It all feels a little strange.
After years of optimism, I felt unable to really write anything after the Stoke City game, at least anything that could be published with my name against it without it being laden with anger, upset and liberal use of expletives.
Yes, that was Tim Sherwood’s first game and, yes, we have to give the guy a fair crack of the whip if we want to stand any chance of surviving – we can’t go down fighting each other, rather than the teams around us.
All that said, it was galling watching that game. Like Villa’s season as a whole, it started well, only to fall quickly into tedious, repetitious tactics. I recognise the slight irony of me – a long-time defender of Paul Lambert – making that kind of statement, but it was true. Here was the new era at Villa Park, yet it felt remarkably like more of the same.
To play long, direct balls against a team that is bigger and stronger than you is, in my opinion, lunacy. Perhaps Sherwood doesn’t feel his charges are capable of delivering passing football, so he opted for tactics more regularly seen in League One. Perhaps, as long time suffering Villa fans may say, League One football is what you get when you have a lot of lower quality players in the team – that’s probably a fair statement.
Don’t get me wrong, I was not the number one fan of Sherwood as a manager – he struck me as a man lacking in experience, but overcompensating with ego. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing – John Gregory did OK at Villa post-Wycombe Wanderers – but it did have me a little alarmed.
That said, I’ve warmed to him. Maybe I’ve been heartened by a slightly more positive view of the club being discussed, but I’m not sure if such positivity is based out of real ability to make a difference, or a shameless egoic belief – time will, of course, tell.
What does distress me the most, however, is that the new era under Randy Lerner seems to be a strong case of “same concept, different branding” rather than any new, vibrant vision for the future. For years, we have toiled under issues caused by a gamble that went horribly wrong backing Martin O’Neill just before Financial Fair Play became a thing – a combination that still leaves a dent in us today.
In fact, today it was reported that despite Villa’s bumper TV deal, the team was still making a loss – something that seems largely unfathomable.
Yes, the likes of Darren Bent leaving will take large wages off the costs come the end of the season, but there has to be a level of balance achieved – Bent leaving the club will mean nothing in financial terms if Villa are peddling their football in the Championship next season.
What strikes me as the major anomaly in the piece is that Lerner, perhaps understandably, is averse to risk as a concept or, to be slightly clearer, he appears to be far more averse after throwing large amount of money at O’Neill. Adopting such a mentality is, in pure financial terms, fairly logical but seems largely at odds with how owners of football clubs act, at least in historic terms.
Financial Fair Play has at least forced teams to be self-sufficient, but it hides a desperate cliff edge behind supposedly beneficial concepts. Despite the concept being largely in keeping with general business, the disparity between the Premier League and the Championship is still strikingly stark – tumble out of the top flight, and TV revenues are nowhere near the levels that are enjoyed by Premier League teams.
Next season, the team finishing 20th in the league will pick up around £100m in revenue – an increase of around £20m. Villa, according to recent accounts that were published, made £116.9m total, meaning that next season – all things being equal – should make nearly £140m in turnover.
The issue that arises is that should Villa do the unthinkable and get relegated, that potential £140m will end up looking closer to £55m or so per year in the Championship, and that is assuming Villa are able to bounce back within the four year duration of parachute payments. Should they fail to do that, they will be down to around £40m a year.
We’ve seen from recent times just what cuts can do to the club. Villa have, by all accounts, been surviving on comparatively meagre budgets, at least if we are to compare with the teams the club hope to emulate in the top six to eight places. If Villa go down, those cuts will likely need to occur again, at least if Lerner is in charge given his risk averse nature.
The old saying goes “One has to speculate to accumulate”. For years, Villa have seemed less than effectively marketed. Despite accepting money from betting companies in the Far East, there has been a strong feeling that the brand hasn’t been exploited sufficiently to make the club self-sufficient in a different way – i.e. without the TV revenues if they fell off for a season or two.
The concern for many will be that Villa could find themselves in a bad way if Sherwood fails to save the club from relegation, not just on the pitch, but off it as well.
As a fan, I hope Villa can find what it takes to stay up this season, whether it is by one point or ten. If they don’t, it may well feel like Groundhog Day again assuming Lerner stays in charge with a risk-averse ideology underpinning the club, leaving the fans wondering if it could get far, far worse.
The Author
Matt Turvey
Matt is the owner of, and chief writer for, Aston Villa Life. He is also a columnist for the Wolverhampton Express & Star, appearing in the Kick Off pullout on Saturdays and the Final Whistle pullout the Monday after Aston Villa play, as well as every Thursday as a blogger on their website. He has previously been featured as a writer on Football365 and Life's A Pitch, and was a regular pundit for Sports Tonight TV on Sky.Comments 115
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Matt,
That “Bright Future” tag of Lerner’s will stick with him until his last day, I’m sure.
Yes, your article reveals all the fears that exist about Villa’s status, now and after this season, including the matter of whether Lerner stays, a possibility which (with increased TV revenues and recent press comments about possible buyers) looks more unlikely in my opinion.
But….
(a) as I’ve clearly stated, I think Villa will *not* get relegated, and
(b) In Tom Fox it seems that the club has someone who has a clear and practical vision and, importantly, has been released to do whatever is necessary within reason to get Villa back on track in commercial terms, and
(c) That TS will prove to be a good manager – not that he won’t make any mistakes: I am sure he will. But I’d say he’s got the right basic equipment and positivity to get the club forward.
