Manager Paul Lambert

[Brumerican]

It's a easy to sit in a foreign country at your keyboard calling for Redknapp, but if you'd ever been to Villa Park you would know us attending fans and Redknapp do not get on very well.

It's never going to happen . Move on .

[Morpheus]

Wow.

Morpheus - just when I thought I couldn't disagree with you more, you keep setting the bar higher.

Yeah mate no probs at all. Its just my opinion.

[Morpheus]

It's a easy to sit in a foreign country at your keyboard calling for Redknapp, but if you'd ever been to Villa Park you would know us attending fans and Redknapp do not get on very well.

It's never going to happen . Move on .

The poster asked me to explain why i want Redknapp and i have done that to the best of my ability. By the way Northern Ireland isn't foriegn.

[Nabby]

Wow.

Morpheus - just when I thought I couldn't disagree with you more, you keep setting the bar higher.

Indeed the Redknapp love fest is getting old..

[Keyblade]

When we were interested in Parker, he was priced at 7-8M. Spurs got him for 5. Most of the reason why Redknapp was such a success at Spurs was because as brilliantly explained by Stevo, his scattergun approach to transfers were curbed somewhat, and also enhanced by the insightful and tight oversight of Levy. If he comes here, we'll be like QPR. I much prefer the route we're taking. We are still reeling from the financial impact of a Redknapp-style manager. We are taking the necessary steps to move on from it. It's madness to suggest we abandon our project, and sign the very type of manager that got us into this mess in the first place.

[Morpheus]

And I doubt wheeler dealer Redknapp would take the job under the same conditions that Lambert did. Thank God for that.

I tend to agree with you on that but Lerner will back whoever is manager in January because he simply has to, to keep us up and then hopefully there will be more investment in the summer with the increased revenue from TV so those conditions will hopefully have changed?

[Morpheus]

When we were interested in Parker, he was priced at 7-8M. Spurs got him for 5. Most of the reason why Redknapp was such a success at Spurs was because as brilliantly explained by Stevo, his scattergun approach to transfers were curbed somewhat, and also enhanced by the insightful and tight oversight of Levy. If he comes here, we'll be like QPR. I much prefer the route we're taking. We are still reeling from the financial impact of a Redknapp-style manager. We are taking the necessary steps to move on from it. It's madness to suggest we abandon our project, and sign the very type of manager that got us into this mess in the first place.

Where we interested in Parker though. It was rumoured as such but there's no defining evidence of that. Spuds got him at five because no-one else went in for him and i remember 'Big Sam' being interviewed on 'Football Focus' stating that he couldn't believe the lack of interest in Parker. The player also wanted to leave and thats what drove the price down. It wasn't negotiation skills by anyone.

Secondly, whether Redknapp's approach to transfers was curbed or not he still signed the players that pushed Spuds from the bottom half of the table into the Champions League unless your now also going to say that it was Levy who coached the players as well? Give the man some credit FFS. Your obviously basing your assumptions on a personal dislike of Redknapp rather than independent evidence.

[Keyblade]

I honestly do not dislike Redknapp. My brother's a Spurs fan, and I always tell him these days that Redknapp was excellent for them and he shouldn't have got sacked, not to mention I rate him as a man manager/motivator. You however are ignoring his transfer record that contributed in no small part to Pompey and Southampton's financial disaster. He's a good coach, but his transfer policy just does not fit our club at all. Signing another checkbook manager (Redknapp no less) after just 12 months of embarking on a long term project with Paul Lambert to rectify the problems caused by another such manager, is with all due respect madness. It might keep us safe. But where do we go from there next season? We'll be QPR.

[CI]

I doubt Redknapp would come since someone at B6 skimmed that 50p off his bonce.

I don't think we've ever thrown anything at Capello though so I wonder if ....

[smetrov]

It would make sense for Lerner to give lambert funds in jan, and I think he will, but a couple of things that bother me:-

1.Do we need Paul Lambert to not behave like Paul Lambert in this window ? - ie not sign young hungry players ?

