Villa Signings and General Rumours Thread

Neil3030

End of a leg so he is. Even when referring to Villa going forward from here, he still uses the term we. Juve shouldn't be surprised to see extra demand for their jerseys in Birmingham next season.

invincibleirish

Im sorry but people are donning their green tinted glasses when they suggest they go for Doyle & Hunt. Doyle got his 1st goal in 5mths today. He is not premiership class,thats why they got relegated.

For Villa twas a disappointing result today but overall this has been a satisfying season.

I think most Villa fans would have gladly took 6th & the Intertoto at the start of the season. (especially as the consensus at the start of the season seemed to have finishing in the top 10 would have been acceptable).

The emergence of Young & Agbonlahor has given Villa an attacking edge this season sorely lacking from a Villa team for over a decade.

Where now? I wont speculate but hopefully Villa will keep all their best players over the course of the summer and MON makes some choice signings to both improve the 1st team & the squad. Maybe Euro 2008 will be prime shopping time for MON.

Mark for the season? 7/10. the UEFA cup disappointment (those home results against Sunderland & Wigan esentially) took the shine out of a season that could have been fantastic.

But we have to be positive, and unlike many seasons in recent memory when, as a Villa fan, i was glad that the season was over due to Villas crushing mediocrity, next season i cant wait!

Esse85

You summed it up there nicely.

If Doyle was available for <£5m then i think he'd be a good signing, no better man to get the best out of him than MON

I think Harewood will leave this summer, im sure he wants to play first team football, fair play to him, his attitude has been spot on since he arrived.

estebancambias

invincibleirish wrote: »

Im sorry but people are donning their green tinted glasses when they suggest they go for Doyle & Hunt. Doyle got his 1st goal in 5mths today. He is not premiership class,thats why they got relegated.

For Villa twas a disappointing result today but overall this has been a satisfying season.

I think most Villa fans would have gladly took 6th & the Intertoto at the start of the season. (especially as the consensus at the start of the season seemed to have finishing in the top 10 would have been acceptable).

The emergence of Young & Agbonlahor has given Villa an attacking edge this season sorely lacking from a Villa team for over a decade.

Where now? I wont speculate but hopefully Villa will keep all their best players over the course of the summer and MON makes some choice signings to both improve the 1st team & the squad. Maybe Euro 2008 will be prime shopping time for MON.

Mark for the season? 7/10. the UEFA cup disappointment (those home results against Sunderland & Wigan esentially) took the shine out of a season that could have been fantastic.

But we have to be positive, and unlike many seasons in recent memory when, as a Villa fan, i was glad that the season was over due to Villas crushing mediocrity, next season i cant wait!

Wait....what? Was he Premiership class last season? The guy is a striker who has been played out of position all season. Kenwyne Jones a striker much praised this season has scored one goal more in a team that has done better and has better players.

invincibleirish

Esse85 wrote: »

I think Harewood will leave this summer, im sure he wants to play first team football, fair play to him, his attitude has been spot on since he arrived.

Kudos indeed to Harewood, i hope he stays just coz i really like him but id guess either a transfer to a Championship team or a newly promoted PL team seems a likey possibility. Maybe a transfer back to Forest?

Saw on the Guardian Website that Man Utd or Chelsea are Jose Boswingas likely choice, looks like Villa missed the boat last summer.

Savman

Anyone judging Doyle by his exploits this season alone is shortsighted IMHO. You underestimate how unbearably poor that Reading side was, it would have made Ronaldinho look out of sorts.

invincibleirish wrote:

Im sorry but people are donning their green tinted glasses when they suggest they go for Doyle & Hunt. Doyle got his 1st goal in 5mths today. He is not premiership class,thats why they got relegated.

That's a pathetic argument. I saw Doyle when we beat them at VP, the guy has a touch of class about him. Maybe you're donning your green tinted begrudgery glasses like people do with Robbie Keane?

invincibleirish

Savman wrote: »

Anyone judging Doyle by his exploits this season alone is shortsighted IMHO. You underestimate how unbearably poor that Reading side was, it would have made Ronaldinho look out of sorts.


That's a pathetic argument. I saw Doyle when we beat them at VP, the guy has a touch of class about him. Maybe you're donning your green tinted begrudgery glasses like people do with Robbie Keane?

Hey my viewpoint is a Villa viewpoint, do you think Doyle would get into the starting 11? i dont, Carew has had a decent season so it would take an extra big signing to dislodge him from the first 11, i doubt Doyle is that signing. Lets not argue this tonight, lets see how it plays out and see who is in for him, as mentioned elsewhere Sunderland is a potential.

