18/19 Race for Promotion

[John]

9 hours ago, Demitri_C said:

Can't see us being anywhere near top two next year as it stands. If it was this current villa team maybe. But we all know half the first team today (maybe more) wont be here next year.

I expect us to cash in on grealish around the 30m mark and that will help around ffp

I really hope that we don't. £30m would not even buy Jack's right leg surely? A fee might help with FFP but it won't help us to get involved in any race for promotion. I would like to think Jack might stay for one more year and that we could try to build a team around him. There again, I also liked to think that we would not be facing another season in this division before yesterday.  

[John]

William Hill have us as joint second favourites for next season at 8/1 with Stoke 7/1 and WBA also 8/1 and they are seldom wrong are they? 

[Rodders]

Grealish is too good to stay. Next year can be the year of Andre Green, Rushian Murphy and Keinan Davis.

[Keyblade]

If Jack stays we have hope.

We need our youngsters to step up next season. Green and Davis had a taste this season, but they're going to be bigger next year. O'Hare and Hepburn-Murphy hopefully will step up too.

We should sign/resign Hutton, Johnstone and possibly Snodgrass, and maybe bring Axel on loan again to be first choice CB. Our first XI probably won't be to drastically changed, but we won't have the excellent squad depth we had this year (which was squandered in all honesty). At the very least we need:

2 CBs

1 LB

1 CM

1 Winger

1 CF

Our first XI next season will hopefully look like this:

Johnstone

Hutton/New LB

Chester

Axel/New CB

Bree/Elmo

Hourihane

New CM

Grealish

Green

Kodjia

Snodgrass/New RW

Subs: Steer, Adomah, Jedinak, New CF, O'Hare, Davis, Elmo/Bree

Still needs work, but it's not as desperate people are making it out, and not outside the realm of possibility.

[Rodders]

I wonder if Johnstone will stay, I think not, right now - he is likely to have offers from Premier League sides. Likewise, new manager at West Ham, Snodgrass may either have a new chance there or Prem sides may give him a chance. Those two may depend on if we keep Bruce, likewise Hutton and Grabban dependent on the manager. 

[Rob182]

I’m excited for the new season! No matter what league or state we’re in, a positive outlook means I’m always looking forward to the next surprise Aston Villa throw at me! New manager? New players? New approach? It’s all good fun. Yes we’ll feel down in the dumps for a few hours/days, but football is all about entertainment! We’ve had a moment of drama, after a couple of years of comedy... and now we’re just waiting for the action adventure!

 

Regardinf next year’s team, I can’t see us signing Johnstone, because Man Utd wanted silly money, we won’t get Snodgrass because West Ham won’t let him go for cheap, and I’m not interested in us signing Tuanzebe in the slightest! Onomah, no chance. Not that I’d want to sign him either.

I will dream of us bringing in a new manager that can set us up to play on the front foot, and for us to put together a team resembling something like this:

——————— Davis ———————

Kodjia —— Grealish —— — Green

——— Hourihane —— CM ————

Taylor — Chester — CB —— Bree

———————— GK ————————

That side would need three new signings. An experienced goalkeeper (possibly on loan), a new CM, unless we decide to use Jedi/ Whelan/ Thor, and another CB to replace Terry and Samba.

That would still leave us with some other exciting youngsters to introduce (O’Hare, Hepburn-Murphy, Doyle-Hayes etc), and would give us the rest of the squad to pull apart or keep, as FFP instigates.

I suppose Davis being our main striker would be an odd choice, because of his inexperience, but maybe I’m thinking of more of a 4-3-3 with him teeing up Green and Kodj. Or maybe I just love Keenan Davis  

An alternative is that Hogan, Kodj or McCormack lead the team, with O’Hare or a new signing on the wing.... but I like my tactic. It means fewer changes and means that we’ll get to see the Kodjia of last season that excelled in a wide-left position.

[jacketspuds]

The problem that we will have from now on is that relegated PL teams are getting massive parachute payments to help with the transition. If you look at Stoke for example, they will also have quit a bit of money available from selling the likes of Butland, Allen and Shaquiri. Can't remember who we actually sold when we got relegated. West Brom are in a really strong position too.

Going to be a real tough one next season and I feel that we could be down here for a long time unless Dr Tony manages to find a way round FFP, like Wolves.

[Rob182]

9 minutes ago, jacketspuds said:

The problem that we will have from now on is that relegated PL teams are getting massive parachute payments to help with the transition. If you look at Stoke for example, they will also have quit a bit of money available from selling the likes of Butland, Allen and Shaquiri. Can't remember who we actually sold when we got relegated. West Brom are in a really strong position too.

Going to be a real tough one next season and I feel that we could be down here for a long time unless Dr Tony manages to find a way round FFP, like Wolves.

Sunderland would have had a pretty decent parachute payment too, but look at what happened to them. It’s not easy for teams coming down from the Prem. Especially one’s that have gotten pretty comfortable in the fancy pants league. 

