Manager Paul Lambert

[Stevo985]

Yeah I wasn't saying he was wrong. I just thought it was a strange comment to make seeing as Carruthers hadn't featured.

 

You might be right, guess we'll have to wait and see.

[SikhInTrinity]

Carruthers got off on the wrong foot, he was fined within a week of Lambert banning technology during training, the Carruthers not so cleverly tweeted a picture of notes indicating his fine. Within a week off that his account was closed on Twitter.

[TRO]

Carruthers got off on the wrong foot, he was fined within a week of Lambert banning technology during training, the Carruthers not so cleverly tweeted a picture of notes indicating his fine. Within a week off that his account was closed on Twitter.

 

 

seems a pretty slick way to convince the manager that the first team is where you want to be....When you get this level of intelligence, it kinda makes you think that, that world class pass maybe just beyond his comprehension.

 

Intelligence off the field does seem to have a habit of finding its way on to the field.

[TezzRexx]

 

 

Dont think he likes Carruthers, who I think will be off.

Out of curiosity, what are you basing this on?

This is my impression aswell stevo. For me carruthers looked really promising in his few appearances the season before last, and given lamberts approach towards giving the youngsters a chance I was very surprised that he didn't feature at all this year. Seems strange.

 

Made the bench a couple of times didn't he? I know its not much but I don't think Lambert shut him out completely.

[theunderstudy]

Samir Carruthers middle name is Badre. Just thought I'd share that.

 

I'm quite inclined to trust Lambert's judgement of a player. Of all the signings he's made it's only El Ahmadi I've been a bit disappointed with, and that's more due to the player himself. He can look bloody good and bloody awful. Seems to operate on a different wavelength to everyone else, but like vs. United etc he can cause havoc and be quite a good midfield player.

 

Bennett is regularly slagged off, to my shame by me quite a bit initially. But he's improved a lot recently, and will look better with a bit of protection in front of him. Just shows how exceptional Lowton has been, that's he's suffered the same fate as Bennett and come out very much smelling of roses (Another signing which i recall generated a lot of negative and/or apathetic backlash at us signing an unproven fullback from League 1 for 3m* rather than people like Nathaniel Clyne who by some accounts acted billy big bollocks and wanted a larger wage than we were willing to pay.


But anyway yeah. Lowton is the best right back we've had here since Mark Delaney, and yes that includes Kyle Walker. Offensively you could argue Walker poses more of a threat but Lowton is extremely competent at the "give and go" and is fast developing into (IMO) one of the best young fullbacks in the league. In fact he's been as good as a damn lot of experienced RBs this year too.

 

Back to Bennett. Yeah he's had some horror shows, like Norwich, United towards the end of the season, and Norwich earlier in the season.... but he is quite tenacious and has spirit. Kept Mata/Moses quiet vs. Chelsea and Adam Johnson almost silent vs Sunderland and also has had to deal with the fact he's marked as the weak link. Also, like Lowton he has a mean swinging ball in which can cause trouble.

Benteke, nothing to add here that we don't already know. Villa were called mad for paying "7m"** for Benteke, nearly everyone thought we were robbed by Genk and all of a sudden Benteke is arguably one of the hottest young properties in Europe (due to our relatively lowly standing and the fact we own a player with a very high potential.) He's a beast and nice young bloke. Stepped out of Lukaku's shadow both domestically and internationally. First Belgian to net a Premier League hat-trick too.....

Vlaar. Again a contentious issue with some fans. i like him. Has a big heart and clearly cares about playing. Makes a few mistakes but hell don't we all. Shows passion and a level of experience not many other players at our club match. No coincidence  our form improved with him back in defence.

 

Dawkins - basically a 4 month trial. Showed some flashes of ability but also larger flashes of why he's in the MLS being paid a pittance. Not that great a player but still, basically a free trial and if he had been a success we would have signed him on a free at the end of the season. No skin off our nose.

 

Sylla - the wildcard. The position we needed but was viewed as a bizarre signing. A 22 year old from a middle of the road Ligue 2 club the French experts (who I tweeted and asked for an honest assessment of him) said was unremarkable... I really like Sylla. Also what can't be undervalued is his effect on Benteke and vice versa.  Matured Benteke a bit taking the young Frenchman under his wing and the two by all accounts are good friends. Seems to have struck a chord with Delph in midfield and has struck up a good relationship with Westwood also. Also big, gets about, likes a tackle. Robust is the best word for him. Not shy when going up against players. Needs to work on his heading though, can't seem to win a header despite being over 6 foot.

 

 

In summary - yes I'll take Lambert and his signings over most of our previous managers and despite what people say there seems to be more of a plan than any I can remember, even under MON, which seemingly was "spend 40m every window". The best thing is we raise the values of our purchased players and if they do leave... well, we'll sign replacements and go again. Get richer and richer whilst continuing our ethos.