Savman

invincibleirish wrote: »

Hey my viewpoint is a Villa viewpoint, do you think Doyle would get into the starting 11? i dont, Carew has had a decent season so it would take an extra big signing to dislodge him from the first 11, i doubt Doyle is that signing. Lets not argue this tonight, lets see how it plays out and see who is in for him, as mentioned elsewhere Sunderland is a potential.

All I'm saying is he fits the description of an MON-type player, he's also available at what is most probably a knock down rate. There was talk of him being linked with Chelsea at one stage IIRC but the Reading horror show hasn't done him any favours. But he has a great workrate and superb off the ball movement, he also turned Curtis Davies on a sixpence so it's clear he's got skill too and huge potential to fulfill.

Anyway, it would appear the transfer silly season is once again upon us. Yay. :pac:

invincibleirish

Savman wrote: »

All I'm saying is he fits the description of an MON-type player, he's also available at what is most probably a knock down rate. There was talk of him being linked with Chelsea at one stage IIRC but the Reading horror show hasn't done him any favours. But he has a great workrate and superb off the ball movement, he also turned Curtis Davies on a sixpence so it's clear he's got skill too and huge potential to fulfill.

Anyway, it would appear the transfer silly season is once again upon us. Yay. :pac:

I guess i wouldnt begrudge him a squad place. but if i put my green tinted spectacles id much rather him getting 1st team football at somewhere like....Sunderland?

As its silly season i think Villa should sign David Villa.

Helix

right boys and girls

€19.98 buys you a return ticket with ryanair to the intertoto home leg

only problem is that it could be the sunday instead of the saturday, in which case €39.96 buys you a return for both days. well worth it as if you wait to see which day its on, youll end up paying more coz the prices will have gone up

Helix

wayne hennessey is a done deal from wolves according to an itk

Neil3030

What's an itk?

That could be a great buy, only 21, Championship Goalkeeper of the Year this year and went 857 minutes without conceding while at loan at Stockport. Get Jussi in for a season with this guy developing behind him.

Helix

itk = in the know

i agree completely with getting jussi in for a year or 2 while the guy beds in

Neil3030

It's certainly a good starting point towards strengthening the defensive frailties. How reliable is your source?

Helix

i wont know til i see if we sign him or not lol

actually, i know a bloke who could probably give a proper answer to this. leave it with me

Neil3030

Well obviously I'm not asking you to predict the future or anything

Has this source been accurate before is more what I'm getting at?

In other Villa news, it appears MON and Lerner will sit down with Gaz Baz over the next 48 hours. Fingers crossed Lerner brings whatever negotiating skills he has that got him to where he is in the business world to the table.

Helix

first thing ive heard from this source, so ive no point of reference

invincibleirish

Helix wrote: »

right boys and girls

€19.98 buys you a return ticket with ryanair to the intertoto home leg

only problem is that it could be the sunday instead of the saturday, in which case €39.96 buys you a return for both days. well worth it as if you wait to see which day its on, youll end up paying more coz the prices will have gone up

The last time Villa were in the inter two bob cup i think the club massively discounted all the home tickets to encourage suppport so i guess whatever is spent on flights will be saved there.

Anyone care to reminisce about the glorious intertoto campaign of 2001? twas a 3 round affair then. JPA began to shine during those games. Of course was it all worth it when Vardar knocked Villa out in the First round proper?, Mustapha Hadjiis goal was class!

Neil3030

Is the Villa leg definitely going to be on the 26/27 July?

invincibleirish

Neil3030 wrote: »

In other Villa news, it appears MON and Lerner will sit down with Gaz Baz over the next 48 hours. Fingers crossed Lerner brings whatever negotiating skills he has that got him to where he is in the business world to the table.

I think what i can infer from that is a fat contract and promises made that big names/money will be in the mix to try and get Villa in with a shout of that 4th spot, Tis time for Randy Lerner to step up to the plate, lets see how ambitious he really is.....

*edit* we've all heard about the Cleveland browns and how crap they were before Randy took over, what have they done since?

