Aston Villa Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread

invincibleirish

All this summer transfer chatter but there's still football to be played and clubs to relegate. I want to say goodbye to Martin Laursen and see Newky get sent down but my car insurance & NCT repairs have to be paid so i'm done with going over to B6 for the season. You heading over Helix?

Helix

unfortunately not, seasons over for me too

JPA

Savman wrote: »

I'd expect Kevin Doyle to be linked soon enough. I can hear the groans already, but I always thought he'd be a sensible signing.

I think Doyle has stagnated a bit at Reading and probably should have left last summer. (Not that he had much choice in it I would think). But signing him would be a gamble on him getting back to form and ultimately I don't think he's good enough for us.
I'd like an Irish player in the squad so I'm a bit torn.

invincibleirish

I'd take Doyle and get rid of Heskey but if MON is playing 2 strikers next season its still going to be Carew-Agbonlahor as first choice i reckon.

He's a good striker as some of his performances for Ireland have shown, and he has certainly developed his game since the days he was playing second fiddle to John O Flynn at City but his second season in the PL and lack of goals is a blackmark against him. As is the stigma of Playing for Reading, Shorey & Sidwell have not set the world alight.

Neil3030

Stephen Ireland anyone? Loose, and I mean LOOSE, reports that he might leave Eastlands on F365.

JPA

Neil3030 wrote: »

Stephen Ireland anyone? Loose, and I mean LOOSE, reports that he might leave Eastlands on F365.

Contract bargaining tool I reckon.

Neil3030

JPA wrote: »

Contract bargaining tool I reckon.

Oh absolutely, I mean he even says at the end of the article that regardless he has 2 years left on his contract. He prob (95%) ain't goin nowhere, but he is just what we need imo. Throw Sturridge into the deal too.

shoutman

Would be delightful to end the season on a good note, playing well and beating a poor newcastle side would do the job.

TBH I think the squad just want the season to be over at this stage.
I don't know how I missed the fact that there is no more intertoto cup... and here's me thinking we still had something to play for.

The match is televised on sky sports by the way.

JPA

Neil3030 wrote: »

Oh absolutely, I mean he even says at the end of the article that regardless he has 2 years left on his contract. He prob (95%) ain't goin nowhere, but he is just what we need imo. Throw Sturridge into the deal too.

Ya he'd be brilliant but he'd be brilliant for 100 other clubs too. Non story really.
Sturridge on the other hand...

invincibleirish

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/newcastle/article6315523.ece

Article on Jimmy Milner. If memory serves me correctly a few of Boards toon crowd were rather sniffy about James and his departure, here's hoping he shows them what they are missing on Sunday!.

villains77

it be nice to go out on a high and get 5th spot. with the amount of matchs we have played this season we do need to get a god lot of squad players for the whole season. i know we started in july so we been going since then and obviously there feeling it now but if we had brough more in jan maybe we could still be in the uefa cup. i have a lot of time for mon and still think he should be given the 5yrs. i have read some of the posts up on the site calling for him to go. would u rather somebody comes in and do a worse job then he has and you still be calling for him to go like you are all doing under the o'dreary years. i never thaught that we would challenge for the 4th spot this season we have a 5 yr plan and he is 3 yrs into it and we are aghead of where he wants to be. we all need to get behind the team and stop the negative posting

Helix

villains77 wrote: »

i never thaught that we would challenge for the 4th spot this season

i said at the start of the season that this would be our best chance to do it, and if we didnt manage it then thats it gone for the forseeable future. i still stand by that. we wont get 4th place in the next 3-5 years after blowing it this year. this was our one chance

Neil3030

i said at the start of the season that this would be our best chance to do it, and if we didnt manage it then thats it gone for the forseeable future. i still stand by that. we wont get 4th place in the next 3-5 years after blowing it this year. this was our one chance

I wouldn't be so quick to rule it out just yet. I mean, in the immediate present you have Chelsea replacing their coach at the end of this season. If, as rumours suggest, it will be Ancelotti, he will be completely unproven in the Premiership and there also may not be a whole lot of cash available for him (or whoever takes over) to strengthen an aging, egotistical squad. Keep in mind where they were headed before Hiddink took over - didn't even look like they were on course to finish in a European place.

Then you've City. Does anyone actually think they'll be challenging for 4th place next year? Really? They have been snubbed by every galactico they've so far approached, with the exception of Robinho (who was easily dispensible as far as Real were concerned, were they to sign Ronaldo). Is Hughes' job secure? How much longer the Dubai playboys going to ignore the prospect of a higher calibre manager maybe attracting higher quality players? If they sack him, who'll take over? Lots of question marks if you ask me.