If I am right in those three statements then there’s not a lot to be a feared about come May, assuming a new owner (or even if Lerner stays) – it will then surely be more about to what extent can Villa be raised from the tedium that’s been with us for near 5 years.
Nightmare mate, dunno who i hate the most Herbert or Loser, weld them together and you’ve got Benny out of Crossroads. We can’t do anything about it and even if we could the club doesn’t deserve it, they’ve consistently ignored advice from every direction, ex players, ex managers and especially the fans with the attitude of ‘we know best’ well obviously they don’t, they actually know sod all. i won’t be happy until every trace of Lerners reign is removed from VP, idiots.
Andrew P,
Runtingz sent S75 that very recipe a couple of years ago and he S75 was babbling on about some West Indian restaurant only a couple of weeks ago, no doubt he’ll mention it in his next post if not i’ll ask him to do it tomorrow.
Have you tried quorn ? very tasty and only mushrooms die.
JL,
I think Lerners tainted by his own incompetence, whatever he does won’t be accepted by the hard core support, everything he touches turns to shite despite been born with all the advantages you need. The fans hate him which is why he doesn’t come to games.
Forgive me if i sound blase about the fate of mushrooms.
matt I read transfers are paid off against tax over 5 years and probably why the spend has been so low this year. the accumulation of spending by houllier,mcleish and lambert would still be entered into accounts as a loss at this time. probably wide of the mark but its a possibility plus the lerner converting cash into share thing.
If we go down and cant shift the high earners we would be not only bankrupt but have the worst squad in 78 leagues going down to primary school where apparently wea re recruiting now.
I knew you was a wrong un mushroom hater
Thanks Steamer. Remember the curry goat thread from a couple of years back. Missed the S75/Runtings convo – sorry for not paying attention!
love this lad no hidden agenda with him and gives 100%
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/carlos-sanchez-says-aston-villa-8718302?
Goat Curry!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow. That reminds me of a year spent down in Brixton in the70s. And all the reggae.
It just gets scaryer and scaryer matt
The main issue with our plobems of course stem from randy
He came in and straight away got the club upto a very good level —- the team wasnt perfect but was good enough to fight for european football
He decided the best way to meet the incoming FFP was to sekk his best assets at the club and try and sell or force others out
If he would have kept his best players or suitably replaced any he had to sell due to them wanting to leave the club would have earned a lot more money and become more attractive in all aspects
Another big mistake was not getting good football people to advise and gude the club —- a new manager that was more pro proggressive football than MON could have allowed the club to go even further forward
Randy has made one bad decision after another for this club and for me he is to blame for all that is wrong with aston villa
its a shame as it could have been a beautiful journey
AP if st75 doesnt have the recipe i will post it
Nice piece from Clarke on the O/S .
Will comment some more later, if I have time.
Thanks Runtings but I want to go out to a restaurant and get someone else to cook it for me. Unless S75 fancies knocking up a panful of curry goat and delivering to Kidder.
John Lerwill at the controls! I didn’t have you down as a reggae fan. Speaking of which, does anyone remember Misty in Roots? “How long must we suffer? How long must we feel the pain?” We should ditch Black Sabbath and run out to that instead.
Andrew P- I’ve already requested Its Over and crying by Roy Orbison for the next match
One thing that was annoying, as Jenny said, is that TS even said in public what our tactics would be. We knew it going to the game, so sure as hell Hughes did.
Newcastle game, Given and Bacuna have to come in. Gil has to be moved behind the Beast and Sanchez dropped for Westwood
One thing that also annoyed me was how only 30 thousand fans could be bothered to turn up against Stoke. I met a guy at College today who said he hasn’t been at Villa for two years. I asked why and he just he couldn’t be arsed. I then said I bet you will try to get tickets for the quarter final though won’t you as we have a chance of getting to Wembley. He said off course.
I wanted to nut him really. He couldn’t be arsed to turn up against Stoke and support the club when we are the verge of relegation, like 12 thousand others couldn’t.
People will get tickets for WBA who haven’t been to Villa for years. People will get tickets for WBA who weren’t there on Tuesday night against Blackpool.
If we get taken over my mega rich owners Villa Park will be sold out again I bet
I wanted to nut him really.
Thats great, i used to feel like that until i started on the Quorn.
Totally agree though, i hadn’t been down to VP for years before the Chelsea final, i turned down loads of ticets because others actually deserved them. Apart from the possibility of someone nutting me.
Ditch Sabbath ? its the only reason the fans turn up, bit more AC/DC, Metallica and Purple and i might even visit VP.
“I wanted to nut him ” superb Frem.I`m sure he deserves it,but you are too much of a gent to give him the nut.
Agree about TS ,he should keep his norff n` sarf shut re tactics.
I believe ,Bacuna,Westie will start at Newc.
