moose

Lambert's record isn't exactly gold you know. He's managed 4 clubs, and only Norwich have hit the big time, and they've not done the crucial second season yet. Yet he is being touted as far less of a risk than OGS. I'm not so sure that Lambert could take a side to the European places.

Not sure if it's a bad thing that all betting sites are blocked by work's firewall!

So OGS has accepted the job without Lerner having to fly there to sell it to him? Or has Randy just had the call to say that McCarthy's agreed terms so save the jet fuel?

I'd definitely be up for OGS as manager. Totally left-field appointment but why not? Lambert and Rodgers have both had one good season in the Premiership and maybe someone can drag up a stat about how many promoted teams get relegated in not their first but their second season when all the established teams have figured them out and there's 3 new teams with a fresher "just had a really good season" feeling. It's definitely a plus that he played for so long in the PL, he knows what it takes to be a success on the pitch and can hopefully explain it to some of our lads.

Nope, this year it's starting on Aug 18th, to avoid clashing with the Olympics.

Wolves away on the 11th? Given that's the last Saturday before the season starts then what's going on with our usual home friendly?!

It's going to make the drive down from Yorkhire a little easier to bear I hope. I was never quite bothered about the whole SHA thing, but as the season wore on it was of growing concern that I was spending 4 hours in a car on a Saturday to watch yet another spineless, clueless, and inept performance. We suffered from injury and illness as a squad, but that's really no excuse because as a Premiership club we should not only have players good enough, but at worst players who are going to go out there and give 100%. I don't know what McLeish did at half-time but against Stoke and Spurs we looked by far the better team for 45 minutes, and then returned after the break looking like the entire team had been administered rohypnol. Of the names mentioned so far, I'd prefer Rodgers to Lambert - the former's Swansea team came to VP and ripped us a new arsehole, the latter's team I think will struggle in their second season. AVB? Well he was given a "project" at Chelsea and failed - maybe Villa's situation is a little similar in places but I suspect the team didn't want to play for him and we can't have that nonsense again. Whoever it is that takes over, I just hope it's a popular appointment.

This is just painful now.

Errr..... that's what ANY manager would have been working to.

I support Villa, I've renewed. Those who haven't renewed - unless you've had a change of circumstances that means you can no longer afford a ticket, then just own up to being a fairweather fan who's only interested in Villa when they're winning. Don't sit on here spouting off about being a "fan" because you know what? You aren't. Fan is short for fanatic, and a fanatic does not give up on their team because the manager used to work for a neighbouring club. HTFH.

Fingers crossed for you Stan.

Surely the important brand name being displayed on the shirt is Aston Villa FC. The other one, whether it be Nike, Macron, or George from Asda - far far far less relevant. I'm more concerned by the individuals who'll be wearing the bloody thing on the B6 turf come August.

I don't turn up expecting/wanting/hoping to boo any player. But when I travel 110 miles either way, I do expect to turn up to see a decent performance from someone paid my annual salary in under 2 weeks to kick a ball round a park. Warnock was exceptionally lucky not to score a terrible own goal the other week, saved by a cracking reaction save from Given. This time he planted it past the keeper. Now I ask you this - find me another Premiership defender who has twice put a defensive header under no direct pressure towards his own goal in the space of a few weeks. In fact find me one who's done it twice in a whole bloody season. I admit, I booed. I shouted "take him off" loudly. I was f**king livid. Warnock's only saving grace is that he's actually better than Hutton - a defender who only gets in our team because he's from the same inconsequential second class nation as our manager. I'm not expecting us to win every week, I'm not expecting us to be in the Champions League. I am hoping that we look dangerous, look committed, look like we think we've got the ability to rule the world even if we can't. We looked pretty good for large parts of the match, and to be honest if one of their players had caught the ball on the QPR line, run up the pitch and thrown it into the goal I think the ref wouldnt have managed to find fault with it.

As for those protests, a quick look at the FB page informs me to "cum a long and show ur surport" Yeah. Sure.

I'm not sure Makoun fits into AM's 6-0-4 formation.

To summarise : we'd better not have seen the best of him yet.

I actually pity anyone who owns a football club these days. Even the billionaire Russians and Arabs, their money means nothing in football unless the club they own turns out the results. If they don't spend, buying big name players on eight figure transfer fees and six figure a week salaries (please, stand back for a second and actually think about the enormity of paying someone that much money a WEEK), then the "fans" (yes, quotation marks) won't turn up - and if the fans don't turn up they can't afford to buy/pay the players. Are there REAL fans any more or just lots of people who expect an enormously rich person to p*ss their personal wealth up the wall with the sole aim of making a bunch of disillusioned people in a far away town feel superior for 90 minutes a week by being able to gloat that "they" have spent £400bn on players and are paying them enough to redeem the entire national debt of Greece in under 3 months? RL is clearly doing what needs to be done, putting Villa on a stable financial footing and avoiding it getting into a situation where we end up bankrupt, or entirely reliant on an owner to prop its aspirations up. Even the Glazers, with their banknote-printing stake in one of the world's richest clubs are now having to sell of a portion of their riches to get their debts to a more manageable level. Some more points... We were not about £24m in the red in the Jan transfer window? £18m up front for Bent and £6m for Makoun? In the summer we recouped this by selling Young and Downing, less the fees for Given and N'Zogbia. I am pretty sure that Bent's signing in January was made with money we expected to get back by the sale of Young. In 2011 the transfer window has seen the club not actually get much richer or poorer from transfer fees. We've saved a lot on wages with the outgoing players but it was on the cards that the wage bill had to decrease. Next - when we're getting 30,000 crowds for a local derby then it's no bloody wonder they're cutting costs. Surely this is going to lead to an ever decreasing spiral? Less fans means less revenue means we have to save costs and less to spend on players to get those fans back..... etc etc I honestly don't think we have a bad squad all things considered. If the fans are going to overlook the development of Bannan, Albrighton, Herd, Delph, Lichaj, et al in favour of the "delights" of spending millions of pounds on "big name" signings then god help us. Personally I think N'Zogbia's looked like a complete waste of £9.5m so far this summer but hey since he cost us lots of money he must be good, right? If the club is sold, then I honestly thing we are NOT going to get an owner who cares more about the club's future than Lerner. He might have had a hard lesson in football not being a money-maker, but at least he's tried. An Arab billionaire buying the club would be a disaster in the long term, make no mistake.

Given the state of our squad right now I'd give anyone a chance.

Why is that poorly written? Perhaps the club fully expected Young to leave in the summer so put up the money in January in the expectation of getting it back in the summer. See it as a loan of sorts.

Cheerio Blues!

I have a single ticket available in Trinity Mid Section B2 - I'll take £20 for it. I don't get on here that often so please text/call 07872 517094 if you're interested in it. I've got to meet up with someone by the McGregor statue at 2.45 so I'm happy to meet the buyer there and get the cash.

"Unlucky" Sick of hearing that this season. Sick of it.

Great to have this resolved - onwards and upwards now.

I'm not sure there's any way we could possibly be overwhelmed....

That was my first Euro away day and quite honestly, sod the expense it was awesome. I'll work out how to pay off the credit card bill later.