 Some of their players won’t want to drop down a league because they think they’re too good. Some players will still be on a downer from a year of losing every week. Some players will need to be sold because of their wages. Let’s wait and see what state the relegated clubs are in before we worry too much. 

[Demitri_C]

15 minutes ago, jacketspuds said:

The problem that we will have from now on is that relegated PL teams are getting massive parachute payments to help with the transition. If you look at Stoke for example, they will also have quit a bit of money available from selling the likes of Butland, Allen and Shaquiri. Can't remember who we actually sold when we got relegated. West Brom are in a really strong position too.

Going to be a real tough one next season and I feel that we could be down here for a long time unless Dr Tony manages to find a way round FFP, like Wolves.

We said the same with the teams that came down. Mate its not that easy as its very hard to get use to. Stoke wont find it easy. I think Swansea may be the biggest threat.

My biggest concern is how we cope without terry. I just think it will have  massive impact on us

Edited May 27, 2018 by Demitri_C

[vreitti]

1 hour ago, villan-scott said:

I think we will be up there next year. There are a lot of dramatic reactions on here. We need to bring in some fresh faces to replace the loans and contract expiration’s. I think Grealish stays. Kodjia will be fit. Green will be fit. There is hope. 

There is no hope if we keep Bruce in charge.

[Johnnyp]

Whatever we decide to do we need to act quick. None of this feeling sorry for ourselves. Stoke, Boro, West Brom, Swansea...you can be sure they are preparing already .

[Reivax_Villa]

I think it won't be as bad as many think on here.

We have some good midfield players and some strikers. Our defence will need a rebuild. 

If we can get 30m for Grealish then I would take it and use that money to rebuild our squad. 

If we bring in the right manager that knows how he wants to play to his system.. That manager would bring in the right players to execute this, even if its loan signings. 

I have enjoyed to emotions of the season but not the football. 

[Dr_Pangloss]

1 hour ago, Rodders said:

I wonder if Johnstone will stay, I think not, right now - he is likely to have offers from Premier League sides. Likewise, new manager at West Ham, Snodgrass may either have a new chance there or Prem sides may give him a chance. Those two may depend on if we keep Bruce, likewise Hutton and Grabban dependent on the manager. 

He was solid, but I think Steer at this level will be just as good. Johnstone has errors in him and is the worst kicker I've ever seen, worse than Bosnich ever was.

[VillaJ100]

I think stoke will bludgeon their way to automatic

[markavfc40]

We are hurting but I think we all need to grow a pair here as a lot of us seem to be throwing the towel in on next season already.

I think this season is a great example of what is possible for us next season because of the three teams promoted this season two had been out of the top flight for at least 5 years and the third one, Fulham, found themselves in their third season outside the top flight the same position we find ourselves in this coming season.

The three teams that come down will be in a much better financial position than us but at least one of those sides is likely to suffer a hangover from relegation. The only other side that may be in a better financial position than us is Middlesborough. 

The club cut its cloth to suit in the last transfer windows and will have to again but I am confident we have plans in place for the current scenario and will be in a position to go into next season with a very good squad for this level.

For me you can sod this spending the next few months wallowing in self pity. Yesterday is gone. It is now already time to be looking to bounce back from that and like Fulham did after the heartache of play off defeat last season we need to roll our sleeves up and ensure we don't feel that pain next season.

Edited May 27, 2018 by markavfc40

[wilko154]

A massive rebuild is now needed at this club. We need to drastically reduce the wage bill, retain as many first team players as possible and bring in a few new players utilising free players or loans again.

GK - New GK required as we won't be able to afford Johnstone to buy, unless United let us loan him with an option to buy if we go up. Retain Steer as the backup keeper and sell or release Bunn and Gollini to free up some of the wage budget.

RB - Massively overstocked in this area, we need to decide who will be the starting RB next season. Two of Hutton, Elmo, Bree or De Laet need to be sold or released on the cheap to free up wages. Personally I would keep Hutton and Bree. De Laet is an injury concern and Elmo is likely to be the highest earner. Bree can become our first choice RB given the chance. Tuanzebe will not be seen again.

LB - Taylor needs to be sold, he's not good enough as he has shown this season and there are likely cheaper options in wages who would be just as good. Realistically we can get by with signing just 1 LB as Bree and Hutton are both passable options at LB.

CB - Two signings required here as Terry will be off. Chester needs to be retained, and Elphick should also be kept as 3rd or 4th choice. Suliman should be able to step in at some stage as he looks a decent defender. Samba will be released and Richards is an ongoing problem that likely won't be solved until next summer.

DM - Whelan or Jedinak, unfortunately we can't afford and don't need both of them. They can't be played together. Bjarnasson will leave if he isn't a starter so we are likely going to need a replacement in this area, fingers crossed he has a good World Cup so we can make a bit of money off him.

CM - An area we are overstocked in. Tshibola, Gardner, Carles Gil should all be moved on, give them away if need be just free up the wages. Onomah will be gone. Realistically we need 4 players in this area, and if Hourihane, Lansbury and Grealish can be retained (please stay Jack!) then we have plenty of options in the U23's able to make the step forward, O'Hare, Doyle-Hayes & Jack Clarke to name a few. This is an area where we can make some money back on the wage bill without having to spend a penny... it's also an area where we need to retain what we have.