Andrew p John bright street . birmingham city center .book a table and insist on booking its called turtle bay also if your near Great Barr a woman named Caroline makes the food for takeaway l will get the number and address for you .haven’t tried but she gets good reviews on Facebook .that’s where she advertises. Also Saturday we saw another carribean takeaway at the top of Eddington high street mate all the best
quorn steamer?! that’s how it started for Larry Grayson.
how about run to the hills by Iron Maiden? and now we are tossing coins the Ace of spades motorhead or my final offering for whom the bell tolls metallica?
frem couldn’t get me a semi final ticket could you? I’ll let you nut me
S75, nice one. Thank you. Is it the Carib Grill? Hope so because I’ve booked there for Sunday. A couple in the Wellington on Bennets Hill after and the day is coming together nicely.
Thinking about it, there used to be a place called the Island Hut at 6 Ways Aston which had a good rep. Is that still there?
Mark, Roy Orbison – what a talented bloke. Sad life but huge talent.
s75, just read yours again. Turtle Bay! Looks like I’ll be cancelling first booking.
why is there always a yank at the end of the brits? mind you I hope they got the bloke who tried to knick Madonnas cape! good job it was fastened up properly. Two broken ribs and lacerations to the neck but they got Madonna off him eventually 😉
Same for me Matt I can’t find much to say. I don’t think relegation is in the cards but Lerner deserves to be. True the players are of a lower quality to a lot of teams and it’s not their fault that things have gone so poorly. None of them have a mentor on the team as they are all from the same class. They are all alone in the team. Their confidence is shot and that is the number one problem. This and this alone needs to be fixed. They don’t need to hear that Vlaar is going to hot foot it off the team. They don’t need to hear Bent wax lyrical about his reemergence. They do need to take into account the professionalism of Alan Hutton who has made the best of a bad hand and has emerged vindicated. The glue that Senderos provided is missed. Tim Sherwood has a monumental task in front of him and I honestly think he can do it. But in reality watching and reading about Aston Villa lately has taken its toll for me. Winning is a drug that makes the fan feel good and when all hope is practically dead that fan’s mind looks for another addiction to bring back the feel good Saturday morning (games are early here). Berating the team is counter productive. The paying fan has to have the team’s backs regardless of their “right” to boo and sing negatively. No one wants Championship football so why not give them a hand. They have 12 games left. It be hooves us to give them a leg up.
On another note, I apologize for not being more regular on the site lately.
Hutton probably gets my vote for PoY, i still don’t rate him that highly as a player but he gives his neck in every game and sets an example which most of the others ignore.
I bet there’s a few goats crapping it out there tonight.
Roy Orbison – Wonderful, Jeff Lynn couldn’t get his hat on when he joined TTW’s and lived up to all his expectations, tragic.
Andrew P,
No I’m not a reggae fan! 😉
I mention my remembrance of it because in that year in Brixton (in the 70s) I was working in a hostel project for runaway kids and every 3 weeks slept in for the night to keep an eye on the place. Only you couldn’t sleep for the constant thump of reggae music throughout the night from neighbouring houses!! That’s how I came to know it so well!! 🙂
Gosh, that was nearly 40 years ago. Those 15-year-olds I worked with are now 55-year-olds!! Grief…
steamer- I think Clarke could get a mention for PoY
Roy was great, a one off voice. maybe we could start our own supergroup, the unavailing Pillburys has a twang to it.
JL- I went with a mate who was auditioning there in 81 (he was a drummer) it was about the time of the first riots. even during the day there was wall to wall reggae playing, I remember it feeling quite intimidating at the time at 18.
Mark,
That period of the riots was a hugely sad event in a place that really had a lot of colour about it – and probably still does (haven’t been there for a very long time).
Yes, intimidation was always ‘on’, though. I knew a copper on the beat there who had been on the receiving end of a couple of stabbings and yet was still happy to be Mr. Plod in the centre of it all.
You had to live there for more than a month to properly appreciate the place. A lot of great spirited people.
Do you remember the record shop almost next door to Harry Parkes in Corpo Street, excellent for Reggae and especially Motown in the 60’s and 70’s.
And one half way up Slade Road Erdington, they had some rare stuff.
Reading yesterday about ‘Beautiful’ the musical based on the life of Carole King, the reviewers reckon its superb. Also the new biopic about the troubled genius Brian Wilson. The Wilson family were so talented but again, a tragic tale.
steamer-
has always been the way, the more tragic and challenging
the life the better and more prolific are the songs written.
when life gets cosy the well dries up for most great artistes,
Paul McCartney springs to mind, Elton , Paul Weller couldn’t write a tune between them now.
Too busy counting their money. Can’t stand any of them.
