Summer transfer window 2021

[a m ole]

I wonder how much it would take for Liverpool to give us James Milner. We’d get two seasons out of him.

[KangarooVillan]

5 hours ago, Made In Aston said:

If they don't invest any money (currently net £0)then they can't expect anything more than last season. 

Mate, sometimes just spending more cash is not the answer.

I don’t get it, people on here who are like ‘we need more players’ need to look no further than Arsenal. They have a team of players that cost more than our record signing, yet they finished 3 places above us.

Why? Because they don’t know what they stand for. There’s no established culture and the players have NFI what they’re playing for or who they’re playing for. Compare that to Leicester.

When you just throw money and marquee signings at the problem you don’t fix the problem, or, worse you risk losing the team dynamics and culture that got you to where you were in the first place. The only way to retain it is good leadership and to roll players in over time.

I’m not saying there’ll be no more signings, but as it stands we have about 5 new players who will feature in the match day squad. That’s already ~25% of the squad who are new faces and who need to be integrated into the Villa dynamics and culture - no small task considering Ings, Bailey and Tuanzabe have been around for 2 weeks or less.

Be patient, trust in the process, we literally haven’t been let down so far.

UTV

[alreadyexists]

We don’t need an academy, we’ve got Mrs Chukwuemeka and Mrs Ramsey!

[hippo]

10 minutes ago, KangarooVillan said:

Mate, sometimes just spending more cash is not the answer.

I don’t get it, people on here who are like ‘we need more players’ need to look no further than Arsenal. They have a team of players that cost more than our record signing, yet they finished 3 places above us.

Why? Because they don’t know what they stand for. There’s no established culture and the players have NFI what they’re playing for or who they’re playing for. Compare that to Leicester.

When you just throw money and marquee signings at the problem you don’t fix the problem, or, worse you risk losing the team dynamics and culture that got you to where you were in the first place. The only way to retain it is good leadership and to roll players in over time.

I’m not saying there’ll be no more signings, but as it stands we have about 5 new players who will feature in the match day squad. That’s already ~25% of the squad who are new faces and who need to be integrated into the Villa dynamics and culture - no small task considering Ings, Bailey and Tuanzabe have been around for 2 weeks or less.

Be patient, trust in the process, we literally haven’t been let down so far.

UTV

Totally disagree.

What is an established culture in practical terms ? 

A marque signing imo would be very welcome. Assembling a squad of quality players is the very basic requirement - without it you haven't got a prayer.

Our fortunes picked up rapidly when NSWE invested hundreds millions in players. If they stop doing that we will decline again. It's a simple as that.

 

[dukes]

4 minutes ago, hippo said:

Totally disagree.

What is an established culture in practical terms ? 

A marque signing imo would be very welcome. Assembling a squad of quality players is the very basic requirement - without it you haven't got a prayer.

Our fortunes picked up rapidly when NSWE invested hundreds millions in players. If they stop doing that we will decline again. It's a simple as that.

 

For us and our position you could easily argue that Ings was a marque signing ? I mean what are your actual expectations ?

[hippo]

3 minutes ago, dukes said:

For us and our position you could easily argue that Ings was a marque signing ? I mean what are your actual expectations ?

Yes you  could.

My general point is that meaningless terms like 'football culture'  'the ethos' 'the villa engine' are no substitute for quality on the pitch. 

[KangarooVillan]

2 minutes ago, hippo said:

Totally disagree.

What is an established culture in practical terms ? 

A marque signing imo would be very welcome. Assembling a squad of quality players is the very basic requirement - without it you haven't got a prayer.

Our fortunes picked up rapidly when NSWE invested hundreds millions in players. If they stop doing that we will decline again. It's a simple as that.

 

I literally said it - in practical terms, an established culture is the difference between Arsenal and Leicester. Look at the way Ferguson used to run his ManU teams.

Investment is a given, but the investment in marquee player after marquee player isn’t the answer. All it does is give short-sighted fans a little hot of dopamine to get them through to next week, just so they can slag off said player by the halfway point of the season.

[joshharris12]

Very very quiet this midfield isn’t capable of a top half finish major L

[John]

2 hours ago, MrBlack said:

I think Buendia, Sanson, Ramsey, Chuk and McGinn can all play the more advanced midfielder/CAM role. Yes, it would be nice to have a dedicated specialist there, but signing someone into this position would give us "too much" of a selection headache I feel. Unless we sell or loan out someone from that list of players, we are going to be upsetting our squad.

As for a defensive midfielder, I feel like we have a natural gap there where we have no equivalent backup for Nakamba. Obviously, we would want to be signing someone better than him,  so he becomes the backup,  but feel like this is the more important signing...if we are to make only one more

So be it. Winning teams don't worry about upsetting players, by bringing other top players in. New signings bring competition for places, players fight for their first team place and those that don't or are not good enough, do not make the first XI too often. I agree 100% with you that we should go for a defensive midfielder, but  I would like to see us sign JWP as well.      

[TRO]

1 hour ago, sidcow said:

In the match thread I said we had done enough to score 2 (before we did obviously).      I really don't think it was as bad as people have made out.  Yes it was hugely disappointing and yes they were streets ahead of us in the first half, but we were much much better second half and could easily have snatched the draw.

One bad half and the world is ended.  I feel all we need is a midfielder who can actually keep the ball and we'll be fine.

No, one bad half and the game has ended, without said midfielder.

when the manager says we played like it was a friendly, is not to be mildly dismissed.....if we have a seismic shift in intensity on Saturday, all will be forgiven, even forgotten.

[John]

53 minutes ago, a m ole said:

I wonder how much it would take for Liverpool to give us James Milner. We’d get two seasons out of him.

