wilko154

He will be going to a bigger team than us in the next 12 months. Right now we need to be signing players that can mould into a player like Tielemans at 25 years old. Sangare at 22 years old would be that player for me; a brilliant player, who will only increase in value once signed.

A lot of talk around Bertrand Traore leaving. I would personally keep hold of him. If we are going to play two behind a striker, it would make sense to have Coutinho, Buendia, Bailey and Traore as our options. Granted Watkins or Ings will also be played in there now and again. For squad depth those four players are pretty strong for the level we are currently at. It then allows us to move on Trezeguet (already done) and El Ghazi as the previous squad depth. For me there are more pressing areas of the squad that we need to upgrade before the end of this window.

I completely agree, just playing devils advocate. Watkins is frustrating as like you said he has done better, and normally does in phases of a game. I'm torn with Archer, I feel if he sticks around he's a third choice striker playing limited games. A bit like where Keinan found himself in the Championship. At the same time I feel as though if he goes out on loan for a full season he'll bang goals in and we'll look on enviously. Glad it's not my decision to make.

I might be on my own here, but I would be happy to sell Nakamba and keep Iroegbunam as our backup DM. With Luiz also available to provide cover it would be beneficial to cash in on Nakamba now and allow Tim a path to the first team. He's physically there now.

Thought Sanson was brilliant yesterday. I'm not saying he's better, but he was so much more effective than McGinn. I've always thought there's a player in there, and it's now starting to show. A run of games and we could have the midfielder we have been missing.

Lets be honest though, the ball hasn't stuck to Ollie Watkins in over 12 months. I've never seen a ball bounce off a shin so many times.

It's clear that we now know Coutinho's strengths and weaknesses against various opposition. He's largely anonymous away from home. He suits games where we see a lot of possession, or where he is given space. That's not to say he's useless in big games, against United at Villa Park he came on and exploited the space he was given perfectly. What he needs is space, and a team around him that allow it. It's the Grealish problem all over again, everything is trying to go through Coutinho. There needs to be some balance to the side and both Buendia or Bailey will allow that. A midfield who can control the possession, dictate play, and allow Coutinho to stay further up the pitch in dangerous positions will also help. For me Douglas Luiz is the player that will help this, playing in the 8 role. He'll be fine this season; but we need to use him effectively. And not use him when we know he won't have the required impact.

Watching the game yesterday it was clear that Douglas Luiz is by far our best number 8. We could do with another midfielder, but I think the biggest signing we can make now is a new contract for Luiz. With Kamara behind him, and allowing Luiz to play in a more advanced role he can dictate a game for us and carry the ball with no risk of being the defensive cover in front of the back four.

I'm in the same boat as most of you; bought the PS5 but not really used it much yet. Currently playing Ratchet & Clank PS4 & Horizon 1 PS4 as catching up on them both. I've essentially bought the PS5 for the future games coming up though, so figure it's a worthy investment. I've got Miles Morales & Horizon Forbidden West to play, then GOW2, Hogwarts Legacy, Spiderman 2 all to come.

I'm guessing he is leaving pretty soon. If you watch the first day of training video on Villa TV you can see El Ghazi in the background a few times, but he's not featured at all.

Rumours of the sale being for around £3.75m; after we bought Trezeguet for £8.75m A £5 million loss; but a worthy loss. Trezeguet didn’t live up to expectations, didn’t progress to be a player who improved and increased his value. However he played a vital part in our first season back in the PL. Without his goals towards the end of the season we wouldn’t have stayed up, that’s a fact. Also responsible for giving us another day out at Wembley. Not every player will make us profit, but if they contribute in a small part to progressing the club towards a brighter future then their transfer fee was worthwhile.

I really want Otavio. I don’t know much about him, but from reading various articles and watching some footage he looks like the type of player that would benefit the team. I also compared the footage to Sanson’s YouTube footage and it’s fair to say there’s a big difference between the players in quality. Kamara and Nakamba are more than enough to cover the DM role. Chambers and Luiz (if he stays) can provide cover. Otavio, Ramsey, McGinn in the centre midfield places. I would then try to keep Luiz to play as an 8; but sell him if he has no intention of signing a deal. If we sell Luiz I would then keep Sanson and give him another season to prove himself. In the attacking midfield slots we currently have Buendia, Coutinho, Bailey and Traore. With Ings who can drop in when required; or Ramsey, McGinn or Otavio who could push up when required.

Ross Barkley returns

Completely agree about it being another cash grab from the club. Cost of living is rising through the roof, and the club have felt the need to push prices up for their fanbase. Three games in Australia, with limited access for the majority of fans and they charge £10 per game to watch them. It’s not extortionate amounts of money, but in context it’s a pre season friendly. The club have to be really careful with these price rises, as their current push for hospitality and a richer fanbase has the potential to backfire amongst the loyal fanbase at the club:

Just an example of what we would look like in comparison. Current Round, Claret Lion with Star and Year Round, Claret Lion without Star and Year Round, Yellow Lion

I would imagine a full rebuild or at least a large partial rebuild of the Doug Ellis (and hopefully a rename) will be a part of the process. The concourse size, hospitality size and catering size are all too limited currently. I would imagine it will be the next part of the project and will significantly increase the capacity once complete.

Flying from Birmingham this morning with Jet2. Baggage check in was superb, literally took 2 minutes. Security took a lot longer, about 30 minutes of queues to get in and through. Not helped by the morons who look shocked that you have to remove liquid and electronics once they get to the security gate. If you can pay for the express lane it’s worthwhile. Biggest problem of the morning has been breakfast, the airport is just too busy for demand. Other than that it was a lot smoother than I was expecting.

I'm not sure if it's already been said... but I would be all over Conor Gallagher for £30 million.

How's everyone getting there? Flights are a nightmare. Only Villa could choose a European friendly in one of the most remote cities in France.

I'm actually not too worried about a striker. For a start by improving the midfield I think we will see a huge difference defensively, and in chances created for our strikers. Ings and Watkins have both proven they can be lethal strikers if chances are created for them. And secondly I genuinely think Cameron Archer could be the next big thing from our academy, I really want to see him given a chance next season.

I feel like we really need to go big on a midfielder this summer. It's a position that's been a huge weakness for us for years. Kamara will be a massive upgrade at defensive midfield, helping both the defense and central midfield; I just feel there's a real lack of quality in the number 8 role. If you look at Newcastle & Tottenham you can see the difference quality midfield signings can make. I would quite happily move on Sanson as he is clearly not good enough from a managers perspective. This leaves us McGinn, Ramsey and Luiz as number 8 options; I feel as though Luiz will likely move on, although I would be keep for him to sign a deal as I feel he would improve massively in the number 8 role. So options for that last midfield role, let's go big and get some real quality in even if breaking the bank is required. Obviously some of these players are only going to be interested in European football, but we've done well at selling the club to others already. Mikel Merino - Unlikely as he's linked to City and Liverpool as their backup options to other deals. Hugely talented and worth a go. Florian Neuhaus - Again linked to Liverpool. Young and would be expensive, but a huge talent for the future. Fabian Ruiz - Linked to Arsenal who are now signing Viera, available for 25-30M. A proper midfielder who was linked to Newcastle in January. Matheus Nunes - Linked with Everton and Wolves. A more achievable target, only 23 years old and already capped for Portugal.

I honestly think Stranger Things Season 4 Episode 4 is up there with one of the greatest tv show episodes. Absolutely superb!