2.- I would love us to sign a seasoned CB, but even if we identified one would he come ?

3.If we want an experienced player - it would seem overseas is our best option, and thats always risky and with a settling in period

[Big_John_10]

I can not believe the talk about sacking PL. It is pretty obvious to anybody with a football brain that we were in the mire, Having a go at a chairman who has seen his errors and has started to address them does not help anybody, Yes we sold our best players but havent we always done that, the problem is we have not replaced them, look around the league and tell me how many ready replacements there are and you will find there are not that many, Other teams you see as our equals have an advantage where their teams have been together a while and have jelled, We could go the route of buying top players again for big money but as QPR show it isn't always the answer, even MC were average for the first season with their spending,

A team takes over a year to start to perform together with friendships, patterns of play and performances, look at the teams who have started to show promise, WBA, Swansea Everton etc, these teams built slowly and are now reaping the rewards, Liverpool spend loads on players and wages but are they setting the world on fire?

While we do not want to be relegated and can see the team struggling is it all really doom and gloom?

PL said he was here for a long term project, most can see what he is trying to do, most football people said he had a hell of a job to turn it round and if we are honest most of us can see this, buying young lower league players is the strategy we are using and we better get used to it, it can work and I hope and pray it does, I also have been one to panic and moan about our position but on reflection I see it is way too early to pass judgement, I will just support the team as usual and pray PL starts to get the rewards for his efforts, It was obvious that we were not going to get points from MU, MC and even Arsenal and most knew this, why then are we now panicking, lets see where we are at the end of January before shouting to remove the manager, this swapping and changing will only harm us, ask any football person and they will say PL is the right man, maybe we should also show support for him and actually help him and the team instead of putting extra pressure on them.As for Harry Rednap, could he really make us improve instantly which is what we need, i do not think so,

We could finish 17th for the next few years and I bet we'd still get this same sort of post.

[Keyblade]

It's a 3 year project. If by 3 years we haven't progressed, then we move on. If we actually regress in a year or 2, maybe action should be taken then. But at the moment (only 12 freaking games in), talk of abandoning it is silly.

[AvfcRigo82]

Thanks for asking 'AvfcRigo82.'

I actually see Redknapp as the modern day version of 'Big Ron' in the footballing sense. 'Big Ron' liked his teams to play good football and to do that you needed to purchase the right players. Players who can do just that little bit more on the ball. Entertainers if you like. We haven't had a Villa side anywhere near the quality of 'Big Ron's' team for, well, since 'Big Ron' was manager here. Yes Gregory did ok but was his team as good, in my opinion no. We had Merson and thats about it.

Were you asleep during the MON era?

I feel Redknapp would produce a team at Villa Park very much in the mould of Ron Atkinson's team, with flare and the ability to actually put teams to the sword on our best days yet also make the top four very wary of playing us. Actually having to pinpoint several of our players as a danger to them and changing their systems to accommodate us for a change.

That in turn would have the ripple effect. Entertaining football puts more bums on seats, promotes better merchandising and therefore would increase revenue. It would bring the disillusioned back to VP again and i believe he would bring european football back to VP. Not Champions League within 2-3 seasons, but certainly Europa League given the investment this season to save us from the drop and next season with the increase in revenue from TV. I believe we would be back competing for top 6-8 next season, but i stress, given the correct investment. He wouldn't come otherwise.

Again this mirrors the MON era.

There is of course a misconception that Redknapp needs to spend big money on players for his success but if you take a look at some of his buys in the transfer market that is certainly not always the case. More recently, Freidal on a free, Van Der Vaart, and Parker. Not big money at all.

I wouldn't call 6m on Parker good business. He always seemes to be injured due to his age and this level proberly taking it's toll on him too.