Helix

Neil3030 wrote: »

Is the Villa leg definitely going to be on the 26/27 July?

yup, the draw has already been done and we're away first

im trying to remember if we changed the matches to a sunday last time, i dont think we did

it makes more sense to have it on a saturday anyway id have thought

Helix

invincibleirish wrote: »

The last time Villa were in the inter two bob cup i think the club massively discounted all the home tickets to encourage suppport so i guess whatever is spent on flights will be saved there.

tickets wont be more than £15 i wouldnt imagine, id say they could be even cheaper, and id even think my season ticket will cover it (if i get one *fingers crossed)

but to do the whole thing, flights and match ticket for under 40 quid would be nice

its worth noting that pretty much every flight to brum from dublin is €19.98 from july onwards

next week im booking the first 5 saturdays of the season return just to be sure i have myself covered. the following week ill book the next 3 and thatll give me enough leeway that when the fixtures are announced i should be booking far enough into the future for any more games that theyll be cheap enough as well

Neil3030

*edit* we've all heard about the Cleveland browns and how crap they were before Randy took over, what have they done since?

Em... stopped being crap?

Came within a whisker of the playoffs last season in arguably the toughest division in the NFL.


http://www.keepbarryatvilla.com

Neil3030

Helix wrote: »

next week im booking the first 5 saturdays of the season return just to be sure i have myself covered. the following week ill book the next 3 and thatll give me enough leeway that when the fixtures are announced i should be booking far enough into the future for any more games that theyll be cheap enough as well

That's a pretty solid strategy alright. I'll probably be living in Liverpool next year, have my name on the season ticket waiting list also. Bout an hour and a half on the train... neener.. :P

invincibleirish

Helix wrote: »

yup, the draw has already been done and we're away first

im trying to remember if we changed the matches to a sunday last time, i dont think we did

it makes more sense to have it on a saturday anyway id have thought

The teams Villa will be playing will be from NI, Finland or Denmark. Surely their Inter toto teams wont be a banana skin. but then again its been a while since Villa played European football.

I think i might head over to this too if its cheap as chips (student here)

Helix

ah sure its only an hour and a half on the plane too lol

Helix

invincibleirish wrote: »

The teams Villa will be playing will be from NI, Finland or Denmark. Surely their Inter toto teams wont be a banana skin. but then again its been a while since Villa played European football.

I think i might head over to this too if its cheap as chips (student here)

we could possible be playing copenhagen, who could give us a game

Neil3030

Helix wrote: »

ah sure its only an hour and a half on the plane too lol

The coffee on the Virgin Rail kicks Ryanair's ass though.. :P


Have a read of this -

http://www.avfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10265~1310599,00.html

Sounds quite positive from the skip, would you not think?

Helix

read that earlier, sounds pretty promising, but you never can tell

invincibleirish

Neil3030 wrote: »

http://www.avfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10265~1310599,00.html

Sounds quite positive from the skip, would you not think?

Fingers crossed. In fairness to GB, we know what he wants because its what we want (Champions league not 80k a week), Hopefully MON & Randy make him an offer he cant refuse, a deal and outlook that will satisfy his desires. This is a marker for the Lerner/MON era.

Neil3030

invincibleirish wrote: »

Fingers crossed. In fairness to GB, we know what he wants because its what we want (Champions league not 80k a week), Hopefully MON & Randy make him an offer he cant refuse, a deal and outlook that will satisfy his desires. This is a marker for the Lerner/MON era.

It really is. If Barry leaves it shows that our captain believes Aston Villa are not going to be improving to a CL team by the end of his career, which will be the next 5-7 years.

Raekwon

invincibleirish wrote: »

The teams Villa will be playing will be from NI, Finland or Denmark. Surely their Inter toto teams wont be a banana skin. but then again its been a while since Villa played European football.

The team from Northern Ireland will be Lisburn Distillery (MON played for them in the 70's), the team from Finland will be Turun Palloseura & the Danish team will most likely be F.C. Copenhagen (who ex-Villa striker Marcus Allback plays for).

Also it's worth mentioning that the format of the Intertoto Cup has changed over the years. The team that goes the furthest in the UEFA Cup who entered via Intertoto qualification will get a trophy - we'll get nothing for beating whoever we beat in the matches, apart from European football.

JPA

Raekwon wrote: »

Also it's worth mentioning that the format of the Intertoto Cup has changed over the years. The team that goes the furthest in the UEFA Cup who entered via Intertoto qualification will get a trophy - we'll get nothing for beating whoever we beat in the matches, apart from European football.

I didn't know that, kinda irrelevant as know one cares about the Intertoto but still interesting.

Helix

benitez makes me sick

he came out today and said villa should give up on barry

if hes not done for tapping barry up the fa are a sham, especially considering what o'leary got us done for with beattie

Bounty Hunter

at this stage the more comments Benitez makes about Barry/Villa can only serve to make a deal less likely. Obviously he was only responding to MON's comments which werent exactley complementary but he should be more aware of the effect his words can have as all i couldthink while listening to what he said on SSN was please keep talking Rafa annoy MON or maybe even Barry into saying no deal!

