General Krulak (No Transfer Questions allowed)

[Fuse]

General K

You have to answer many questions about the catering situation after most games and as you rightly state the biggest problem is the concourses themselves and the lack of space and facilities (or the ability to add them). With this in mind can I ask if there are plans to redevelop some of th current stands at Villa Park? We have had for many years plans for the redevelepment of the North Stand but would and are the club considering redeveloping the Holte End and/or Witton Lane stands also?

I realise there would be a huge cost involved but I am interested in what the clubs thoughts are on dealing with the state of the current facilities.

Many thanks

Fuse

[MYSTERYMAN]

General Krulak here:

Players back to Villa Park. I only wish it were as easy as an invite. Too often, it is far more difficult and some would rather not have the attention or make the trip.

Im reference to the old players would just like to say how refreshing it is to see so many in the Trinity Lounge these days from Chris Nicholl , Andy Blair , Tony Morley , Gary Shaw and Chico Hamilton and part of the furniture Charlie Aitken would be good to get them a mike and do a bit of a question / answer session pre match though . Even got Chico to come down the Aston Social after

[Maradona10]

General,

I don't know if the American 'Soccer' (Football) season has finished. But would it be possible to bring back JPA for a game, In my opinion he is how a professional player should be, never moaned about anything just got on with it. Would be great to give him a send off.

[c-krulak]

General Krulak here:

1. Car park: Since I also park in the car park, I understand completely your concerns. I spent some time in the car park after the L'pool game and it became very obvious that the issue is not necessarily the stewards in the car park, but the lack of traffic coordination on the roads surrounding Villa Park. We could have the parking lot operating as a well-oiled machine but that would not help matters much. Just making a left or right turn is nigh on to impossible until several hours after the game. If our stewards got out into the road and started to "fix" that problem, we would soon find ourselves in trouble with the police. My sense is that we need to improve the coordination with the police and attempt to figure out a way to get traffic flowing out and away from the stadium.

2. Upgrades to Villa Park. As I have said before, we have a study looking at the entire park. When it is completed, Randy will look at it and start the ball moving. He will be the one to prioritize the effort.

3. We are looking at getting some former players back...JPA as an example. As I mentioned above, it is NOT just a simple matter of inviting them.

[Robulas]

General, the car park has not been easy to get out of since God was a lad, I gave up driving to games some 16 yrs ago. My suggestion would be to find out where the fans need to come from and go home to and to put the extra buses on for those areas. I currently live in Wolverhampton but there is no AV1 AV2 or any other bus giving us the option to use the Villa buses and this area probably has more fans than areas where the buses do go or come from outside Birmingham. Hey it helps the environment as well.

Villa would look good supporting that as well

[piav_k4]

Hi Gen

Sorry to repeat the question but I think it slipped under the radar!

I just asked whether there were any plans to show our up coming local derby against WBA in the Holte Suite? It was a huge success against Blues away last season I felt and the atmosphere was great.

[OutByEaster?]

General,

Firstly, Will season ticket holders be receiving a yearbook again this year?

And on a non villa note; How far from the VP nomination was Senator Brownback, and is it true that if his own Presidential aspirations had come to fruition there'd have been a real chance that you would have taken up the post of Secretary of Defence?

Also, did you work closely with Mr Biden at MBNA and do you think he's a good choice for Mr Obama as a running mate?

Is there anyone involved in the Presidential race that you don't have a working relationship with?!?

:winkold:

[ianrobo1]

Hi General, not a question but a statement

can I say how totally happy and satisified I am with Randy. When you look at the PL and even the championship and see club chairmen and director's of football picking players and not the manager how brilliant at Villa is it to know with total 100% confidence that MON is the one and the only one making player descions.

I am sure Randy has his personal on who has been brought in and who has gone and who maybe should have gone but I know as do us all that none of this will ever be brought to pressure on MON.

I look at Man City, WestHam, Newcastle, QPR, spurs and even Chelsea to know that the systeme they are trying is doomed to failure, maybe short term for some it works but you can not have in some cases non football people making player descions.

long may this continue because there is not a single owner in the world I would swap Randy for !

[c-krulak]

General Krulak here:

1. Robulas: Obviously we aren't a transport company and do not want to get into that business. It would be a HUGE mistake. Equally, we have very little control over transport companies that do exist. We try to give them an idea of numbers of fans coming to games and from where...but we cannot dictate where they place their routes. Sorry.

2. I will check on the WBA game and the Holte Suite.

3. OutByEaster: I would say that I know all the candidates...the ones that made it and the ones that didn't. The only person I have never met is the Governor from Alaska. I know Sen Biden...more from my days as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff than from my time at MBNA. Most of my MBNA time was spent in the UK. I have no interest in going into a political appointee position so that is not an issue with me.

4. Ianrob1: I agree 100% with you....Randy is in a class by himself. He "gets it." We are blessed to have Randy and blessed to have Martin...and blessed that they get on so well and have the same goals.