We spent the money (like you want Redknapp to come and do to create this quick fix of paradise football) in MON era and we are recovering from it now because either randy held the wallet back or MON downed tools whatever excuse it was it has taken its toll on the club and we have just stopped that rot now. **** facing this position again in 3 or 4 years if Redknapp decides to 'down tools and piss off'.

We are not in the position to go about it like that anymore and as rosey as it sounds and hats off to the nouse of the man Harry potter won't be replacing any manager at villa park - whos only had his arse in the door 5 minutes, any time soon.

There are those posters on here who have continually stated that he would be a poor long term option in defence of Lambert. Well define long term for me? Has Lambert stayed anywhere long term and unless you are Alex Ferguson or David Moyes, long term doesn't really exist anymore in the Premiership. As it is, i could see Redknapp having enough success here to stay in and around the same amount of time as O'Neill did and in our present predicament, i think Redknapp would be the perfect fit.

It is not a case of a poor long term option it is more of a case he just does not fit the bill for what we are now doing as a club anymore.

I don't just want 4 year quick fixes because as short term squeeky bum as it is the recovery jobs are a **** nightmare after every 3/4 yr cycle.

Since John Gregory left this vicious cycle is how it has been for the last 14 or so years.

• Yes he gave us highs but we missed the chance to kick on - he left.
  
• We hired GT to 'trim the wage bill and steady the ship'. - we avoid relegation and he leaves.
  
• Then we hired DOL - 1 good season the rest a nightmare. Flirting with relegation and a "player protest". He is given the golden handshake and departs to make way for the new owner and manager.
  
• MON is hired then a new owner arrives. MON's task - clear out the dead wood from the last 2 managers and keep the team up. So 3 years later and shitloads of new players in and out and millions spent and wasted we again fail to 'kick on' to the next level and again disaster strikes! MON leaves.
  
• GH is hired after a huge commotion. His task - Trim the wage bill and keep us safe. He leaves due to ill health.
  
• Along comes Eck. His task - to again trim the wage bill and keep us in the premier league!. We just avoid relegation and he is sacked.
  
• Paul Lambert is hired. The objective - Trim the wage bill, get rid of the deadwood and build a new young vibrant team.
  

Let's take a moment to interupt this and go in the way of 'Redknapp arriving'.

• PL sacked after 6 months and spending 20m on 8 players after panic kicks in.
  
• HR is hired. His objective - Splash the cash and sign a team that will gaurantee us top 8 football. Over the space of 3 years HR spends millions on players with big wages. We flirt with champions league football but never 'kick on'. HR leaves.
  
• A new manager is hired. His objective - Trim the wage bill and keep us safe!
  

THIS CYCLE HAS TO STOP NOW!!!

As for your long term stance I feel we need to now take mirrored image approach the same as Arsenal like they did when they hired Wenger.

A young fairly unproven manager was brought in to build a brand new young vibrant team. 17 years later take a look at them! He has built a dynasty and are never outside of the top 4.

PL has not hung around at clubs so far because he was never going to until he found a bigger club to better his portfolio - Norwich came along and look what he achieved there.

PL is now at an even bigger club with the status we have and he knows this.

If allowed and given the right time and backing there is no reason why he can't mirror the Arsenal dynasty Wenger created and do the same here with us. If so I doubt for one he would be in any hurry to leave.

I can agree with much of what you say here, except that Redknapp would hardly be the right man for it. And as it is, I think Lambert might be the right man IF he can keep us up this season. I think the style of play has already improved and I think the players he signs are most of them the kind of players that are good on the ball. If they're good enough remains to be seen, and the results atm doesn't really speak for it. But some games we've played but not won shows at least to me that that's where Lambert wanna go.

But there are some concerns, no doubt. Like the lack of defence in some games. But I don't think it's been that bad. But 22 goals against in 12 games ain't really backing my opinion up. But I still think I can see some improvements there too, compared to last season.

And I doubt wheeler dealer Redknapp would take the job under the same conditions that Lambert did. Thank God for that.

Half took the words out my mouth pelle.

.

