Pilchard Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Oh, and I disagree about the club website. I think since the revamp it's great and exactly what we need as a club website. Though if you could have a look at getting the links underlined as mentioned previously, that'd be great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bickster Posted August 24, 2010 Moderator Share Posted August 24, 2010 Again, no discussions, that includes congratulating people on their posts, this topic is special and it has special rules No discussions, questions to the general only! (and no transfer questions) and no repeating questions that you think have been missed, they haven't been Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
under_the_bridge Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 General I don't have a question, just a statement as a supporter that I really don't want Bob Bradley as manager at Villa. I have nothing against the guy but he has no experience of football in Europe and would be a disaster for the club. Best wishes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1970JON Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Hi General, As a 40 year old Villa fan (went to first game in 1976) I have got to say that some fans posting in this thread need to take a reality pill. I am not a season ticket holder but on average go to 8-10 home games and 3-5 aways per season with my two children (5 and 6). I live in the South East of England but was born and brought up in Sutton Coldfield. As a club The Villa have a great history and tradition stretching back to Victorian times!....our recent successes (in colour TV) 81/82 and 94/96 can only be described as 'patchy'! But this does not matter as Villa fans we are born that way and win/lose/draw we will always be fans. I think the brunt of some the fans discruntlement is that when Randy took over in 06 they all bought in to the 'dream' hook line and sinker of a billionaire owner coming in and transforming our club from a 'bridesmaid' to a 'bride'....your stated aim was CL football in 5 years. This now seems a bit if a stretch too far and maybe that aim although honourable will always be used as a stick to beat you/Randy with! They also seem to think that running a multi milion pound business is 'childs play' and expect you to divulge business plans/budgets/meeting minutes/PAYE forms/recruitment policy/cost of coffee at the vending machine.....well surprise surprise a business is just that and to constantly question when it is obvious to most people that this ship is being run pretty well judging by past performace and current practice is just ludicrous Randy is a great custodian for our club at the present and he has invested massively in both players/wages /infastructure....clear for all to see. Villa park looks amazing....all new signage(that matches!) Bodymoor Heath/fantastic youth set up/total transformation from the HDE administration...I could go on and on. But this it seems is not good enough for some fans because you 'promised' CL football in 5 years!...(well look what happened to Leeds they played CL football)...get real Villa fans we may have the 'History' but we do not have the resource or fanbase to consistently eat at the top table...never have never will (unless Randy sells to the Chinese)...I would love to see Villa play in the CL but not to the detriment of everything else and to be honest although I have a certain 'envy' of what is happening at Man C what they are doing is plain crass and very 'false'.We all complain about 'Glory Hunters'...well it seems to me that some fans in this thread are just that! Anyway my question....Is the club looking at the potential of bringing back a safe standing area in the Holte End....as my kids are growing I would love to be able to once again stand with them on the Holte (L Block!)...I know this is not a decsion for Villa to make unilaterally but looking at what is happening in Germany (Hamburg and Dussedorf) both increasing capacites of standing areas. (why do the germans always seem to do things right?) Can the club organise a lobby to get this at least serously on the political agenda. Keep up the great work everyone at Aston Villa FC....our club is in great hands and I know that the majority of Villa fans can see that what has been achevied in the past four years is more than has been done in the previous 25.... and last season was amazing... highs and lows. UP THE VILLA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tezzaleed Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 General Don't think I've ever posted here but thought that given the barrage you're getting at the moment it was time for some of the silent majority to let you know you're appreciated. Firsrt of all I fully understand that our season has been heavily compromised by MON walking out 5 days before the season. You only have to look around to see what managers are available to realise the best have already found positions for this season. Some fans seem to want the impossible and don't want to hear reasoned arguments. It's clear we'd be better off waiting for a decent manager to become available rather than appoint someone who is at best a gamble aand probably a disaster. After all once appointed they'll be in post for at least a season probably more and we dont need another millstone around aour neck like we have on the playing staff side of things. If it takes several months for that manager to become avaialble then so be it. If you offered me the likes of Steve McClaren or Maradonna tomorrow or someone