RM - Unfortunately Snodgrass will be gone, he has been magnificent this season but again he is a luxury we can't afford. He may yet be available on loan with an option to buy if we go up but it all depends on what we can afford. Adomah is another player who has had a great season, and we can now move him back to the right wing. Here we will either need to bring another RM in or use O'Hare as the backup.

LM - With Adomah moving back to the RM Andre Green should hopefully be able to slot back in at LM. This time we are going to need to bring in backup or first team LM to fill the void.

ST - Another area we are overstocked in. Grabban will be going back to Bournemouth... however we will have a fully fit Jonathan Kodjia going into next season which is a massive boost to the team. With Hogan, Davis and Hepburn Murphy all ready to play we have enough players to get by. For me, if Bruce is still here then Hogan should be sold as he just doesn't fit into the style of play. Hepburn Murphy is just as good. Davis is a player for certain games but is not clinical enough yet, however with game time he can change this next season.

 

If the above can be done without breaking FFP then we will be fine next season... but it's a big if. I don't know the impact FFP will have on us but we do have players we can let go to bring the wage bill down, and we have proved this season that if we utilise the loan system well then good players can be brought in to make us strong. We are lucky in the aspect that we still have considerable pulling power even in the Championship. It's going to be a tough season but if we utilise our U23 squad and change our style of play to be fast and exciting, with Kodjia and Grealish available for a full season we should be able to push on again.

Keep the faith!

[Zatman]

13 hours ago, NoelVilla said:

The 3 teams going down have better squads than we had when we went down. It's not looking up for the Villa. New manager and support from Tony and we might be in it. With Bruce we will struggle.

Swansea and Stoke have poor squads while Baggies like us are an old team

[jimcohen]

I agree with the positve side here. Yesterday was gutting. But let’s face it. We came 4th in the league. 3 go up. We played ok in parts this season but we are probably the 4th best side and so don’t really deserve it. Yes injuries have cost us but also we had a huge budget compared to others and had the squad to cope. We simply haven’t played good enough football. 

We dont need many signings as most are saying to Challange. New GK, CB and maybe CM and ST but that’s it. 

What we need is a style of play. Someone said to me yesterday that we have 11 great players. Anyone mnaging them could have won a few games. So it’s up to our manager to win more with tactics and style. 

Honestly. What is our style? Soak up pressure and hope for a good break or magic from a good player? I suppose that would be called counter attack but really is that all we can muster? 

Bruce has done his job. He steadied the ship but is limited. He should go and a manager with commitment to a style must come. See Brentford, Fulham, Wolves etc. 

A manger with this type of focus with our squad and I think we could seriously mount a Challange. 

I know FFP will restrict us but we can also offload a lot of wages this season and still have a decent squad for this level. 

Loans will be key and prem players not getting game time will still fancy Villa park and Bodymoor and the chance of a promotion on their CV. 

Quite a few losing play off teams have done well the season after. No reason why we can’t  do the same. I’m putting a tenner on us being automatically promoted next season. Look at Watford in 2013 and Boro in 2015 going on to go up the next year and Fulham and Brighton the last two years loosing in the semis and then going up the year after. 

All on a smaller budget than our FFP restricted season ahead. All with a smaller fan base. All with a fair few smaller less big time managers and players. 

We can do it. 

Edited May 27, 2018 by jimcohen

[sne]

On loan players:

Snodgrasss, Johnstone, Grabban, Onomah, Tuanzebe all gone. That's 3 starters.

Out of contract:

Terry, Hutton, Samba, Gabby, Bunn, 2 more starters.

Players likely looking to leave/ interesting to other clubs:

Lansbury, Thor,  De Laet, Gollini, Gil, McCormack, Lyden, Elphick, Hogan & Hogan?, Chester, Grealish, Hourihane. Worst case scenario another 3 gone.

Players too expensive to keep. (at least all of them)

Whelan, Jedinak, Terry,  McCormack, Hutton? Richards, 

Unless Xia comes up with a scheme to get around FFP and get some more money into the club it could turn into a very big rebuild that needs to be done on the cheap.

Massive challenge next season

[blunther]

Like many I hope we’ll get a manager in to rebuild a younger side with a coherent style. As such I don’t think we’ll be pushing for promotion next year with the financial squeeze. We need a longer 2-3 year vision with an exciting manager and a new team, incorporating some of the youth. My understanding of FFP is it’s a three-year average, so I hope I’m right in thinking that if Tony’s still up for it, we can spend again after next season. If that’s the case, try and build the base of the squad next year, then go out and add a few gems where needed next summer and go out and win the league with style. 

 

If that works it puts us in better shape when we go up to PL too. If we’d gone up yesterday, we’d have had to have a massive rebuild. We know how that goes from our last season up there. We’d have been straight back down again, though admittedly we’d be £170m better off...