The Randy Lerner thread

[BG_Villa_Fan]

Frank Lampard? Juninho?

[limvillian]

What a cringe article from Kendrick. £8m player that I have no idea who it was. Obviously told by the club to put this out there.

[samjp26]

Shambolic from Kendrick, lost respect for him 

[avfc1982]

What a cringe article from Kendrick. £8m player that I have no idea who it was. Obviously told by the club to put this out there.

That's what it looks like to me as well. He's just a mouth piece for the club now.

Gone are the days of proper journalism at the Mail. Oh for the days of Leon Hickman and co - men who stood up to the club and wrote what they felt was needed to say, even if it meant falling out with the powers that be.

Now we're stuck with 'yes men' like Kendrick.

[hippo]

Got a few bits of abuse last time I posted, so take or leave this, and I won't be saying how I know this

 

There have been 2 interested parties in buying Aston Villa. On in the midst of the Mcleish era and another last September \ October. The latter one was a US based consortuim  - with an English guy fronting the bid. Neither got very far. Randy was receptive to both buyers, but isn't activley seeking a buyer.

The contact offer to Lambert has come early mainly due to club not be caught on the hop should Lambert not want to stay. Randy is very pleased with Lambert, However is my no means confident of Lambert staying. Lambert wants re structure above him, with Faulkner having only a nominal role is securing transfer targets.

[CVByrne]

Simple business logic from Lerner would dictate he doesn't sell now. The Club has good young players and an increasingly stable league position, clear progress from the previous 2 seasons.

 

Now the wage bill can be cleared of deadwood, extra revenue options explored like redeveloping the north stand, the increased TV revenue and prize money for ending likely 5 places higher this season. All that can further boost the club as a sustainable entity in its own right.

 

I'd imagine there is scope for boosting transfer kitty from 20 million to 30 million possibly this summer. An investment into the squad possible if you understand how the accountancy of a company works.

 

Tranfer fees are spread out over the life of a players contract. So say we sign a player on a 4 year deal for 4 million. His booked as an asset, his value is 4 million + his wages spread over 4 years. So when you have expenditure drastically decreased after expits of the last of the deadwood, Bent, Hutton, Given etc.. + added income from prize money and increased ticket sales.

 

You have scope for a modest increase in transfer budget as any signing has his transfer fee booked accross the life of his contract, meaning a healthy company in the black can expand like this.

 

Also if plans to redevlope the north stand do go ahead, along with hopefully an increased progress on field next season of basically getting back to among our peers in the top 7/8 in the league we become a very enticing, expandable prospect for a buyer. Taking over a stable, profitable football club where an impact can be made quite quickly.

 

The key is Lerner is in no rush to sell, why should he. The more time he spends making progress with the club the more value he is generating in sale price. A 50,000 seater stadium, with state of the art trainging grounds and a fanbase ripe for expansion. We even have the catchy name.

 

I see progress 5 years from now to being a competitive club again. If things are played right, and fans stay patient.

[Risso]

Frank Lampard? Juninho?

 

Steve Bull or Carlton Palmer would be my guesses.  I was going to say Benni McCarthy, but he'd old, fat, and still playing, so there's a decent chance we might ACTUALLY sign him.

[MikeMcKenna]

I have been thinking for while now about what RL is up to and despite all the rumours that he is likely to sell, I reckon he could be in for the long haul.

While he has not shown a great deal of business nous at times, it might be wrong to think he is quitter and the thought of failing again might be unpalatable for him.

I have absolutely no substantial ITK other than as I wrote on here last year, that someone at the club told me that they were "very excited by the future plans for the next 18 months" . I trust this person, they had no reason to BS me but they were convinced that there are exciting times ahead but would divulge nothing further.

So my theory is that once Lerner/Lambert have cleared the decks of the remainder of the bomb squad (Summer 2014?) we may see a major round of investment in the squad.

While it may be true that RL is looking for additional investment! I wouldn't be surprised if he has no intention of selling up. Cleveland browns was his Dads club, I don't think his heart was in it. He inherited as he did his wealth.

AVFC was (is?) his chance to achieve something in his own right and maybe he doesn't want to walk away?

As regards his non-attendance at matches, I think it maybe that, knowing the history of Villa fans protests against Ellis and his wish to avoid the limelight, he doesn't want to become a lighting rod for discontent during our period of "austerity".

My theories might be off the wall but I really wouldn't be surprised if we "go again" starting this summer, albeit in a different way to the MON years.

Putting my helmet on!!!

Edited February 5, 2014 by MikeMcKenna

[useless]

I still think Lerner wants out I had been thinking he'd be gone pretty soon, but I'm doubting that now with some of these leaked stories and the supposed 250 million asking price. I don't think he'll go again because it would take too much money for us to achieve anything of any significance, but who knows? maybe he'll do his best to ensure we are not in a relegation battle until a good buy comes along at least.

 

Does anyone know what Howard Hodgson was meant to have said exactly? I've seen on a few places that he got kicked out of the excutive boxes for saying that Villa were for sale, or maybe he didn't say that at all and it's a bit of a Chinese whispers thing. But if that's true then it doesn't surprise me that Mat Kendrick will only report what he's told.