Andrew P
carolines caribean kitchen , Kings road Great barr , B44 9hn , tel 07951687662, 3 mile radius free delivery ,
you say you have cancelled at Turtle beach , why , l know 2 of my nieces have been with differing experiences 1st one said she enjoyed it the second booked on the phone but was told no need too but when she turned up there was no table and she should have booked!!!, wrong person to wind up ,
l hope to try that carolines next week as l live to far for delivery but l take my daughter to wolves friday afternoon so will come off M6 and pick up , ,
l see Jenny’s post from before was put on The Villa Blog , good going Jenny xxx
sww whats wrong with knitting , had a big order of my 6 fingered gloves from albion and nuneaton folk , mates 96 year old nan not too happy , at least it keeps off the sherry though .
on the reggae theme
lv got my ion turntable set up now so l will be able to put all my Reggae vinyl singles onto the computer and make some discs , some are very rare , will share them . , record shops Don Christie , Ladypool road ,
haha love the brixton stories
JL tut tut you don’t like reggae – there is some good stuff in all genre’s for me
st755 yes please would love to here some of the tunes you have collected
Brixton is in a really good place these days , it got people living there from every corner of the world and the nightlife is amazing , eccentric and very friendlly – you will be people from all over on a nite out there and lots of people with money now live there – it sure aint cheap to buy a place there anymore
see people
being the only black guy working with a bunch in waterloo there was a train strike so one of the guys gave 4 other a lift home and we drove through brixton and i put the window down and shouted i am being kidknapped by white people — one of the guys in the care was crapping himself beyond belief – so funny i nearly wey myself — oh the memories 🙂
wet
Thanks S75. I thought I was booking online for the Turtle Beach but there was a glitch in the matrix and have made a booking for somewhere in Moseley by mistake. You ever been to that West Indian cafe at 6 Ways Aston? Not sure if it’s still there but by all accounts it was really good.
Runtings,
I have always had a broad interest in music encompassing jazz, ballads, folk and classical. But that group defines my interest area I’m afraid – I primarily go for melody. In the 50s and 60s that was regarded as a *very* broad set of interest and not that common.
Big jazz people like Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Thelonious Monk, Oscar Peterson, Art Tatum and Erroll Garner were always high on my appreciation list though. Even Muddy Waters.
Interesting comments by Sid on TS…
http://www.avfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10265~4518784,00.html
Whoops, I did a Mark on the link…
s/b click here for link to article.
Thats a great story Runtigz. Seems they moved the locals out so the yuppies could buy the property cheaply.
JL,
Think it was Irving Berlin who said that music went downhill when they replaced melody with rhythm, or was that Tony Iommi ?
Interesting piece from Sid.
The only comments I have at the moment, are that it now seems more clear that Lambert had far greater freedom than we think, and that the Bomb Squad was purely his creation, and not on the instructions of Lerner.I feel he believed he good achieve the plans that he had, but one by one , they all failed, including bringing players like Holt and Cole to steady the younger players, and lead them on the field. It also appears that funds were always available for a specific player, if he wished to recruit, but I agree that he had a fear of big egos, which limited the players he looked at. He always wanted to be rescuing a career, or giving a chance to an unknown, so that they in turn would be grateful to him, maybe similar to his own career.
Lerner has to take blame, but mainly for his own football ignorance.
Steamer,
Perhaps it was John Gregory who said that about melody? 😉
fairplay John thats the beauty of music as in all things we all have different tastes , but for me varity is definatly the spice of my life
As the lambert story unfolds he seems more of a plonker than i ever imagined
Runtins lol , loved Brixton when l worked down there , l remember the hndsworth riots . l asked one of the lads who lived down there , Claude wisdom if he could get me a telly , found out last year he had passed away , brilliant bloke , was the double of Billy Ocean so l called him Billy duckpond , Runtins , he gave me this great reggae Lp , will do you a copy mate , he also used to play for Continental Star , Matt knows all about them , this lad should have played professional football was a joy to watch and play with , proper midfield general,
runtins pity you never video’d that . my brother-in-law is grenadian and in his late 70s and lm winding him up to do me some rice n peas ,
Andrew P l dont know if that one in six ways is still open , as l said l did see one on the top part of Erdington High street on saturday , steamer spotted it . dont order too many of the dumplings , they might look small but bloody hell they fill you up , fav of mine off my mom was dumplins and she used to fry a chopped onion then add a tin of heinze beans and some tabasco , drooolllll !!!
this talk of west indian food is pissing me off now ))
JL runtins got some brilliant jazz tunes
Happy birthday Matt
Does Srarbucks have music at the order counter in Britain? They have a jazz CD there right now with a good selection on it.
JL- careful there son 😉
As far as the truth re: Lambert, I don’t think the management will take the blame for anything willingly wasn’t that why Lambert was a good target to hide behind in the first place? The truth is far from revealed, mcleish was asked to reduce costs too, high earners are a natural target in that regard especially if they are not pulling up trees themselves. Hutton, nzogbia, given, bent, Ireland were hardly covering themselves in glory were they? most of the so called facts are not really facts just conjecture.
Mark,
Yes, you’re right – no-one has made available documented evidence of what actually transpired.
However – and this is an important piece of logic i.m.o. – we know that Lerner and his crew do not understand the ways of football but were concerned about getting some money back from the squad that Lambert inherited. My take is that the chairman/CEO put an *option* in front of Lambert like: “We want to get money back on this squad, can this plan (i.e. the bomb squad) be put in place?” Lambert may well have said “Of course” and that may explain how Krulak was recently able to put the onus onto Lambert for the decision as Lambert stamped his OK on it.
I suppose you could modify that scenario in various ways, but I feel that’s the gist of it.
