this may be why there's some suggestions of loaning him out. We'll have to see I guess.

Looks an exciting prospect from the bits I've seen, slightly confused as to how he's going to get a work permit though, he's only made a few international appearances and I can't imagine he'd come in and be one of our top earners straight away, so I'll be interested to see how we get around that...

Ah yes, but you didn't specify what imaginary 'tier' the journalist is, rookie mistake really...

I'm not sure it's been as bad a signing as some are making out here. We signed him for (depending on where you Google) €5m - €7m, which isn't a whole lot. Despite being in a new country with precious few French speakers in our squad at the time, he helped us to stay up, helped us to a cup final, and then when things went a bit sour, went out on loan, saving us a bit on his wages if nothing else. It's not been a great transfer no doubt, but it's hardly a Balaban type situation. He was bought to either help us stay up, or to get us out of the championship, he filled that remit just about. Not every transfer we make has to be 0/10 or 10/10, there's plenty of grey area in between. I hope he plays plenty and gets to enjoy the rest of his career. Good luck Fred.

I'd be very happy with this, he has qualities we definitely lack, energy, drive, tenacity, and he's not short on quality either. Seems very versatile which suits Mr Emery, and he also seems to have a strong never back down kind of character, which if harnessed correctly could be very useful. Throw in that he has the much fabled 'Premier League Experience™' and a previous working relationship with Kamara, and it all seems like a very logical transfer to be looking at. Hated him when he played for Arsenal, such a pain to play against, but that's exactly the kind of player we need.

I think it's going to be a difficult game, Wolves have some good players that can definitely hurt us and their new manager is no mug, you can already see the signs of improvement in their two games since the World Cup break. I would imagine their tactics will be to sit deep, soak up the pressure, get the crowd frustrated, and then try and hit us on the counter with pace of Traore, or sucker punch with a set piece. They'd probably be happy with a point if offered it, their situation isn't that desperate yet that they need to take any unnecessary risks, to begin with at least. So I think we need to take great care in how we approach this one, we can't go too gung-ho and equally we shouldn't expect them to come at us and leave any spaces to exploit. I'm sure Emery will have a plan on the best way to tackle this, we'll need good movement and sharp passing to break them down, the likes of Buendia and Coutinho could be key. Wouldn't be too surprised to see Ings at some point too, if it remains goalless going into the final third of the game. If Luiz is not fit for this one then that will be a big miss.

I must admit I never expected us to look so well coached so quickly, already we are seeing partnerships appearing all over the pitch, players are backing each other up, showing for each other, helping each other. Under Gerrard it felt like almost every player/position was being left exposed, even under Smith the defensive midfield/defensive area of the pitch was often left overrun. It felt like we were a man short sometimes. Now it's the complete opposite, it feels like we have an extra man when and where we need it, and that is down to the system and the coaching of it, every player is buying in to it and trusting the managers instructions and that tells you all you need to know about how good this guy is. Some on here questioned if the players were good enough, if they had enough fight, I think what they were lacking was a real belief in what they were being asked to do. To have gained that belief from the players so quickly is very very impressive.

