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The General's thread - do not respond to other posts!


TrentVilla

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General Krulak's thread is for Q&A, the raising of issues and the passing of info two ways ONLY. It is NOT for discussions or banter between posters. Please look to see if your question has already been asked or answered before posting. Questions about transfers may not be asked, unless previously mentioned by the General. Posts which direct abuse or invective against anyone are not permitted and will be deleted, as will posts consisting solely of fawning praise. The General has stated that hard questions are welcome...the good, bad and ugly...that he is not afraid of them. If he believes any are too incendiary, he just won't answer them. If the General makes a specific comment on a transfer then that specific transfer is "fair game." He asks posters to please understand that comments made on the thread either by Fans or himself are "fair game" to the media and therefore to please understand that we are on an "open site" and the club may wish to avoid certain issues as a result.

After a lengthy spell away from the web site over the holidays, I am returning to take your questions. I recognize, up front, that some might question my return now after our recent signings based on my absence during the rough spell over the past 6 weeks. I have read the word "coward" more than once...and my return will probably only serve to exacerbate that point. The reality is quite different...and involves a personal issue that some of you know I have been wrestling with for some time now. Whatever one feels, I am back just as I promised I would be...before the holidays.

It has been a very tough fall for our Club. The results have not been what any of us would have wanted them to be. We are not out of the woods yet...we have a long, tough, road to negotiate but we are dedicated to doing just that. There is not a single person from GH, to Randy, to Paul, to the Board, to the Players, to the Staff at Villa Park who is not totally focused on moving the Club forward. We do not expect this to be an easy process but we are totally committed to being successful in our efforts.

This total commitment became most visible during the past week or so...but the transfer window should not obscure the fact that YOUR Club has always been committed to creating a Club that everyone can be proud of and willing to support. What has taken place in the past week or so can be directly attributable to three people...our Manager, our CEO and our Chairman. GH cast his net wide...looked at players that were possibly available...started his efforts in a timely manner...and worked hard to bring the deals to fruition. He was a driving factor behind the entire effort. Our CEO and the Staff at Bodymoor Heath and Villa Park provided support to the Manager as he did his work...there are, as you know, many steps that must be taken to make such deals a reality. PF and others did yeoman work to help everything move forward. At the end of the day, it was Randy who had the final say. There are some who have questioned Randy's commitment over the past months...I think he has answered those questions. Simply put, I have continually said that Randy is committed to Aston Villa Football Club. He has shown this in so many, many, ways. The Holte Pub, the Holte Suite, the upgrade of the entire Villa Park, the new training facility, and the willingness to help build the squad are but examples of this commitment. When things are not going exactly how we would like them to be going, there is a natural tendency to start pointing fingers. I think we all recognize that as a fact of life. I think what is important is that we try to look beyond the immediate circumstances and have faith that everyone at the Club wants the same thing as you do...consistent, successful, exciting, football on the Pitch and a welcoming environment at Villa Park. That is the goal...that has always been the goal.

I would be remiss is I didn't say something about our players...new and old. We have a fine squad. They are good people....they care about the Villa....they want to win as much as any of us want to win. They work very hard during the week. They share in the happiness of a victory and share in the frustration of a defeat. Each and every game they go out on the Pitch and play their socks off. No one is a quitter...not one of them feels good after a tough loss. Each of them represents the Villa...and are proud to wear our colors. As new players put on the claret and blue for the first time and run out of the tunnel and onto the Pitch, they become part of our "Family" and we need to welcome them aboard as loudly as we can.

This brings me to the Fans. At the end of the day, you all are the Club. Without your support, we will never be able to achieve the success that we all seek. I know that these are tough economic times and I believe that the Club has recognized that fact and tried hard to keep the cost to the fan at a low price. Your attendance at the games is critical. Your voices at the games make a HUGE difference to the players on the Pitch. Obviously, your attendance at the games also helps the Club economically. I would simply ask that in the following days and weeks, if you can make it to a game, please come. Semper Fidelis, General Krulak

Welcome back General from all on VillaTalk.