… the more you think about it the whole scenario at Villa Park seems to have its roots in Wolf Hall (did ya see it last night?) and Thomas Cromwell. But the technique probably goes back even further into ancient civilisations. Not much has changed, only the faces.
yes JL the puppet masters 😉 will have to watch wolf hall
there’s still no evidence of his time at Norwich so I’m not holding my breath.
would you want someone saying there’s no money at villa when your talking to potential managers? probably not.
makes me wonder what would of happened if all the bomb squad were sold that season, opened up a world of options.
interesting read on bent old article but worth reading before judging Lambert. you have to consider his style and players available to him to implement it, plus pressure to get rid of top earners.
http://www.thefalsenine.co.uk/2013/08/19/the-curious-case-of-darren-bent/
JL, “I have always had a broad interest in music encompassing jazz, ballads, folk and classical”. You won’t be DJ-ing at the next AVL all nighter then.
Andrew P,
Oh, that’s easily sorted … I’ll just listen to a classical CD in full blast on my earset while dishing out the discs for you lot! 😉
But whether I succeed in playing the right tracks for you is a moot point …!
just a quick question, if we say binned cleverly could we loan another player? say a forward? or messi 😉
I’m loving tims informative team talks or Titts for short. the bloke talks sense what a chance from McMumble
Anyone ever see the Denzil Washington movie about the British soldier who returns to Brixton?
I’m sat in the Detroit Airport waiting for a delayed flight.
Niagra Falls was spectacular, though, at -36 freezing. NYC’s Port Authority Bus Terminal is probably one of the most dangerous places on Earth. Enjoyed watching the Boston Celtics giving NYC a hiding last night.
Cheers Ian – just got back in from dinner. 36 today – time flies mate!
Evenjng all . St 75
🙂 xxxxx
I felt very much the same as you Matt , on the appointment and also queried the decision to play the long ball against the most physical team of the league stoke – and second half we were bullied off the Park it seemed . And then there was the “Aston Villa mole” much reported who leaked the team selection days before the game – and the leak was right , Cleverley and Westwood were dropped . Where did that come from ?
We mentioned Sam
Allerdyce yesterday , and he spends a lot if time analysing the opposition team – the individual players and their strengths and weaknesses . John has mentioned that Fox has alluded to the club using more sports scientist and analysts – and Tim Sherwood is keen to look at the personality and psychology side so we shouldn’t be getting the miss match that we saw at Stoke when he has had more time . This aspect is a positive , as is the hands on approach in training from him. How better for him to select the players performing well than having to rely on reports back from the coaches.
I think we do have the players to play better football than hoof and hope , we have seen flashes of excellence (albeit very few ) Liverpool last season first half being the one that springs to mind .
That’s an interesting article on Bent Mark. As Ian says , there’s a lot of conjecture about the bomb squad – and inevitably , when things go wrong , the blame game starts . But , given the ferocity and detail that General Krulak put in his public statement , and that he specifically stated as fact that Lambert was told that he could use the senior high wage earners but chose instead to have a clear out and cast them aside, then , I believe that the bomb squad was a Paul Lambert creation . I say this as Gen Krulak is on dangerous ground if he is putting out false statements which can be construed as being defamatory to Lambert ie besmirching his reputation . IMO if the statement is dishonest then Paul
Lambert has a case in libel against the club. I am sure that Krulak would have had that inflammatory statement checked over by the club’s lawyers who would have asked – is this statement 100 per cent true. If it is then there is no case in libel no matter how much it damages Lambert’s reputation .
Runtingz – loved your story about the white men kidnapping you 🙂
Trinity – there have been photos in our papers this week of the frozen niagra falls – you are so lucky to have seen this extraordinary sight ,
another he said she said for me jen, why would lambert bring up the bomb squad if its his idea, and why is hutton, given and nzogbia in the team? I think he feels thrown to the wolves by fox. there is no way lerner was making money available if a player was identified, we couldn’t afford it or the extra wage. I suppose it was lamberts idea to employ cole, sendeross etc because he was offered £20 m to spend and thought fuck we’ll keep the money. don’t trust lerner and his cronies I’m afraid
trinity
di they do the coloured light show on the falls while frozen . my mate who lives in hamilton sent me some pics a few years ago of it , lv seen them put on while its flowing with classical music played in the background, \j\l would like that ,
whilst on about music , steamer got his Pinky “N” Perky Lp out yesterday as he wants me to put it on a CD disc. and sww dont even go there with that pile of shite you got ,
whats the record you have bought but hidden from your mates ? , sww has got a box full , his fault Vienna never got to Number 1 in the charts , mine was ” l know what l like in your wardrobe ” Genesis , as at the time my collection was old old reggae/Bluebeat and Northern soul , funny how that has taken off again , but l must admit some of the records being called Northern soul was’nt i.e . all the motown ! there were about 5/10 non chart hits ,
have a good weekend all ,
Jenny xxxxxx
You’re missing my point Mark . Nowhere has Lambert said he had to get rid of the EXISTING higher earners – and Krulak has specifically and publicly stated that Paul Lambert was told that he had the high earners at his disposal to use . This isn’t couched in vague terms it is a statement of fact That’s not a “he said she said “- that is making statements of fact which are legally actionable . This wasn’t a journalist interview – this was a statement to be out on record and which had been carefully crafted – no doubt after legal consultation . krill would know that you can’t just slate people publicly in this way if you are not 100 % factually accurate .Paul Lambert sued his former club remember – I can’t imagine him takjng Krulaks statement on the chin if it was untrue. The fact is that people have seized upon the “build a young and hungry squad and get in players with lower wages ” as validation for the creation of a bomb squad by Paul Lambert is surprising as even Paul Lambert hasn’t used this excuse ! Yes he was told he couldn’t buy in players with higher wages but he has never said he had to get rid of the existing high earners. If this was the case – they would have off loaded Bent , Zog , Hutton and Given sooner – when they could decent money for them . When Lambert started Bebt was a 1 goal in 2 game striker – he could have been sold and in fact there were many fears during AMs reign that he would be. By putting him to train with the kids and not playing him , his firm and value decreased massively . So that is not the sensible actions of a manager told to sell his valuable asset .