[Ooh-Ah]

He's a good coach...

I have to take issue with this. I really don't think anyone in the game thinks Harry Redknapp is a good coach. A good man-manager maybe (although Darren Bent might disagree), he has a good eye for a player certainly, but a good coach? I saw an interview with Kyle Walker a few weeks ago and he was asked if Villas-Boas had a different approach to Redknapp. Walker started laughing and said something along the lines of "Just a bit, yeah. With Harry we just played five-a-side, with the new gaffer it's more technical."

I'm paraphrasing but that was the gist.

Personally I would absolutely hate to see Redknapp at VP, but that's just because I think he's an odious git. And frankly anyone doubting the Lambert project already needs their head examined. We're clearly playing better football than we have been the past couple of years, the players look hungry and committed, and the majority of his signings are already showing great promise. FFS we've only played 12 games! We were never going to get off to a flyer with the amount of new, young players in the team. CHILL THE F*** OUT.

[Stevo985]

Van Der Vaart maybe but Redknapp could just have said no. Freidal however was on a free and Redknappp had been chasing Parker for some considerable time FFS!

It's very easy to pick out one or two brilliant value signings and claim it shows how good a manager someone is.

As I said in my previous post in here, Harry's approach is very much a shotgun approach. He signs a lot of players. SOme of them are great, some of them are awful. We couldn't afford that here.

For every Parker and Van Der Vaart there's a Chimbonda or a Hutton or a dos Santos or a Bassong or a Utaka etc

Isolating the good signings makes any manager look amazing. People do it with MON all the time...

[Morpheus]

I honestly do not dislike Redknapp. My brother's a Spurs fan, and I always tell him these days that Redknapp was excellent for them and he shouldn't have got sacked, not to mention I rate him as a man manager/motivator. You however are ignoring his transfer record that contributed in no small part to Pompey and Southampton's financial disaster. He's a good coach, but his transfer policy just does not fit our club at all. Signing another checkbook manager (Redknapp no less) after just 12 months of embarking on a long term project with Paul Lambert to rectify the problems caused by another such manager, is with all due respect madness. It might keep us safe. But where do we go from there next season? We'll be QPR.

All fair points. I would hope that Redknapp after stabilizing us and getting us out of trouble by strengthening our weaknesses at LB, midfield and hopefully introducing more width to our play, would actually start to introduce younger less experienced players in and around the solid bass of his team. Thats really what i'm getting at. I'm not advocating an approach of continually buying the mature player and putting them on extortionate contracts, not at all but we do need more experienced quality and then base the younger players in and around that.

Thats where i feel Lambert has got it so badly wrong. He has introduced youth and inexperience into a team which didn't have the required quality to produce consistant performances while allowing his signings time to settle.

[Keyblade]

It's not totally out of the question that Lambert himself won't do do that. He's only had one window. I'd give him another before coming to any conclusions. Especially considering he said he will be backed.

[Big_John_10]

PL is now at an even bigger club with the status we have and he knows this.

If allowed and given the right time and backing there is no reason why he can't mirror the Arsenal dynasty Wenger created and do the same here with us. If so I doubt for one he would be in any hurry to leave.

Based on what?

Back to back promotions with Norwich is hardly building a dynasty.

And wenger didn't do it signing lower league players on low wages.

[AvfcRigo82]

Based on what?

Back to back promotions with Norwich is hardly building a dynasty.

I never said it that way did I? Nicely twisted though.

And wenger didn't do it signing lower league players on low wages.

No? Where the **** did Aaron Ramsey, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain come from??

Pay attention.

.

[Big_John_10]

I never said it that way did I? Nicely twisted though.

No? Where the **** did Aaron Ramsey, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain come from??

Pay attention.

.

Hahaha

Thanks for naming players which are currently part of an arsenal team that seems to be struggling and sees an ever growing pressure placed on Wenger.

Pay attention.

When arsenal were amazing how many players did he sign from lower leagues?

Pay attention.