with real quality who can take us forward in 3 months then I would happily wait for the right man. (with some of the rags getting their claws into Capello maybe wait to see what happens there, yes I know it's unrealistic) I also feel that despite the result on Sunday Kevin McDonald is an able deputy and although he is inexperienced and will make mistakes as he learns, he has already shown glimmers of being a great manager in his own right. Finally it seems that the issue with players is not that Randy wont sepnd money on the right player but that we have several highly paid players in the current squad who have not been playing and as such we seem to have a thin squad with a large wage bill. It doesn't take a genius to realise some of these have to go for the good of the club and some of them dont want to because they are being paid a lot more money than they'll get elsewhere. Again the responsibility for this situation can only be laid at the feet of one man and that's not you or Randy. I hope like any fan that we are still ambitious and that when the time is right the new manager whoever and whenver that is to be will be able to imrpove the squad in the same way MON was allowed to. If that means shifiting some deadwood first then I suppose we may have to be patient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zapbranny Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 General, I just wanted to throw in my support for most of what Randy is doing. Please would you ask him to contact Manuel Pellegrini, or Frank Rijkard and to ignore Alan Curbishley and Gareth Southgates emails. Thank You. Regards Aaron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jez Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Hi General, Is it possible for an update on Andreas Weimann, from either you or on the OS? Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morales Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Hi General Recently I took my nephew on a tour of all the stadium around London, of all of them I was impressed with Chelsea the most. They had a interactive wall outside the ground, where the fans could sit with a large picture of the Chelsea squad, old players and dressing room team talk, where the fans could stand next to and take picture with, my nephew who only 7 years old loved it, I think something like that outside Villa Park would prove successful. Second point, I agree with everything you mention general, I think our support at Villa Park has been poor. It seem now Villa fans seem to be saying that Villa need to be winning and successful on the pitch before we can sell out Villa Park, we had a good season last season and Villa Park had empty seats. I think as Villa fans we lost sight of what it truely mean to support a club through thick and thin, we are like the spoilt brat you see glory supporting the big 4 teams, they just seem abit more loyal then what we have at Villa Park. Reading this forum, make me feel ashame to share the same clubs as some of these supporters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smudge1874 Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 General - What you say about attendance figures is correct!! However what you need to understand is Villa fans are fickle!! There is a solid core of around 20-25k that will watch 11 dustbins if they've got Villa shirts on. After that there is probably another 5-10k who come under the category of regular attendees circumstances (work, finance, family commitments) allowing! The rest are all glory hunters so unless we are winning on the pitch or they think there is a realistic possibility of us winning on the pitch they won't spend there hard earned on AVFC!! The "match day experience" has improved considerably at VP under Randy's ownership & for that we are all thankful but the bottom line is unless the team is winning & the football is good VP will always have empty seats!! Given the current situation having lost the best manager we've had since Ron Saunders & having sold our best player two close seasons running to a team we're challenging for 4th place is it any surprise ticket sales are down?? Add to that the deafening silence on the appointment of a new manager then it will get worse before it gets better believe me!! General I'm not naive enough to expect you to be naming names or to expect you to appoint a manager hastily or for the manager to be in place within a week but i guess that you have a manager or managers you are targeting?? All you need to do to quell some of these naysayers #& possibly raise the spirits (and possibly ticket sales) is just give us a progress update every now and then along the lines of "we've pinpointed a certain person / we've had several cv's we're looking at / we're in talks with a candidate" I think the work Randy & yourself have done building bridges between fans & the board is fantastic & long may it continue but right now there is a lot of negativity, panic & frustration amongst us. The only people who can quell that is Randy or yourself by talking candidly to us!! Please General?? VTID Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Villa5shitty1-down-u-go Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Hi Gen: dont agree with u , when u say theres no good Forwards avil .... there loads out there Just Mon Liked is british player - also robbie keane's avil and has been for some time ... now im not saying go get him but hes just wat Villa need or someone like him .... so there are lots of forwards avil easy!. also the part where u say the club are not holding bk due to the transfer window - well time will tell ... wont it . There will be a lots of upset villa fans if we bring in a manager whos been out of work for while in after augs 31st becasue again that would be just a joke...like i said time will tell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bakerbob Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 HI General A simple question are Villa attempting to sign players before the dead line or are they on hold for whatever reason? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cracker1234 Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Hi General, I just seen on SSN that Gabby scored in a practice match...Who was that match against? did everyone pull through that match without injuries? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob182 Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Hi General, I just seen on SSN that Gabby scored in a practice match...Who was that match against? did everyone pull through that match without injuries? It's all on the OS mate. Mods - sorry for answering, but some questions are pointless when the poster could find them on AVFC.co.uk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cje1874 Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 General, Do you discuss your replies with Randy or Paul or is everything posted off your own back ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-krulak Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 General Krulak here: 1. First off, I will be off the site until Friday...unfortunately I have a Board Meeting (not AVFC) in Houston and will be traveling and then at the meeting...then back again. I am NOT a coward and I am not skipping out...I just need to make this meeting. 2. 99% of my replies are "off my own back" but obviously, I talk to Randy and Paul about what is said on each site. I pull no punches...they get the unvarnished truth at all times. BUT, when I answer, I use my own words and thoughts...based upon discussions I have had at the Club. 3. Gabby, Cuellar and Collins will all be ready to play this week and this weekend. 4. Pilchard and others: All good comments and all have been taken aboard. I think I have said as much as I can about the manager. OBVIOUSLY we have been looking...we would be idiots not to be out and about. At the same time, it is not as easy as it might appear. As for the continuing lament that we are just waiting for the window to close before we announce a Manager...that is crazy. It may seems like a nefarious plan to some of the fans but nothing could be further from the truth. As for the availability of all the great South American strikers, etc. there is a big difference between fact and fiction. Again, what you read in the papers or what rumors you hear do NOT necessarily comport to reality. As for why we didn't sign anyone from the moment the window opened, you are asking the wrong person...I haven't been in the transfer business since I arrived! I think we ALL know who did the transfers for the Club...and his timing. Additionally, those who continue to say that "time will tell" re. the manager or new players...what is time going to tell? That we didn't rush out and get a manager? That we didn't rush out and spend on a player that really will not help the Club? Is this really the expectation of a knowledgeable fan? 5. What is our goal? What is Randy's goal? It hasn't changed since we arrived on the scene. Even with the change in dynamics of the economy, the new owners in the league, our goal has not changed. We want to play consistent, exciting, winning football. We want to be competitive at all levels. We want to have fans that are proud of the Club and who are thrilled when the lads take the Pitch. This has NOT changed since we arrived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dounavilla Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 cheers gen , nice comments Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Villa5shitty1-down-u-go Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Hi Gen: All great point's and thanks for posting ....But say Villa go get Curbs on sept 5th something like that- then u can understand the Fans about the tranfer window bit - as curbs (not saying its him) could of been done within a week/ 10 days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lion-heart Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Just wished a Mr Stewart Downing would show as much "balls". Cheers General. In Tough times you get to judge the Tough men. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMB Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 Thanks General. Are you able to give any update on Ashley Young and a new contract? Or whether there have been any more talks since the last meeting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted August 24, 2010 Share Posted August 24, 2010 5. What is our goal? What is Randy's goal? It hasn't changed since we arrived on the scene. Even with the change in dynamics of the economy, the new owners in the league, our goal has not changed. We want to play consistent, exciting, winning football. We want to be competitive at all levels. We want to have fans that are proud of the Club and who are thrilled when the lads take the Pitch. This has NOT changed since we arrived General is that not a shift from wanting to regularly compete for a champions league position, in the top for and ultimately challenge for the title? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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