GarethRDR Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 I was referring to Guzan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimzk5 Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 In terms of money wasted this 5 year deal for a 35 year old keeper on 55k a week is more mental than what we gave habib beye. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briny_ear Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 MON did leave us in a mess. He's not the only one and he didn't have a monopoly on bad signings, nor can Randy's issuing of bumper contracts be ignored in the whole thing, but the fact that Given was a McLeish signing does not admonish MON of all the stuff he did. It is possible for both facts to co-exist. I've always thought that Lerner has (sometimes naively) acted in the best interests of the club and I think the Given signing and contract are another example of this. We had just lost Friedel and were panicked and scurrying around for the suitable replacement. We found Given and threw whatever it took at him to get him in. We shouldn't have, but we did and it solved our problem. We're now dealing with the financial fallout of it. Hopefully that's another lesson Randy has learned. We certainly seem to have been a better run club since MON abused his trust. I expect this summer will see a level of spending that does not smack of austerity. We won't be buying Falcao but I think we're about ready to open the chequebook again. Fair points, but the Given story does serious damage to the rather simplistic narrative (oft repeated on this site) that Lerner was bullied by MON into making all sorts of unsuitable signings of mediocre players, finally got wise and has been sorting out the "mess" ever since. Look at the troublesome and no doubt very expensive contracts Lambert is trying to disentangle us from right now. Almost all: Ireland, Given, Makoun, Hutton, Bent, N'Zogbia, are self-inflicted wounds administered, after MON was gone, either the consequence of the two rather bizarre managerial appointments he made in MON's wake or, in the case of Ireland, seemingly the joint venture of Paul Faulkner and the owner. So I'm less convinced by the "club has been run better since MON" line. Most likely it feels better run now because Lambert is prepared to work within the unhelpful financial framework that Lerner laid down and this season was lucky enough to get us out of gaol with an inadequately stocked squad. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CI Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 At least £3.5m of the £5m payout will go to the ex Mrs Given and 2 small kids so that's some consolation I suppose. After tax that will leave butter fingers with a mere £750k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted May 22, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted May 22, 2013 In terms of money wasted this 5 year deal for a 35 year old keeper on 55k a week is more mental than what we gave habib beye. Hindsight and all that! I cant remember many people saying this at the time....or indeed anytime during that first year. He benefited from an age defying Friedel, giving the club a rose tinted view of 40 year old keepers, along with the fact he was one of the most sought after in the division. The wages were too high but we simply would not have got him had they not been offered, then who would we have got with THAT MANS scouting network? The truth is he had a fantastic year for us that should have resulted in him being awarded POTY. Its such a pivotal position that if you take that on board there is an argument that we could have gone down without him. Im like pretty much everyone else that I can see now what a cock up it was now, but to blame Learner for his decision at the time is simply wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briny_ear Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 In terms of money wasted this 5 year deal for a 35 year old keeper on 55k a week is more mental than what we gave habib beye. Hindsight and all that! I cant remember many people saying this at the time....or indeed anytime during that first year. I think actually a lot of people did say it was mental at the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coda Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 To be honest if I were Guzan I wouldn't be that scared of Given. Guzan don't scare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Fun Factory Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 Given wasn't a bad buy on paper. He was 'only' 35, which is can be more like 30-32 for a goalkeeper these days. Had loads of experience and on his day a good shop stopper. However giving him a 5 year day on monster wages wasn't clever when you consider the amount of injuries he has had. The reason why Friedel is still a half decent keeper at 41 is that he is super fit and has hardly any injuries. Given has had loads, and if the Euros tell a story, he is past it. He is also poor on commanding his defence. Its going to be hard to shift him with 3 years left on his deal, but maybe we can persuade someone to take a punt on him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinker Posted May 22, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted May 22, 2013 We need a reserve keeper, just pay him his weekly wage and leave him on the bench or in the reserve's, maybe loan him out if the other club pays a proportion of his wage, 5 m pay off is extremely bad value for us and gives a green light to our other deadwood. Time to play hard ball. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briny_ear Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 Dunno about that. If the figures being quoted in the press are right, the choice is between a payoff of £5m or keeping him until the end of the contract which will cost £9m. That's a difference of £4m we could usefully spend on players to strengthen the squad! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa89 Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 Who offers a 35 year old a 5 year contract... it's a shame for the club that all that money goes to waste, but it is self inflicted. Exactly. Talk about stupid. I couldn't believe we had given him a 5 year contract at the time, especially with his injury record. Moronic stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharkyvilla Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 Why would we have already made the decision to release him? Surely we could offer him around the other clubs in the transfer window, even if it meant there being no fee involved? It's different for Ireland where there would be nobody stupid enough to sign him, I'm sure a team like Southampton for example would take a look at Given. It sounds like speculative bullshit to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrentVilla Posted May 22, 2013 Moderator Share Posted May 22, 2013 In terms of money wasted this 5 year deal for a 35 year old keeper on 55k a week is more mental than what we gave habib beye. Hindsight and all that! I cant remember many people saying this at the time....or indeed anytime during that first year. Then without meaning to be rude your memory is letting you down because there were a far few on here saying it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CI Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 We need a reserve keeper, just pay him his weekly wage and leave him on the bench or in the reserve's, maybe loan him out if the other club pays a proportion of his wage, 5 m pay off is extremely bad value for us and gives a green light to our other deadwood. Time to play hard ball. I'm on the same page as you I wouldnt give anyone £5m to leave and become a free agent and possibly join a premier league rival as first choice **** that for a laugh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodytom Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 In terms of money wasted this 5 year deal for a 35 year old keeper on 55k a week is more mental than what we gave habib beye. Hindsight and all that! I cant remember many people saying this at the time....or indeed anytime during that first year. Then without meaning to be rude your memory is letting you down because there were a far few on here saying it. Yep, was many peoples worry with this signing. Utterly Ridiculous contract! Up there with the most disappointing of signings ever at Villa Park for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oaks Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 Can we change the title of this thread because I find it rather disconcerting. I mean it was stupid when it started its just plane rediculous now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefanAVFC Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 We need a reserve keeper, just pay him his weekly wage and leave him on the bench or in the reserve's, maybe loan him out if the other club pays a proportion of his wage, 5 m pay off is extremely bad value for us and gives a green light to our other deadwood. Time to play hard ball. I'm on the same page as you I wouldnt give anyone £5m to leave and become a free agent and possibly join a premier league rival as first choice **** that for a laugh So wouldn't give him £5 million to leave but you're happy to give him £8m to stay? Can we change the title of this thread because I find it rather disconcerting. I mean it was stupid when it started its just plane rediculous now. It was a flight of fancy for the OP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phumfeinz Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 Surely we will try to find a club interested in him before just giving him the £5m? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oaks Posted May 22, 2013 Share Posted May 22, 2013 Surely we will try to find a club interested in him before just giving him the £5m? The thing is he will still want a payoff because he won't get anywhere near the £60k a week he's getting here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted May 22, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted May 22, 2013 In terms of money wasted this 5 year deal for a 35 year old keeper on 55k a week is more mental than what we gave habib beye. Hindsight and all that! I cant remember many people saying this at the time....or indeed anytime during that first year. Then without meaning to be rude your memory is letting you down because there were a far few on here saying it. Wouldnt be the first time However that line has been taken slightly out of context. What I meant was he may have not come here had we not offered him such a contract, and everyone seemed quite happy we got him at the time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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