I doubt that he would actually want to move, or that they would want to let him go. He seems quite content getting the occasional game or odd few minutes off the bench, where he is. He was a special player during his time for us, but I think that we are a long way in the past for him and that he would not be as keen to return to B6, as some of us might be to have him back.  For me, we can do better now.   

[TRO]

1 hour ago, KangarooVillan said:

Mate, sometimes just spending more cash is not the answer.

I don’t get it, people on here who are like ‘we need more players’ need to look no further than Arsenal. They have a team of players that cost more than our record signing, yet they finished 3 places above us.

Why? Because they don’t know what they stand for. There’s no established culture and the players have NFI what they’re playing for or who they’re playing for. Compare that to Leicester.

When you just throw money and marquee signings at the problem you don’t fix the problem, or, worse you risk losing the team dynamics and culture that got you to where you were in the first place. The only way to retain it is good leadership and to roll players in over time.

I’m not saying there’ll be no more signings, but as it stands we have about 5 new players who will feature in the match day squad. That’s already ~25% of the squad who are new faces and who need to be integrated into the Villa dynamics and culture - no small task considering Ings, Bailey and Tuanzabe have been around for 2 weeks or less.

Be patient, trust in the process, we literally haven’t been let down so far.

UTV

I think you make some thoughful points...but what Leicester have is balance, their approach to centre midfield is superior imo....we have no Ndidi or Kante before him, we are showing no signs of signing such a player....and they was not really expensive.

In my view, with Carney, Jacob,and his brother coming up on the rails, why did we sign Sanson...why did we not sign a No6?

We have signed Buendia and we have McGinn and Luiz all suited to futher forward....Nakamba must wonder hiw he was ever signed.

We have been signing too many midfielders too similar, giving us no balance.

Edited August 16, 2021 by TRO

[PaulC]

1 hour ago, a m ole said:

I wonder how much it would take for Liverpool to give us James Milner. We’d get two seasons out of him.

I wouldn't want to go down that route. we have already resigned Young, not Milner too. 

[PaulC]

2 minutes ago, TRO said:

I think you make some thoughful points...but what Leicester have is balance, their approach to centre midfield is superior imo....we have no Ndidi or Kante before him, we are showing no signs of signing such a player....and they was not really expensive.

In my view, with Carney, Jacob,and his brother coming up on the rails, why did we sign Sanson...why did we not sign a No6?

We have signed Buendia and we have McGinn and Luiz all suited to futher forward

Its a strange one. Priority this season should have been signing a quality DM 

[Silent_Bob]

28 minutes ago, KangarooVillan said:

Be patient, trust in the process, we literally haven’t been let down so far.

Agree. Let's not forget that it's less than 13 months since we secured our PL survival on the last day of the season. We probably overachieved a bit last season.

Rome wasn't built in a day. And things that are built in a day usually don't last very long. 

2019/20 was about survival. 2020/21 was about survival with good margin and 2021/22 was/is about consolidating as an upper mid table team. 

We should use this year to bring in quality in depth. Which we are doing. We now have options in most positions. 

Going for the players that should ensure we're challenging for a top 4 is for next summer or the summer after.

[The Fun Factory]

1 hour ago, a m ole said:

I wonder how much it would take for Liverpool to give us James Milner. We’d get two seasons out of him.

Lets sign Stuart Downing as well and have a 2010 reunion.

[Hobbit Feet]

2 minutes ago, The Fun Factory said:

Lets sign Stuart Downing as well and have a 2010 reunion.

Gareth Barry would actually be ideal 

[skarroki]

20 minutes ago, John said:

I doubt that he would actually want to move, or that they would want to let him go. He seems quite content getting the occasional game or odd few minutes off the bench, where he is. He was a special player during his time for us, but I think that we are a long way in the past for him and that he would not be as keen to return to B6, as some of us might be to have him back.  For me, we can do better now.   

I agree with everything you said up to that last sentence. Milner is a special talent and a machine and I don't know who we could sign that would bring what he would bring to the squad, the dressing room and on the pitch 

[sne]

Over the last 2.5 seasons we've supposedly tried to sign Rice, Phillips, JWP along with a bunch of other names including the ones we've been linked with this summer which suggest that Smith and the people who handles transfers at the club, including the sport scientist are not oblivious to our issues in midfield. They probably don't think that just anyone and everyone is better than the ones we current have thou like some seen to believe.

I know it doesn't have to be explained but neither West Ham, Leeds or Southampton had any interest in selling these players to us, hence the transfers never happened. Instead we have signed players where there was a possibility to make deals as we had/have other holes to fill than just CM.

If there is a deal to be made to bring in a quality CM I'm certain we will, but it's not as easy as it is on FIFA or FM. The player some are describing we should go for is a £45m-£70m player if he is to tick all the boxes, and most of those guy will not want to move to Villa anyway. They want CL football or obscene money. And we are not the only ones looking for this type of player.

Leicester snapped up Soumaré who I've been bigging up for the last 2 years, Chelsea are apparently looking at Tchouaméni, another one I've been banging on about. Zakaria has CL clubs after him and so does Kamara from Marseille, as does both the young guys Sarr and  Doucoure. 

Now I'd be delighted if the club decides to splurge out on one of these guys, even if we have to pay over the odds, but in reality we do have to manage the finances. Gets a bit old when part of our fan base goes all Veruka Salt just because our owners have given us a golden ticket.

Edited August 16, 2021 by sne

[a m ole]

13 minutes ago, The Fun Factory said:

Lets sign Stuart Downing as well and have a 2010 reunion.

Haha, I get it.

On the other hand, James Milner is still a very good footballer and ran the most distance of any player in the league at the weekend at the age of 35.

I understand it might be a tough sell to him and Liverpool though.