[CannockVillan]

 

Regardless of whether all the big earners are off the wage bill at the end of the season, do the majority of fans think that Lerner is really the right man to take us forward, he can't and won't fund us to a level that would please the fans and what happens when the **** hits the fan again do we get more cost cutting, it's a no from me, LERNER OUT.

 

Well I for one am happy with him. He may not be putting shedloads of money in the club but he has bankrolled us in our attempt to hit top 4. When the playing field changed we had to change. I'm not expecting Randy to put his personal wealth on the line any more than you or i do. And please don't anyone go on about spending your money at the gate, it's not the same thing. You're paying to watch a game and be entertained in the same way you have to payu to go to the theatre or cinema, you're not paying to bankroll the club.

The club should be self sufficient. The problem nowadays is that the players take all the cash from the clubs. In the same way there was an imbalance before Bosman there is still one now it's just that it's been a seismic shift too far the other way. until we have a salary cap it will stay that way and we all know the big boys won't accept a salary cap that would threaten their monopoly. Basing it on a % of turnover won't ever even things out. The big clubs will still get bigger and the smaller clubs stay where they are bar the odd blip here and there.

We need the manager and the coaching staff to shown their worth when our hands are less tied financially and for the coahing staff to do a much better job. If Everton, who are in dire straits can perform then so can we. If Southampton and Swansea (last year) can perform then so can we. We're 9th in the table in terms of avge attendances at games this season so for me the problem is not in the owner it's in the entire coaching set up.

I think we need to overhaul the coaching methods from the ground up because it doesn't seem to be working as well as it should. Teams like southampton are outstripping us in producing quality players for their first team and now for England and other natinal teams. Walcott, Oxlade C, Lallana, Roderiguez, Lambert(?), Shaw, Bale... Players coming through the ranks should be concentrating on learning how to play the game well rather than ripping up a reserve league or winning fairly meaningless trophies. If we do it the right way then great but we need to be producing players who are comfortable on the ball and comfortable in tight situations and most of all who are very mobile as a unit.

Step 1: How do we want to play the game;

Step 2: Introduce that style at all levels throughout the club from juniors to first team;

Step 3: Get the right coaching staff in teaching the best methods; and

Step 4: Wait for the hard work to bear fruit.

The point is that until we address this we will always continue to drift along the lines of whoever the current manager is. We should be looking at the manager as a means of instilling those values in the first team and appoint managers who agree with that philosophy and want to play that way, otherwise we will continue to wander in the desert changing things every time a manager comes and goes. Staff are temporary guardians (as is the owner) but the philosophy of the club and the way it plays should be permanent.

I'd like to know what we are doing to address this.

Edited February 5, 2014 by CannockVillan

[suttonpaul]

I don't see this second bite at the mass spending cherry myself, I don't see where the motivation is for it from the owner,

 

I think its much more likely we start to buy 2/3 players for 5 to 8 million each per year and do a slow build perhaps once we have gone through a handful of years like that if the progression is still there then maybe he will try it again.

 

I don't want to be a Debbie downer but like I said I just don't see the sense in it for the owner

[Big_John_10]

I don't want to be a Debbie downer but like I said I just don't see the sense in it for the owner

I don't see what he's getting from actually owning us.

[Butterfingers]

I believe the owner realises that the club will not reach the point of being self sufficient let alone be profit making.

 

In order to spend more on players, you must be able to compete with the wages that other clubs offer. We are quite a way from this at present so where is the money going to come from to increase wages?

 

It seems we cannot compete with clubs around us let alone teams like Newcastle where Mike Ashley seems to have been public enemy number 1 throughout his reign but is still managing to fund £40k a week players and upwards of that.

 

I'm still of the opinion that Lerner wants out

[stewiek2]

Shambolic from Kendrick, lost respect for him

I aint said a bloody word!?

[thetrees]

Got a few bits of abuse last time I posted, so take or leave this, and I won't be saying how I know this

 

The contact offer to Lambert has come early mainly due to club not be caught on the hop should Lambert not want to stay. Randy is very pleased with Lambert, However is my no means confident of Lambert staying. Lambert wants re structure above him, with Faulkner having only a nominal role is securing transfer targets.

There is no way that he would be offered anything if he wants 're-structure above him', because that just ain't gonna happen.

I should imagine that the owner is pleased with Lambert and, as for him staying, where exactly would he get a bigger or better job?

I am pretty ambivalent about the bloke. If he leaves tomorrow, I really don't care, and if he is still here next season, I don't care either. I suspect that the ownership have a similar outlook.

[LockStockVilla]

Club just signed a deal with Air France, that makes at least 4/5 deals with Airlines this year. I'd say the club is really going the right way commercially and on the pitch financially, and if we can put a bit more quality on the pitch in terms of players, we'll be in a very good place.

[PompeyVillan]

Club just signed a deal with Air France, that makes at least 4/5 deals with Airlines this year. I'd say the club is really going the right way commercially and on the pitch financially, and if we can put a bit more quality on the pitch in terms of players, we'll be in a very good place.

 

This is very good. Do you have a link for this?

[Big_John_10]

We'll be in a very good place.

Keep hearing it over the last few years and yet to see it.

[useless]

Here is the Air France article.

[LockStockVilla]

Do we get the past years accounts around April? I'm really interested to see if Randy did indeed clear part of the clubs debt with that 90m ($/£ ??) move.