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Just to say really - great work on the signing of Walker, Makoun and of course, Darrent Bent :)

Couldn't believe it when I heard the news the other day!

May as well get the ball rolling though - any news on the AVFC android app?

Cheers and, UTV General :D

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Welcome back general,

Firstly well done to the club for signing Makoun and Darrent Bent i think we could do great things with these guys in the team.

My question is after we have laid out all this money on transfers is the proposed North Stand redevelopment still on the cards? or was it the case of transfers or redevelopment. If it is going ahead do we have a timescale?

Thanks in advance.

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Welcome back General - this will be my first question to you.

What are the club's feelings on players using social networking sites, in particular Twitter? Darren Bent is a well publicised user, and the media is ripe to jump on anything even slightly controversial posted by players. Recently Ryan Babel has had to face the repurcussions after posting a mocked up picture of referee Howard Webb in a Man Utd shirt, for example. I beleive some clubs have banned the use of such sites by players out right - are Villa comfortable with players using sites like Twitter, and are there any sort of 'rules' or guidelines in place, other than their own common sense?

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Welcome back General.

Can you tell me if the club will be taking any action for the slanderous remarks of Niall Quinn on that Irish TV channel.

If we are in the right and have not tapped Bent up - and by all accounts he was not happy in the summer wanting to go to Turkey according to Brucie (I am not sure whether that was a transfer or for his summer hols though) so I am not sure why they believe we necessarily played a part in his desire to leave - then his comments are scandalous and, at the very least, should be retracted publicly.

I think this is important both for our club's reputation but also for Darren?

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Hi General.

I was wondering, Is Randy planning on buying Blackpool FC and sacking that big-mouthed idiot Ian Holloway? I think it would be a fine investment.

I also echo the above, as you alluded to the importance of atmosphere at VP, our 'Project Anthem' is in its beginnings. How would something like that go down with club officials? Is it realistically something that we could achieve? Are you a Johnny Cash fan :D?

And finally, the past 10 months, ever since Wembley, have been very difficult for us Villa fans. This transfer window has given everyone a morale boost and seems to have lifted a bit of the general gloom surrounding AVFC. Let's hope this translates into results, and with our new aquisitions, we climb up the table soon.

Thanks for returning, we understand why you had to leave.

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Welcome Back General. You have undoubtedly been missed.

My question: Has Randy become uneasy at some of the negative press that has surrounded our recent transfer dealings? And will he be happy to continue in the same way in the future?

FWIW Im fully supportive of your actions in this window, as I believe, all supporters are.

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Welcome back General.

Do you like the fans' choice of song for their "anthem"? or is there an alternative that you or the club would prefer?

I think it's a great choice and one that would be great to hear at Villa Park.

Will you be at VP for the debut of our new striker?

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Afternoon General,

first and foremost I would like to thank Randy for opening his cheque book this past week, i'd never have thought we would smash the club's transfer record during this window but i'm incredibly grateful for it.

secondly, i would like to echo the queries as to the club anthem; i'm hugely in favour of trialling Johnny Cash's (Ghost) Riders in the Sky. i can see it proving to be incredibly atmospheric and intimidating. a real shot in the arm for the noise levels down at VP.

and finally, it'd be great to see Big John Carew at VP again before he inevitably leaves for good at the end of the season. the vast majority of us havn't had the opportunity to bid him a proper farewell, which i think both parties would enjoy.

Thanks

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Hi General, really good to have you back.

I was just wondering what the atmosphere at Bodymoor Heath has been like this week, with all the transfer developments? How did the players take it, and has it changed the mood in the camp at all? Really excited to see the team that is being built by Randy and GH, and looking forward to picking up some much-needed points!

UTV

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Welcome back General,

Have you had any contact with Benty yet and does he know how much the fans love him already? I still wake up each day and I can't believe it. He's going to get a hell of a reception tomorrow!

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