 

More importantly Lambert has restored the pride at Villa. People aren't boycotting the games (surely?) any more. Even when we were getting dicked at home it was still better than the dreary toss we've had in previous years purely as the players seem to give a shit, notable exceptions excluded who will likely leave the club.

 

Also we now have a likeable bunch of lads. Compare and contrast with last seasons lot. Also we're being a "shining beacon" to other clubs with prioritising youth and letter lower league players know if the talent and application is there there's potentially a place at the top table if they'll work. May work to our advantage when trying to sign "high profile" youngsters, for (slightly optimistic) example Kurt Zouma/Will Hughes. Where would a young talented lad go. Be a reserve at a big club? *cough John Bostock* Or get fairly regular football at a team with a good positive ethos?

 

Next year will be exciting. And I'm looking forward to it. UTV


*900k according to reliable sources as TrentVilla testifies
** A good bit less also according to sources

[Zatman]

cant really complain about that. fairly written and good post.

 

especially teh Bennett part. he is not Ashley Cole and has had shockers but he is improving slowly but has now been designated the scapegoat by some people

[Biskitt]

With the exception of Man U, Man City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Spurs and possibly Liverpool ( who were showing a lot of improvement towards the end of the season ), are the rest of the league really that good ? Everton ( and Stoke) have a new manager, the Baggies have lost their best forward, Swansea went into free fall at the end of the season and the rest are all a bit meh really.

I think next season could be very interesting and if we get our signings right, there's no reason why we can't challenge for top 6-8

[rodigan]

thing is, we now (or at least very soon will) have a squad with a bit of depth to it, and with room on the wage bill to upgrade our squad...

 

with those that appear to be heading out over the summer, if we look at the remaining squad, there are very few, if any, players that are not contributing to the team, while drawing big salaries... the balance now seems better than it has been for a long time, and i think that we will start to see prudent purchasing upgrading our squad over the next several windows....

 

my only concern is that we may see less and less chances for the kids coming through over the next couple of years. i think players like albrighton, bannan, clark, herd, lichaj, hogg, baker, stevens, delfouneso, weimann all got very very lucky coming through when they did, and had chances to play at first team level that the next crop - carruthers, grealish, gardner, siegrist, donacien, johnson will really struggle to get.... when you have the likes of clark, bannan, albrighton, holman, KEA, zoggy, bowery and herd struggling to get a start, and that doesn't even take into account the new signings that we will make this season, then i worry for these young guys getting chances... hopefully PL will send them all out on loan to get some experience and then lets see...

 

and actually, as i look at it, having a squad that is simply too good for them to get a run is not a bad position for the club as a whole to be in...

[bannedfromHandV]

 

Got any facts to back that up, you seem to be very well informed perhaps you can let us all know how we should be able to compete as a top 7/6 team?

I may be completely wrong but when Lerner took over were we not in the top 7 clubs in terms of income?

Ignoring Randy's own money, we generate enough income for a top 6/7 team do we?

Again we did. It's his decisions that have led to other teams starting to overtake us in this area. We still earn more money than the majority of teams in the league. He's once again allowed other teams to start gaining more with our low league finish the year tv money shot up.

as unless your a financial advisor and know all the ins and outs of Villa income i suggest you top making yourself look silly.

Haha you have to be a financial advisor now before making comments?

 

 

 

What does this have to do with anything?

 

The TV money is not related to the end of season prize money, the TV money is distributed evenly aside from TV appearance fees which again are seperate, so again, what does this have to do with anything?

Edited June 5, 2013 by bannedfromHandV

[dudevillaisnice]

Think it's fair to say we are trying to get business done early behind the scenes and that we have put bids in for players all over it seems.. good, makes a change from leaving it last minute.

 

Whether they come off or not it's still positive we are looking to recruit early.

[dont_do_it_doug.]

And when can we take the next stage of development, start signing the better class of player and start competing with the teams in the top half?

 

Or we trust that these players will continue to develop and improve as they have done so far and add to them with more burgeoning talent. 

 

I assume that's the plan anyway, like it or not. 

[StanBalaban]

Carruthers got off on the wrong foot, he was fined within a week of Lambert banning technology during training, the Carruthers not so cleverly tweeted a picture of notes indicating his fine. Within a week off that his account was closed on Twitter.

Been offered a new deal according to the OS.

[SlimJim]

Lambert on Talksport now

[ciggiesnbeer]

Has he given us a wave yet?

[Rob182]

Has he said anything of interest? Or just talking about Scotland internationals?