Bounty Hunter

I still think Barry will be at Villa next year (and for the rest of his career) personally.

he also had this to say today

"Hopefully we can do the business in the Intertoto Cup and get ourselves back where we belong,” he told Villa’s official website.

"It was always the aim to get that European spot - whether it be through the Intertoto or not. We could have finished as low as eighth if results had gone against us but we put the effort in and I think we deserved at least that sixth spot.

"We keep continuing to improve and I'm sure next year, with the help of new players, it will be another push.

"Everybody's gone home happy and I think the fans are pleased with the way we've gone about our business this season."

"We scored 71 goals in the League this season and that's a great total - challenging the teams at the top of the table. We scored the most away goals and that shows the sort of football we've played this season. That's why the fans turned up in their numbers all year."

One Cold Hand

From F365:

BENITEZ TELLS O`NEILL TO GET OVER IT

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez on Monday suggested Martin O'Neill should come to terms with the prospect of losing captain Gareth Barry.

Aston Villa manager O'Neill insisted he and American owner Randy Lerner will make a last-ditch attempt to keep Barry - a £10million target for the Reds - at at the club.

But Benitez said in the Liverpool Echo: "If your captain wants to leave, it's a problem, but that's football."

The Spaniard's latest comments are bound to further anger O'Neill, who was furious last week at the manner of Liverpool's approach for the England midfielder.

The Villa boss attacked Benitez when he was told the Spaniard had claimed to have had "prolonged discussions" with him about Barry, even though Benitez had never been quoted as saying that.

Liverpool's manager has staunchly defended his actions, saying: "I think the right approach when you want to sign a player is to talk to the manager.

"I was talking to Martin O'Neill. I said we would like to sign Gareth Barry and asked what the situation was.

"He just said he needed to talk to the owner and I said okay. He will not have any problems with his supporters because he never said to me he wanted to sell Barry.

"We were also talking about (Liverpool goalkeeper) Scott Carson because they have the option to sign him.

"We were just talking about football so why he was so angry, I do not know.

"I have been very clear. The player had said before that he wanted to play Champions League football. We knew that and so tried to sign a good player. It is that simple.

"If your captain wants to leave, it is a problem, but that's football."

O'Neill and Lerner will make one last bid to keep hold of Barry in the next 48 hours.

O'Neill said: "I wouldn't want to be saying how confident we are (of keeping Barry). It's a different era we live in. We will see.

"All I know is he has never expressed one iota of unhappiness in my time at Villa Park. He might not have stayed that long had he been really unhappy before.

"We are going to be sitting down very shortly and discussing Gareth's future. We won't let this lie.

"I am going to see the chairman in the next couple of days and, with a bit of luck, the two of us together might be able to persuade him to stay.

"I say persuade him - but he still has two years left on his contract."

O'Neill added: "Gareth is a demigod at Villa Park. He has that reputation and he is playing for England and he has not had to move to another club to do that.

"He has been particularly brilliant for us. We want to improve the team and our best chance of doing that is to keep our best players and adding some quality."

Barry admitted he had been affected by all the speculation over his future but was outstanding Sunday's 2-2 draw at West Ham which secured an Intertoto Cup spot for Villa.

O'Neill said: "Gareth might have been affected by the speculation last week but I thought he was back to his best at against West Ham.

"He did splendidly for us. You would not have thought he had anything else other than a win on his mind."

O'Neill also criticised Benitez, suggesting Liverpool had leaked their initial bid for the player to the media.

But Benitez said: "We made an offer but I think we were straight. When you make an official offer, you do so by fax. Some people see the fax and you cannot control everything.
"The Birmingham press found out about the offer and it was not our fault. They were very clever and used that information.

"I was talking with Martin O'Neill 20 days before that and nobody knew. We were doing things properly. We are waiting now to see what happens next."




The bit in bold is hilarious! Keep it up Rafa, you're just sounding more ridiculous.

IrishMike

Absolute quality from Mellberg.

Juventus signing Olof Mellberg brought down the curtain on his seven years at Aston Villa with an outstanding gesture to fans.
The big-hearted Sweden defender spent over £40,000 ensuring that every one of Villa's 3,200 travelling contingent at Upton Park received a club shirt bought and signed by himself.


"It was my own idea. It was an unusual situation for me because I knew so far in advance that I was leaving at the end of the season," he said.

"During the last few months so many fans have asked me for a signed shirt and so I thought it would be a good idea.