ST75 – pinky and perky :-). Xx
Every time i hear Vienna i think of Rigsby’s cat.
Agree with Jens reading of the bomb squad situation but also with Mark about trusting Lerner and his mob, in fact i wouldn’t trust anyone at VP.
To answer the question posed in the title of this article, doesn’t the future have to bright, I think the relief felt by all when Lamb got the chop (I could work for a red top 🙂 ) meant that while we are all sufficiently aware that the struggle isn’t over, a break from the dourness under Lamberk can only be positive.
The next change has to be the sale of the club, it’s old ground well covered on Lerner’s failings during his ownership but the sooner we are rid of Lerner and someone comes in who is open with the fans as to the long term plan for the club the better.
I don’t expect detail because new owners can’t show all their cards but by their actions they can prove a greater understanding, we need a director on the board with football knowledge, I don’t think this necessarily has to look after scouting/buying players but a voice on the board to direct matters of a football nature.
I think Fox has bitten off more than he can chew, I don’t begrudge him the opportunity to move from commercial director to CEO but his forte is securing commercial contracts not running a club, he needs support in this role. If we are to embark on a massive exercise to sell brand AVFC then we need people based globally with the right contacts to secure deals in Asia and America to get the revenue flowing in, so FFP becomes merely a check box.
To bring it back to matters on the pitch, jury’s out on Sherwood, he’s got 12 games to save us and less to find out who is dying for the cause but given his long term contract he should be given time and resources to hire and fire, because he’s got some very good people around him now in the backroom. The only thing i’d say is that he should have recalled all the loanees to give a fuller squad to select from.
Question any idea when it would be announced if games in May are selected for TV, want to book flights and accom for the Everton game.
UTV
Well I’m driving to York today with a mate, then meeting another mate in York and staying there the night. Then of to Newcastle tomorrow from there.
It’s on the way home after the game I’m not looking forward to. A long drive and especially if we don’t pick up 3 points
I just hope Given and Bacuna start. I’d love Lowton to as well and Gil behind Benteke
Let’s hope we get 3 huge points. It’s a huge 3 games
Jen I do see your point I just don’t think it’s the whole truth. Tasked with lowering the wage bill and overall wage structure lambert initially looked at his options, and you can’t tell me nobody helped him look at the figures, That bracket of higher earners mathematically was a huge piece of the pie. Knowing those players It’s obvious to me they were not in the young/downing bracket but overpriced journeymen. The bomb squad was a poor idea among many but came about pushed by stipulations by learners side I think, less players in the 40k plus bracelet. Lambert had to many of those in the squad it left no room to bring in more vlaars, bentekes at 20k.
Do anyone think he could of based the team around the bomb squad? Personally I don’t, that had almost failed in the previous season. The only flaws in the plan (if you want to call it that, it was more a growing realisation they weren’t all that) was the fact they became a focal point and were to expensive to sell. Lose them early days and we might of seen those 3-4 decent players we all craved for.
The reason I posted the bent article is it illustrates how some managers just don’t fancy a player no matter what, compound it with our financial situe you’ll get complications.
Mark,
I sympathise with Jenny’s view on the bomb squad matter, but Jenny may have missed my earlier comments on this when I referred to the possibility that Lambert may well have been drawn into that plan by suggestions from the board – may be by Faulkner. I feel that Lambert by himself is not likely to have gone into that direction without being pointed by someone, so It’s then easy for Krulak subsequently to say that “Lambert did it” by putting a false slant on what happened. But a statement that can’t be argued in court I would have thought without extensive proof.
Frem,
Well, please enjoy your tour of the North! 🙂 Going off to footie away matches can be quite educational, as indeed, the general subject of football.
My wife (brought up in Malaysia) got to know all the English cities and towns by following football 40 years ago when she had no inkling that she would migrate over here. Indeed, my own geography improved no end by the same means.
Darren,
Yep, a footie man on the board would be good, but I can’t see that happening. I believe that Fox is looking for a director of football operations, though, but it seems he’s (or she’s!) not going to be TS’s boss.
Doug Lishman
Yes, you heard – Doug Lishman!
I was contacted very recently by an Aston man who was a cousin of this Arsenal player (Doug Lishman). Lishman was the Gunners’ top scorer in the first few seasons of the 1950s and scored a cracking number of goals including three hat-tricks in successive games! He won a championship medal with the Gunners.
Why do I mention a Gunners’ man? Because Lishman was born and brought up in Aston!!
Villa didn’t think much of him – Paget Rangers picked him up, then he went to Walsall. It was from there that the Gunners signed him not long after WW2 ended.