[SlimJim]

Main points of interview:

Scotland national team

England U21 team youngsters not getting a chance in Premiership

Matt Lowton and other youngsters got experience now at Villa. Warnock admires Lambert sticking to his guns. Villa couldn't afford experienced player salaries. Youngsters will get better. 

Benteke - A player doesnt necessarily want to go. Players get in his ear. Can't stop it. Gamble to move to bigger club.

Champions league final. Mulling over old times. 

Scotland again.

 

In summary - nothing new.    

 

P.S. lambert said Lowton cost £1mill

Edited June 6, 2013 by SlimJim

[ciggiesnbeer]

Thanks for the summary!

[vandaq]

Thanks!

[Rob182]

Cheers slimjim!

[HeyAnty]

By Adam Widdrington

It was always going to be the dreaded transitional season when Paul Lambert arrived at Aston Villa, but despite dancing with the relegation devil we should be praising the Scot for never once losing his integrity while establishing a solid base to from which to build next season.

Lambert had impressed the previous year, hauling Norwich City up to a superb 12th place in the table, after guiding the Canaries to the top flight. But in answering Randy Lerner’s call to replace the underwhelming tenure of his compatriot Alex McLeish, the former Dortmund midfielder was always going to have a mountain to climb. The American owner, after backing McLeish generously and seeing no return, was very much ‘once bitten, twice shy’. Lambert was going to have to be resourceful. Very resourceful.

They strengthened with Dutch centre back Ron Vlaar, a player very much in the mould of previous fan’s favourite Wilfred Bouma, and unknown Belgian striker Christian Benteke, for a reported £10m, combined. And after the modest additions of youngsters Matthew Lowton and Joe Bennett from Sheffield United and Middlesbrough respectively, as well as Ashley Westwood, Lambert’s paltry budget was spent. He went into the 2012/13 season leading a squad with an average age of 24.85 – the fifth youngest in the Premier League.

After a tumultuous end to the calendar year, in which they only managed four league wins, Villa were languishing in 17th place, precariously positioned one point clear of the relegation zone. The New Year didn’t provide Lambert’s inexperienced side with the results their work rate perhaps deserved and they endured a winless January.

Many called for his head, bemused at why the manager persisted with such a young and at times naive team, often leaving out the proven threats of Darren Bent and Charles N’Zogbia. But where I admire Lambert the most, is his faith in team spirit, unity and dogged determination. Here, he was building a team, bigger than the sum of its parts.

The mystery surrounding Darren Bent persists; although again I am in no doubt that the lack of first team opportunities for the once prolific striker is justified. Lambert quietly but firmly stamping his own authority on players – and N’Zogbia can be placed under the same umbrella – whose attitude is too far away from the manager’s own high expectations. It must be no coincidence that, despite Bent’s continued eye for goal; he has been transferred three times in the last six years.

Randy Lerner kept faith with the new manager, showing he believed in the long term project under which Lambert was brought in to oversee in the first place. This project was never going to be a quick fix, even going into next season, and Villa fans need to display patience and a sense of realism.

More pertinently, the Villains should also take heart in the performances from the final third of a mixed season. Six wins and two draws in the final three months of the Premier League ultimately rescued their campaign, but does show what this energetic and youthful squad are capable of. It also tells us that after a shaky start, the players grew into Lambert’s preferred style of play. He was persistent with both player selection and tactics to allow his team to blend together, a risk that did pay off in the last few months of the season, as they chalked up often unexpected wins when it really mattered.

Add to that an unexpected run to the semi-finals of the League Cup, and there is genuine cause for optimism at Villa Park.

Success stories such as Benteke’s explosive debut season in England must have surely put him on the radar of some of the top clubs in Europe, as well as the continued development of the likes of Lowton and Ashley Westwood. Vlaar has proved that he has real leadership qualities and an astute ability to organise the rearguard. The manager will have to work hard to this summer to hold on to his prize assets, as they hold the key for the future success of his team.

I would like to think Paul Lambert will be rewarded for his efforts with a more significant transfer kitty this summer from his chairman, after proving his resourcefulness this term and certainly given the TV rights bonanza being shared out among the top 20 clubs in the football league next season. He has surely earned that privilege.

I also believe it will be a case of ‘whatever hasn’t killed them will make them stronger’; given this Villa team has survived after a torrid campaign, and expect them to use the momentum of a strong finish to hit the ground running in August.

Football purists will want to see Villa’s policy of young, home-grown players succeed, especially in the turbulent and extortionate footballing culture we take for granted. It’s ambition on a par with Sir Alex Ferguson selling the likes of Ince, Kanchelskis and Hughes in favour of his academy starlets. You don’t win anything with kids? Maybe not often, but I consider Paul Lambert’s achievements this season as valuable as winning any trophy.