"I would have liked to have done it for my last home game last weekend but I thought 45,000 shirts might be a bit too costly!

"I also wanted to do something nice particularly for the away fans because they have supported us and me throughout the year and they have been fantastic this season.

"This game had been sold out for quite some time so the club knew how many shirts to make and so I hope everyone got a shirt.

"I wouldn't be here, making the money I have from football if it was not for those supporters so the cost was not an issue."

Mellberg heads for Italy with a ringing endorsement from Martin O'Neill.

"Olof has been a splendid professional footballer over the years I have known him - and a lot longer than that. He goes to Juventus with our best wishes," said O'Neill.

"It was a lovely gesture from him regarding the shirts. I'm not sure I would have done it - I wouldn't have the same money!"

JimiTime

^^Fair feckin play to the man! Gives ye a bit of faith in footballers again. It may only be half a weeks wages, but what a really nice gesture. Seems like a gentleman.

LuckyLloyd

invincibleirish wrote: »

*edit* we've all heard about the Cleveland browns and how crap they were before Randy took over, what have they done since?

Reached the playoffs last year which was far above and beyond all expectations. Plus they have been very active in free agency this offseason and have spent a lot of money to bring in a lot of quality. I think they could be a good outside shot for superbowl 2009.

---

I think as fans it is nice to think that loyalty will play into the matter for Barry. I personally think this is a test of his ambition. And if he is happy to commit his future to a mid - table side then he is probably a player who we don't want anyway. The reality is that whether the fans believe they are being messed around or not is irrelevant. The whole issue will be about whether Barry wants to push his career on and win some trophies / play the biggest club games in Europe. Or whether he is happy to settle for being a big fish in a small pond.

LuckyLloyd

JimiTime wrote: »

^^Fair feckin play to the man! Gives ye a bit of faith in footballers again. It may only be half a weeks wages, but what a really nice gesture. Seems like a gentleman.

.

Very impressive.

Neil3030

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

Reached the playoffs last year ....

No they didn't...

LuckyLloyd

Neil3030 wrote: »

No they didn't...

Indeed, apologies. They missed out on a wildcard spot in the last two weekends.

Neil3030

I'd agree with you, they'd be a very long shot outside bet for reaching the SB this year, but more realistically I'd say they'll amass a run in the AFC playoffs. Probably through the Wild Cards.

Wrong thread for this kind of discussion though... but you're always welcome...

LuckyLloyd

Neil3030 wrote: »

I'd agree with you, they'd be a very long shot outside bet for reaching the SB this year, but more realistically I'd say they'll amass a run in the AFC playoffs. Probably through the Wild Cards.

Wrong thread for this kind of discussion though... but you're always welcome...

lol, thanks. I've been known to drop in from time to time.

Neil3030

Clearly not often enough to know who was in the playoffs last year though... zing....

Helix

The Guardian wrote:

Rafael Benítez has poured more fuel on his row with Martin O'Neill by claiming Gareth Barry wants to leave Aston Villa. The Liverpool manager, responding to O'Neill's stinging attack on Friday, suggested that the England international was intent on quitting Villa Park, a revelation which is certain to strain relations between the two clubs further.

"If your captain wants to leave it's a problem but that's football," said Benítez.

O'Neill has argued otherwise since Liverpool's interest in the player was leaked 11 days ago. It is understood that Barry did not declare a desire to leave when he met O'Neill yesterday for talks, but Villa supporters would be naive to interpret the captain's reticence as a show of loyalty. With Liverpool so keen on signing Barry there is no need for the midfielder to agitate for a move to Anfield.

sounds promising, coupled with his comments on the official site

Mr Alan

Guardian wrote: »

Rafael Benítez has poured more fuel on his row with Martin O'Neill by claiming Gareth Barry wants to leave Aston Villa. The Liverpool manager, responding to O'Neill's stinging attack on Friday, suggested that the England international was intent on quitting Villa Park, a revelation which is certain to strain relations between the two clubs further.

"If your captain wants to leave it's a problem but that's football," said Benítez.

O'Neill has argued otherwise since Liverpool's interest in the player was leaked 11 days ago. It is understood that Barry did not declare a desire to leave when he met O'Neill yesterday for talks, but Villa supporters would be naive to interpret the captain's reticence as a show of loyalty. With Liverpool so keen on signing Barry there is no need for the midfielder to agitate for a move to Anfield.

selective reading?

this is just a newspaper article, someones opion is all.

Neil3030

I'm sorry, did anyone hear that? Did someone say something? I could have sworn I heard something...

Mr Alan

Lol