Another lost Villa opportunity. In Fact in the early 50s and after Trevor Ford having gone, Villa were crying out for a top striker.
This adds to the litany of players that Villa ignored … a list that includes John Charles (!) and Allan Clarke. They almost lost Gerry Hitchens to Blews as well!
JL, same here: because of football I’ve got a detailed knowledge of the geography of England. For every city, and most big towns, I could describe their main line railway station, boozers you could drink it without getting thrown through a window by the natives on a good day and the journey to the football ground. Trouble is most of those pubs have closed and many of the football grounds have moved, but I’ve still got my memories. Frem, you’ve got to stay in Newcastle and have a wander through the bigg market. The women are RAF – you’ll be running for the hills.
his article reflects what I saw myself against stoke weak in midfield and not potent enough up top to play the way we did
http://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/sherwoods-midfield-failings-away-home-could-haunt-him-newcastle?
JL it all looks like a bad scooby doo plot to me with Lambert saying ” I would of got away with it if it wasn’t for those pesky kids” 😉
Morning all. Huge game, one we cant afford to lose. Im cautiously optimistic we can get a result. One big plus is that Colback is out, and he is the one you’d expect to get everyone fired up and battling. Tiote is also out so its Sissoko (big but not really a DM) and one from Anita (who made that horrible mistake last game) or inexperience Abeid as their midfield 2. Perez is their danger man for me and Cisse has a knack for being in the right place at the right time. Jaanmat has been really good for them at RB so Sinclair will have his work cut out.
I guess Sherwood will keep the same team and formation with Okore coming in for Vlaar, who hopefully will be looking to prove a point and put in a performance. Id like to see Gabby dropped for Weimann upfront but tbh I dont see it happening. Sanchez was talking up his performance, last time he did that we did see him raise his game IIRC.
Dont think we should go in all guns blazing and judging from what Sherwood said in his presser ‘we need to stay in the game as long as possible’, I domt think he will send us out like that. Compact and counter attack is the order of the day. Frustrate the Geordies and sneak that goal.
Anybody else getting more than tired of hearing the same ol crap whenever we face the Geordies…. ‘you took the piss out of us when you sent us down, that hurt’. It was years ago, get over it. Any club in the country would have done the same thing, be glad it wasnt Sunderland.
Mark I dont think their midfield is particularly strong with Tiote and Colback out. Cabella is also out so its really Sissoko and Perez we have to worry about making those driving runs. Sissoko will be asked to sit more if played at DM. They will def play 4231 so we need to get an extra body in midfield to combat that, so Gabby needs to drop and get involved.
Their CB partnership aint exactly great either, Coloccini and Williamson do not scream premiership quality to me.
Ree- on paper you’d say make hay, but didn’t we say the same about stokes injuries? we can’t afford to be unprofessional and so many of our players are.
Thats true Mark but the game is planned on paper, on paper you would prefer it if Colback and Tiote were out. Course the players have to go and perform, if they performed against Stoke they would have won that game and not lost.
Ree- on paper you’d prefer it if our forwards could hit a cows arse with a banjo but they don’t. we have dropped many points from naivety this season one last week were we should of closed the game out.
That observation from TS – “we need to win 6 [but] we’ve only won 5 all season” – is almost enough to cause us to buckle before the kick-off tomorrow. But it’s the truth – it’s stark and it’s ‘orrible.
Just looking at the last 12 matches of 2012-13..
W 5 D 2 L 5 F 22 A 19 (17 points)
If only we could replicate that sequence we should be OK.
On paper Id like us to be prem and european champions but thats not even close to any sense of realism. Realistically it is better for us to face Newcastle without those two in midfield just as it was to face Stoke without the defenders. We didnt use that to our advantage then, hopefully we can tomorrow.
Iv seen that stat on sksports, we’ve lost 9 points from goals scored in the last 10 mins of a game this season, the worst record in the prem. Put that down to naivity, fitness whatever… its unacceptable.
John, I think Sherwood is overstating it to wake the players up a bit. Id say 5 is all we need maybe even 4 with a few draws. We have the best run in of the teams around us imo. Football throws up some funny results sometimes, look at Sunderland away at both City and Chelsea last year. Hopefully we can get one of those funny results going in our favour this time.
In fact, up to the last 12 games of 2012-13 we’d only won 5 (as now!) and didn’t start the last 5 wins until 10 games from the end of the season.
John, iirc in that sequence we played all our relegation rivals inc Reading away, QPR at home, Sunderland at home and somehow managed to win each time. Lambert got us on a run that had us genuinely excited for the future, but he cocked it up.
Ree,
Agreed!!
This year we have Sunderland away, QPR at home and Burnley at home last day of the season. Wouldnt surprise me if it all went down to that last game, but I hope not for my nerve.
ree- exactly we have become the architects of our own doom. Thats why I find that trying to change the playing style again instead of motivating us to do better might be less productive. I can see the attacking but leaving the back door open approach biting us in the arse as it has before.