[ferguson1]

General,

Not sure if you have been asked this before, but I would be interested to know. Now that you and Randy have bedded into the Premiership/English football, who from other league clubs (ie Owners, Chairman and their Officials) have you and Randy been most impressed with?

Additionally, which clubs facilities/hospitality when travelling away have you and Randy been most impressed with? I ask this as did Randy take any ideas from other clubs when formulating the new Trinity Hospitality or would you say it is unique?

Thanks

[ianrobo1]

General quick one and you may have answered this before but there was a PL meeting today does Paul Faulkner represent us ?

he worked for you and it appears he is the CEO in all but name so what is he like for those who have not met him

and can Randy down a pint in one as a certain chairman can or does he have more class than that

[ianrobo1]

Hi General, just a couple of quick questions

I have a 2 year old daughter who is not old enough to go to 'proper' games yet but I would love her to go to a reserve game but 7PM KO's are too late so are ther any plans for a reserve gae to kick off at say 3 on a Sat or Sun and make it a 'family fun day'

also any plans for an open training session in the school holidays ?

and congrats on the ticket pricing for the two cup games, £5 for kids is brillant the low level pricing really does encourage fans to come

[Robulas]

General Krulak here:

1. Robulas: Obviously we aren't a transport company and do not want to get into that business. It would be a HUGE mistake. Equally, we have very little control over transport companies that do exist. We try to give them an idea of numbers of fans coming to games and from where...but we cannot dictate where they place their routes. Sorry.

General,

Sorry, I didn't state that I was referring to the Villa Specials, buses put on by the club to bring in and take home supporters from Tamworth, Knowle,Redditch, Bromsgrove etc on match days. There are a lot of Villa supporters in the Black Country that could use a similar service and it may help reduce the congestion around VP on match day.

Also, looking at what has happened at West Ham and Newcastle, I think a lot could be learnt by those two clubs by looking at the way Aston Villa conducts itself in the transfer market, IE the manager has the final say. The board is to be congratulated on that.

[mjmooney]

General,

This is not a direct question about transfers, but is related. Please bear with me.

Please have a look at the "Joey Barton" speculation threads. We are aware that 90% of newspaper rumours are utter bullshit. In most cases, we can just ignore it.

But in the case of the Barton rumour there is a LOT of disquiet among Villa fans.

I know that Martin does not usually respond to every item of press gossip, nor do we want him to. But he has, on occasion, categorically denied rumours that have annoyed him.

If you would, please pass on to Martin and Randy a request for a brief statement on this one, as silence can be taken for confirmation of some truth.

I am one of the many Villa fans who who respond VERY negatively if this ... person (I am restraining my language) is signed for our club. I have already stated that my relationship with Villa would simply end until he was gone again. I know I am not alone in this.

This is not simply an issue of "good player/poor player", it's one of principle, and our image as a family club. The thought of this serial thug in an "Acorns" shirt turns my stomach.

Thank you for reading.

Mike

[sidcow]

Hi General

I just wanted to draw your attention to the thread on this site called:

The Times, Top 50 Aston Villa moments

It is a fantastic read and details a lot about the great and proud history of our illustrious club.

Randy gets a pretty good mention to!

[the_bubble]

General,

You may have been asked these questions, and sorry if I'm repeating however, you have been with the Villa for just over two years now, what has been your favourite/most pleasing moment so far and what has been your least favourite? Also, having spent time in Brum, what's your impressions of our second city?

[roger_moore]

Hi General - I know you are a close personal friend and partner with Randy, but are the Browns really YOUR team? - I understood you were from the DC/Virginia area and now live in Florida - are you a sneaky Redskins fan underneath it all?

Thanks for everything General - I am so proud of Aston Villa Football club and the Randy/Mon/General regime - a glowing light in a morally low Premier League..Thank You

[c-krulak]

General Krulak here:

1. Ferguson1. I have enjoyed going to Newcastle and Arsenal...both very nice stadiums. Every Manager and Owner I have met have been gentlemen...at game time, it is the proper way to act. I have had no problems and I think they have enjoyed their visits to Villa Park.

2. Joey Barton??? Why are we talking about him??

3. Reserve games. If you really want to bring a lad or lassie to a game, I recommend the U-18's or U-16's...great games and you can get right up close to the players. Very exciting brand of football too. Eventually, many of the coaches and some of the 1st team will come over to watch too.

4. My favorite moments at Villa to date have been the '82 team reunion and game and the 5-1 victory!! My lowest moment has probably been Stoke.

5. The Browns are now my team although I have been a Redskin Fan for 60+ years.

[jones1328]

Hey General,

Can you please give us an update on the proposed William McGregor statue?

[Lion-heart]

General Krulak here:

2. Joey Barton??? Why are we talking about him??

5. The Browns are now my team although I have been a Redskin Fan for 60+ years.

Thanks General, reading between the lines as ordered..

Sorry General, you can't change allegiance like that. espeically as I'm a Redskin fan.