Former Player Emile Heskey

[P3te]

The amount of money that we have been paying Heskey shows exactly why Lerner hasn't got a clue!

lerner didnt sign him

Huh? O'Neill signed him but it was Lerner that was clueless enough to agree to paying Heskey those sort of wages.

martin o'neill was employed as the manager, and as such the owner trusted his judgement on players. if mon convinced lerner that heskey was the man for the job, then lerner's job was to open the cheque book and bring him aboard

[HolteEndRob]

But that's my point. If Lerner had a clue then surely there is no way that he would have sanctioned a deal to pay Heskey those sort of wages. That is the exact reason as to why our wage bill is so **** up. Lerner trusted O'Neill too much. Heskey and Beye alone had been costing us 100,000 grand a week. Ridiculous!

[P3te]

lerner's job isn't to manage the team or identify targets. that's the managers job, and it should only ever be the managers job. the only question is whether the owner trusts the manager to do that job. if he doesnt, he needs to be replaced

the problem wasnt that lerner trusted o'neill, it's that o'neill completely ballsed things up financially with that trust. had he made better signings, or even spent less on the same signings, we wouldn't have the problems we have now. it's one of those things though, we can't do anything about it now. i don't buy the lerner hating because of it though, had he NOT backed mon, or interfered on signings we'd have had a forum full of people saying that he was a shit chairman for poking his nose in

let's remember, for 4 years most people thought he was a shining light in how to be a chairman. he put his hand in his pocket, he trusted the manager and he didnt interfere

[HolteEndRob]

I didn't say that it was Lerner's job to manage the team or identify targets. I do agree with what you are saying BUT are you telling me that if you were the Villa owner and O'Neill wanted to give Heskey a contract worth 60,000 a week and Habib Beye 40,000 a week, knowing what sort of players they were you would have still sanctioned these deals? I wouldn't have, no matter how rich I was!

[P3te]

but lerner doesnt know the kind of players they are. he's not a football man. that's what he's got the manager there for, to do that kind of work and tell him who the best suited players for the club to buy are

[HolteEndRob]

Again, that's partly my point... "Lerner doesn't know the kind of players they are" and "he's not a football man"

We've got non football men (Lerner and Faulkner) involved in making the important football decisions. That's the problem!!!

We are now suffering for Lerner's mistakes from when O'Neill was here.

[P3te]

but when mon was there lerner WASNT involved in making footballing decisions. o'neill was responsible for that. lerner was told who mon wanted, and he signed off on it

[HolteEndRob]

I feel like I'm going round in circles here pal and it's too early ha ha!

Lerner trusted O'Neill tooooooo much and a big reason as to why we are now suffering financially and having to heavily reduce the wage bill is because of this. I have no real problem with Lerner not being a football man but he needs clued up football people here to advise him and quite clearly this isn't the case. When Steve Stride left he should have been replaced by a man that has vast experience in the football world but who do we get? Paul Faulkner, an employee from a credit card company who doesn't know his arse from his elbow when it comes to being CEO of a football club. Who else has he got to take advice from? Doug? The man that has backed McLeish to keep his job and finish top 6 with us next season!

For the record I have only been "anti Lerner" since the whole McLeish situation. Randy could easily get me back onside but it doesn't look like it is going to be happening in the near future to be honest.

It looks like we are going to have to agree to disagree on this but I stand by all the things that I've said.

[mjames333]

Seems a lovely bloke and wish him all the best.

Just a shame we signed him 10 years too late. Was never the right signing for us at the time and the fact he has started so many matches this year really is ridiculous.

[Foxy1]

I wish Emile all the best, he's always given his best its just unfortunate that his best was rarely good enough.

Not his fault that MON decided he was worth £60k per week.

My favourite memory is his goal away to Wolves, a truly magnificent header that left you wondering why he couldn't reproduce such moments.

[Valhalla]

Emile heskey was basically signing on here, only instead of getting 50 pund a week dole money he was getting 50 grand.

Sure he is a nice chap, but im glad hes gone. Hopefully dunne,collins,warnock and hutton will follow.

[CI]

He's doing his coaching badges

[Valhalla]

He can do his swimming badges for all i care.

[CI]

I will have fond memories of his 3 yard miss v Sunderland last year

[NIVillan]

Its not Heskey's Fault he was the wrong man bought at the wrong time. A bit like when Taylor got Cascorinio instead of Teddy.

The way Villa played as a fast breakout team wasnt going to suit his style of playing.

I didnt want Heskey on the field especially when played out of position but I never felt cheated by him like perhaps Carew (who I loved as a player when he played).

Heskey was offered a move from a Team flirting with relegation to a Top 6 team on very good money, managed by the man who started him on his Career. Villa looked to be going places at that point. He would have been mad not to take it.

He hasnt rocked the boat and when he came in he has tried his best, just that isnt good enough anymore.

[SeanO]

Hated this player wearing C&B.

Hardly ever of any use, always falling over.

Thankfully he will no longer take money under false pretences from Villa, now if we can just get Hutton, Collins and Warnock to join him along with Mcleish things might improve.

Good riddance to a shite player.

[Demitri_C]

another disaster o'neill signing

[Stevo985]

I have nothing against Heskey.

It's not his fault he was signed at a time when we needed a different kind of striker.

I don't think you can fault Heskey's effort, he just isn't very good.

I'm glad he's leaving, but I wish him luck and don't have any hard feelings towards him

[SikhInTrinity]

I'm with Stevo on this, every time we look to get that last piece we muck it up, I look at NUFC this year and think if only we had signed a goalscorer like Cisse, fact is NUFC have been closer to Champions League than we ever got to in MON's 3 years and that says something.

[Morpheus]

With the wages we have wasted on him i wish he had gone to Liverpool.