Mark,
Can we *please* see what happens tomorrow and over the next couple of games?! This whole situation is unnerving as it is! 😉
Frem
look out for the beards !! lm on about the women …………. and dont go to whitley bay unless you want roughing up by the women , have a good weekend though . lv sent you perkys number to contact him for away games . he will want your ref number as they try and get the whole coach seats together mate , Tc sends his best , and said FFS tell him not to wear the gold thong !
Mark, I thought the main reason why TS was suited to this situation was his ability to motivate and get the best out of players? Playing wise the only difference I see is us being a bit more direct and getting bodies into the box supporting. Didn’t pay off against Stoke because of the poor quality of the service from wide.
The back door was wide open against Arsenal, but besides that we haven’t conceded too many the problem is individual errors costing us time and time again. This needs to stop. Also, Newcastle also is a team that looses a lot of goals to individual errors so we need to be better than them on that front.
Ree- so did I but they didn’t look too Cherie did they, maybe this week will be different. I’d call two center mids a huge change from shoehorning westwood, cleverly, sanchez and delph in all with defence in mind. the bloke who was supposed to be getting in the box delph supplied the most crosses, first half he barely moved forward. 5 individual errors to 6 individual errors it is then 😉 at the moment the only players of note are sanchez, sinclair, gil and clarke the rest are non descript.
JL- I will when they give us some hope and don’t be so predictable 🙂
These Geordies should realise that most football fans dislike them, not just us. Remember the BS years of Keegan, “There’s no way Barcelona are a bigger club than Newcastle,’ then, ‘Robert Lee is the best player in Britain.’ It just wears people down.
I don’t think we have anything to fear tomorrow, Newcastle are crepe and so are we, the difference could be a lucky goal or a bad penalty decision or nothing at all. I think we’ll win 1-0 and those pathetic Geordies will have to wait another few months before coming on our blogs spewing their bile, who cares anyway ? they’re nothing.
Kinsella could start if the 2 left backs don’t make it, good all round LB from the next gen lads, could be a god send if not overawed
Can’t be that good or Lambert would have got rid of him.
Frem l have sent you a text with an address of where perksy’s coach is stopping for a drink before the game , it is 7 miles outside newc and its owned by one of our lots nephew , read the texts ,
frem they will be there at 11
frem
jaegger bombs £2 a go mate
Most of the NUFC players don’t want to play for the club or Carver, if we score first they could fold, they DO have a lot of French players, this is where Lamberts Jeerman bages would come in handy.
I do believe we are down and it’s bloody nice not to be stressing about the games and the other results.
It’s also still nice we have no Lambert to listen too, very refreshing.
Andrew
same here mate l think it was left to late ,although lm glad the ejits gone , good if it didnt happen but l aint holding my breadth ,
suppose l better get a bit of boxing in for the nose games , ))
Happy B-Day, Matt. Hello all.
Jenny
It felt like a privilege to be there. Half the usual volume of water is still flowing. The rest is frozen. You can go behind the falls in winter via tunnels and see the falls from near river level. In the other seasons there’s a boat.
S75. They still have those lights, though I didn’t detect any music. The speakers probably froze.
We stayed on the Blackpooly Canadian side, which they say in three seasons is the most beautiful, but in Wnter the US side looks pretty awesome to me. Apparently the Canadian side developed the way it did because Canada didn’t have laws prohibiting such development. The US side is treated as a national park, and prohibits development.
I went to a NBA and NHL matches. Neither rivals the atmosphere at VP on a good day when Villa is playing well.
Quite happy to see KMac back. At least Sherwood got someone in who has a link to Villa.
Trin,
Sounds like a great hol, have you ever been to Skegness ?
Happy birthday Matt.
Steamer
No, I’ve never been to Skegness. I’ll check it out.
Yeah, it was a great hol. It wasn’t the relaxing kind, but saw a lot and learnt a lot.
I’m sat in a coffee shop in central Seoul right now, waiting for a bus. It’s 3am here, missed the last bus from the airport to the province I live in because of the delay in Detroit. That’s the way travel is. Should be home by 8:30 am. I’ve been travelling about 32 hours since leaving Boston, but got 12 hours sleep on the plane.
Steamer
Skegness looks like a good place to relax, put the legs up for a while. I’ll visit one day.
trin- 32 hours!! that’s almost as long as it takes to get around the M25.
Or when we score a goal.
we’ve scored a goal? they didn’t tell me, they’ll be saying hendrix is dead next
Mark
Yeah, it feels like that sometimes. Lucky to have slept well on the plane from Detroit. I travelled by bus from Boston to NYC for a connecting flight to Detroit. At $8, it’s not a bad deal for a four hour trip. I didn’t fly from Boston because of the heavy snow recently. In some places the snow is heaped up 12 foot high.
Mark
Hendrix isn’t dead. He does gigs on the Canadian side of Niagra Falls.
trin with john lennon I suppose 🙂 it costs me more than $8 to get 11/2 miles in a taxi
http://hereisthecity.com/en-gb/2015/02/27/aston-villas-lewis-kinsella-tweets-ahead-of-potential-first-team/?
here you go Jen
http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/560964/Aston-Villa-boss-Tim-Sherwood-sports-shrink
So Sherwood points out that we need to win 6 more games compared with the 5 we’ve managed to win all season .
You can say that he’s trying to motivate the players but I think it sounds more like arse covering. . . ” look what an impossible situation I took on”