Just thought I'd have a look and there are some interesting stats out there. Keep in mind that 7 Yellows in one game has skewed things considerably. We've committed 179 fouls and been fouled 180 times, we've received 37 Yellows and 1 Red (which was rescinded, but is still being shown in stats everywhere I look) , yet only 26 Yellows and 1 Red for our opposition... I appreciate that it depends upon each individual foul, but 11 yellows difference is quite a lot. The 180 fouls against us makes us the second most fouled team in the league, yet the 26 Yellows against us is about average. Also Leeds have committed the same amount of fouls as us and yet only and received 29 Yellows and 2 Reds, again a difference of 8 Yellows for the same amount of fouls seems a bit much. Performance Aerial Duels Squad # Pl 90s CrdY CrdR 2CrdY Fls ▼ Fld Off Crs Int TklW PKwon PKcon OG Recov Won Lost Won% Aston Villa 23 15.0 37 1 0 179 180 31 252 142 149 2 3 3 763 204 213 48.9 Leeds United 24 14.0 29 2 2 179 139 19 243 145 185 1 1 1 809 206 200 50.7 Nott'ham Forest 25 15.0 36 0 0 170 157 23 222 126 150 1 5 0 714 214 196 52.2 Crystal Palace 20 14.0 32 0 0 169 187 18 177 114 148 1 0 1 757 176 172 50.6 Newcastle Utd 24 15.0 24 0 0 164 147 34 288 134 147 0 1 0 822 204 167 55.0 Manchester Utd 22 14.0 37 0 0 161 100 33 190 129 130 1 1 0 746 188 169 52.7 Wolves 26 15.0 29 3 0 159 153 24 272 112 143 0 2 1 787 170 185 47.9 Bournemouth 25 15.0 24 0 0 158 159 12 186 109 156 0 5 2 728 196 217 47.5 Southampton 26 15.0 24 0 0 154 139 18 283 158 164 0 0 1 861 211 254 45.4 Brighton 21 14.0 19 0 0 154 137 23 269 132 138 3 4 3 725 167 169 49.7 Tottenham 21 15.0 26 1 0 149 119 25 316 142 127 2 1 0 758 183 180 50.4 Leicester City 22 15.0 19 0 0 149 150 22 191 146 159 2 1 1 773 184 222 45.3 Fulham 27 15.0 36 1 0 145 133 22 290 108 138 4 3 0 741 226 212 51.6 Chelsea 24 14.0 34 2 2 144 160 27 236 130 149 2 0 2 760 191 183 51.1 Everton 26 15.0 33 0 0 142 145 27 239 145 175 0 2 0 774 186 228 44.9 Arsenal 23 14.0 23 0 0 139 155 19 230 108 128 1 2 1 737 154 190 44.8 West Ham 23 15.0 19 0 0 137 116 25 310 154 126 2 3 1 775 218 192 53.2 Brentford 24 15.0 21 0 0 129 161 26 254 138 132 3 1 2 734 243 214 53.2 Liverpool 24 14.0 12 1 0 121 116 29 326 123 126 0 3 0 833 180 189 48.8 Manchester City 21 14.0 11 1 0 108 116 21 307 91 102 3 2 1 699 187 136 57.9 Opposition stats Performance Aerial Duels Squad # Pl 90s CrdY CrdR 2CrdY Fls ▼ Fld Off Crs Int TklW PKwon PKcon OG Recov Won Lost Won% vs Crystal Palace 20 14.0 27 1 0 194 162 29 263 135 180 0 2 1 789 172 176 49.4 vs Aston Villa 23 15.0 26 1 1 186 172 20 234 126 134 0 2 0 780 213 204 51.1 vs Brentford 24 15.0 24 1 0 169 121 22 284 117 151 1 4 0 775 214 243 46.8 vs Nott'ham Forest 25 15.0 27 0 0 168 157 27 323 121 121 2 2 1 775 196 214 47.8 vs Wolves 26 15.0 28 0 0 165 153 15 270 125 162 2 2 0 763 185 170 52.1 vs Chelsea 24 14.0 21 0 0 163 137 16 245 142 157 0 2 0 734 183 191 48.9 vs Bournemouth 25 15.0 22 0 0 162 149 27 399 102 165 2 0 0 818 217 196 52.5 vs Arsenal 23 14.0 27 1 0 160 130 38 195 116 143 1 1 1 660 190 154 55.2 vs Leicester City 22 15.0 25 1 1 157 141 30 271 143 136 1 2 2 806 222 184 54.7 vs Newcastle Utd 24 15.0 30 1 0 155 157 31 244 136 161 0 2 1 768 167 204 45.0 vs Everton 26 15.0 30 0 0 155 138 18 329 112 146 2 0 1 804 228 186 55.1 vs Leeds United 24 14.0 24 1 1 147 173 26 231 164 149 1 2 1 830 200 206 49.3 vs Brighton 21 14.0 34 1 0 146 149 20 182 148 123 3 3 3 707 169 167 50.3 vs Southampton 26 15.0 27 0 0 145 146 22 270 123 172 0 0 0 869 254 211 54.6 vs Fulham 27 15.0 21 2 0 137 140 45 249 115 117 3 5 2 780 212 226 48.4 vs Tottenham 21 15.0 33 1 1 129 145 18 249 118 157 1 3 2 772 180 183 49.6 vs West Ham 23 15.0 30 0 0 122 131 15 259 117 131 3 4 0 791 192 218 46.8 vs Manchester City 21 14.0 30 1 0 122 105 25 127 115 107 2 3 1 586 136 187 42.1 vs Liverpool 24 14.0 22 0 0 122 108 22 195 152 158 3 0 2 760 189 180 51.2 vs Manchester Utd 22 14.0 17 0 0 106 155 12 262 159 102 1 1 2 729 169 188 47.3 These are from fbref.com for those wondering. What I read from these stats is that we are combative, our games contain plenty of fouls, but we are also being punished more for our fouls than most other teams.

I think it's cute this thread even exists. Fans of many clubs sold their soul to the dark arts long ago. I'm sure every fan up and down the country would love their team to win playing beautiful exciting football and never cheating, but unfortunately that's not the reality we live in. Winning has become too important not to try and gain an advantage no matter how small, and this has been going on for some time, the more money that flows into the game, the more important each and every point, the more pressure each player finds themselves under, the more desperate they become to try and gain an advantage. They steal yards on every free kick, and throw in, every corner players are fouling each other to some degree, every foul given somebody is asking for a yellow card or worse. It's been getting progressively worse for some time and it's not going to stop. The fans play up to it as well, cheering ball boys that don't give the ball back, screaming for red cards, booing genuinely injured players, hardly beacons of virtue are we? There's no point clutching pearls over the morality of our game, it's long gone, we're having a World Cup in Qatar... what more evidence do you need? I don't think Villa are the worst offenders, but neither have we ever been whiter than white. Time wasting has been around for years, every team does it when it suits them, it's part of game management, Martinez takes it a bit far, so what? Ben Foster used to do it from the first minute of games for years. I don't believe Emery is known for having teams that act particularly badly, but they aren't naive either. He said when he joined that getting some confidence in the players was his top priority, to get confidence you need to win, by any means at first, once you have confidence you can afford not to have resort to some of these unsavoury things, but until then I'm sure he will encourage the players to do whatever it takes. Brighton can get back in their box, they've wasted time, cheated, benefitted from poor decisions plenty of times before, every club has, to pretend otherwise is as bad as the cheating itself. Brazen hypocrisy is also a big part of our game as well it seems. Just to clarify, I don't like any of this, it doesn't sit right with me, it never has, but it is what it is, you either have to accept it, stop watching football, or be forever angry/upset about it.

I would image just to set the visual hierarchy that 'Aston Villa' is more important than '1874', if they are the same size then 1874 would be slightly more of a distraction than you'd want. Size/boldness/colour can all be used in this way to make something stand out more or less. Personally, I don't mind the 1874 all that much, without it the design would lose balance and become even more top heavy than it currently is.