Muriel

I think we will be playing 3-5-2 a lot more this season. Not necessarily for most games, but perhaps against more difficult opponents. It also allows us to change formation during a game.

Thanks for everything, Jack. Personally my favorite ever footballer and I don't think that will ever change. Seeing him running with the ball has just always been special. It was a blessing seeing him playing for my club - I just wished for longer. We are in good hands and will push on without him.

30m for a very good, but essentially not needed, injury-prone 29-year-old with one year left on his contract. Don't like that at all.

If there is a release clause (as Sam Lee claims?) and Grealish have not changed his opinion of joining City (as Sam Lee claims) - what is holding up the transfer? Both can't be true, right?

He has come here from Midtjylland (Brentford sister club) which generally is the best place to learn/be if you are a set-piece coach. A couple of years ago it felt like they were scoring on every single corner or throw-in here in Denmark. You can read more about it in this article from Sky about set-piece coaching. https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/12361303/man-utd-and-arsenal-have-hired-set-piece-coaches-but-what-do-they-do-and-do-they-provide-an-edge See for example this quote: "One thing many set-piece coaches have in common - renowned Italian Gianni Vio as well as Jover, Georgson and Buttgereit - is that they have at some point worked under Brentford and FC Midtjylland owner Matthew Benham, a former professional gambler whose analytical, statistics-led approach to running his clubs includes an emphasis on specialist coaching."

I'm not disagreeing with you on the rule being silly. I am just saying that in terms of law and how it has been interpreted and implemented those two situations are not in any way similar.

You can't be serious? Those situations are not even remotely close to being the same? The Burnley defender gets the ball kicked onto him from about 2 meters away, and does not in any way attempt to play the ball.

I know it is stupid but a touch like Schärs have been judged as an attempted play of the ball for many years now. It does not make sense to keep bringing up the rules and interprate them in different ways. There is a set standard for how these rules are interpreted. Referees don't just get the rules books handed to them and are then asked to understand them. They receive instructions on how to interpret them as well, and they have been told that in situations like yesterday, there can't be offside. It is like that all over the world by the way so all this criticism of british referees is quite stupid. We have these exact same discussions on a yearly basis in Denmark as well. The fact that no lines were drawn in the VAR room should be enough to tell people, that was what happened yesterday.

We have been the better team in every game except vs. Leeds. Very frustrating that we keep giving away these stupid goals.

Don't think it's the full picture though. We were behind with 3 or 4 before we got going. Very bad first half

It does not make any sense to split it up like that. Ultimately, one of them must be responsible for all transfers, it does not make sense to sometimes have Smith in charge and sometimes Lange. In recent announcements Villa has emphasized Dean Smith's role as a head coach, as well as stating in Lange's announcement that he only reports to Purslow. Of course no one will be brought in without talking to Smith, but I definitely think that Lange has been the guy with the final say on both Watkins and Cash. I am personally not impressed with the Traore signing, but I don't think it is fair to categorize our signings into Lange vs. Smith.

1. There are for sure teams who barely use any statistical analysis in their recruitment but rely heavily on agents and connections (Probably us last year) 2. It is not as easy as using statistics. Brighton, Brentford and Liverpool have some of smartest guys in the country to create very complicated models. I still believe it's the most obvious and easiest competetive edge you can get in the game today, especially because british people are incredibly conservative and stubborn when it comes to football

You can definitely use data for well known players. The point isn't just to find players but also being able to evaluate what they are actually worth and stay clear of people who are overrated. Liverpool is probably the market leader in recruiting based on data analytics, and I have known every single player they have bought in recent years.

People who keep saying that we should just take people in from Brentford does not understand the way Brentford are running a business. The reason Brentford is so great is due to the way they analyse data, which is mainly based on numbers from the owners betting company. You can't just take individuals in from Brentford and expect them to be able to find talent unless you also totally revamp the way our entire football club works and at the same time gets access to some good data, which I don't think Brentford is willing to share. I personally believe that the days of just looking at players in games are over, which both Brentford's and Liverpool's successes are great examples at (Midtjylland in Denmark as well). However, it is not as simple as just hiring one guy from Brentford. They don't have a "miracle man" (maybe the owner), but they do have a "miracle organization".

I am a danish Villa fan who knows him quite well, even though he isn't someone who has given many interviews. First and foremost it has come as a big surprise in Denmark that he has been able to land such a job. Contrary to many reports he wasn't responsible for the transfers at FC Copenhagen. Copenhagen's long term manager, Ståle Solbakken, is the one who is taking care of those mainly, but Lange has been assisting him. Therefore it also seems a huge step going from being number 2 in Copenhagen to being number 1 at Villa, if we assume that his role is more like a european-type sporting director who is responsible for transfers. That is the model every other club than Copenhagen for example uses in Denmark. His reputation in Denmark is honestly mixed. Copenhagen have in recent years not delivered great, and particularly this season has been poor, where their recruitment have received a lot of criticism. They have by far the biggest budget in Denmark, but seems to have been at least momentarily overtaken by Midtjylland, who is also owned by Benham, the Brentford owner. Midtjylland, like Brentford, have a very statistical approach to the game and signings, which seems to be working quite well for them, whereas Copenhagen's recruitment is more of a mystery to me. In recent years Copenhagen has focussed mostly on the danish leagues but have also bought players from around the continent. Some have been a huge success but many also a failure.. I honestly don't know how they decide which players they are signing, but I have a feeling they focus on scouting the players on scene. However Copenhagen also has a very particular way of playing, and I assume it is important for them to know that players fit into that style. However, I have also seen him described as a "data nerd", but I am not really sure which approach he prefers. A part of his job he has done very well however turning Copenhagen's youth development around. For many years they weren't really producing anything, but in recent years they have had very good players come through and are now considered one of the best academy's in Denmark. To my understanding he has been the main guy responsible for that. I do think that he seems very intelligent, and he comes from an organization which for many years have had huge success. I would say that i trust him in terms of improving the organization and creating a more defined strategy for the football club. However, if you asked me who I wanted to be the one spending the 100 million we hopefully gets allocated this summer, then he would be very far down my list.

I've been looking at this forum for years and I feel like it is finally time to start contributing myself. I am from Denmark so hopefully I can give you some inside into our new sporting director