Then there's Arsenal and again the future of the boss looks uncertain, if not for next season certainly at some stage in the next three years. Supposedly the Highbury development is not selling which is forcing them to run the club at a profit. As a consequence, I don't think for one moment there's any pressure on Wenger coming from upstairs, seeing as they know damn well they'd be lost without him under such circumstances. But say Adebayor and Fabregas receive offers over the summer too good for the board to turn down? Is Wenger going to want to stick around and be the straw man?

As for the rest, Manchester United and Liverpool are likely to be the top two teams in England for the foreseeable future I don't think there's any doubt in my mind about that. The only teams that leaves is Everton, Spurs and ourselves. So depending on how we strengthen there's absolutely no cause to rule out the prospect that we will be in with a shout of a CL spot next season as there are a lot of uncertainties yet to be cleared up.

Yes, Arsenal could suddenly decide to burden themselves with debt and spend big, Ancelotti could turn out to be the next Mourinho, Hughes might sign C. Ronaldo, Essien, Vidic and Messi and have them all click in the same starting lineup. But just as likely Arsenal lose a few key players, the new Chelsea coach hasn't a clue how to handle the premiership, Hughes is sacked for a mercenary who squanders billions on a midtable finish, Moyes is handed no transfer kitty of note, 'Arry is arrested for tax evasion.... you never know!

invincibleirish

Yes i guess the inpsirational aim is to finish 4th or above, but unless Villa spend £100m this summer then i feel its case of aiming for top 6 or thereabouts and see what happens then.

I feel dirty after the whole UEFA Cup episode but a cup to me will symbolise progress more then any fight for 4th. Give me a league cup & 8th spot and that will make me smile, the memories of 94 & 96 still gives me shivers.

Helix

invincibleirish wrote: »

the memories of 94 & 96 still gives me shivers.

savos belter v leeds...

mmmmmmmmm

invincibleirish

Oh go on then...

As i say its time Villa won a LC, its been too long and the FA Cup is out of bounds.

Neil3030

invincibleirish wrote: »

Oh go on then...

As i say its time Villa won a LC, its been too long and the FA Cup is out of bounds.

'Bout the only useful thing that lump did at the club. Only Serb observing a ceasfire in the early nineties...

Esse85

The way the leeds defense backed off and nobody went to close him down was awful defending from their part, tremendous finish though.

Milosevic was a little similiar to Angel in that both weren't suited to the EPL, however it was clear both had the class to succed in a more technical league e.g Spain.

Esse85

It appears Petrov is on the brink of signing a new contract too

tiliyan Petrov insists that he is on the verge of signing his new contract with Aston Villa after revealing that discussions were in the "final phase".

The midfielder is out of contract at the end of next season and the club have been keen to tie the 29-year-old to a new deal for some time now.

Petrov was voted Player of the Year by both his team-mates and the Villa faithful for his performances this term, after a somewhat shaky first two seasons at the club.

The Bulgaria international was signed from Celtic in the summer of 2006 for £6.5million and until this season was on the verge of becoming labelled an expensive flop by his own supporters.

"It's been going well. I think we're in the final phase now," Petrov told the Express and Star.

"Things could happen in the next few weeks. We are nearly there, I can say that."
http://www.football365.com/story/0,17033,8652_5336832,00.html

invincibleirish

Esse85 wrote: »

The way the leeds defense backed off and nobody went to close him down was awful defending from their part, tremendous finish though.

Milosevic was a little similiar to Angel in that both weren't suited to the EPL, however it was clear both had the class to succed in a more technical league e.g Spain.

Leeds didn't show up that day thats true.

I don't know whether it was a case JPA & Savo weren't suited to the EPL or was it more a case of whether they weren't suited to certain AVFC managers! as well its fair to say methinks Savo was pretty raw when he was at Villa but him, Johnson & Y*rke leading the line in the classic AST Reebok kit were the bees knees.

Best forget the FA Cup semi final a week later though *eugh*.

JPA

Site for new away kit, http://www.whenthenationcalls.com cool site, hopefully cool shirt.

Savman

Gonna be hard to win a cup when MON surrenders in the knockout stages.
Someone had to bring it up

invincibleirish

Hmmm the new away kit "honours the club's significant England contributions".

White away shirt so i guess? rather the 82 inspired away kit from last season myself.

Helix

JPA wrote: »

Site for new away kit, http://www.whenthenationcalls.com cool site, hopefully cool shirt.

its going to have that horrible red cross on it that inters away jersey had, i can feel it in my waters. ridiculously short sighted from villa if it does, itll completely kill overseas sales

Savman

Oh dear. Fair play to them 'n all but don't think I'll be purchasing this particular product.

villains77

has anybody seen the new home jersey. what do people think of it think i be sticking with the 2 from this season. why cant we jsut keep a jersey for 2 seasons max 3 instead of forking out more money every season

invincibleirish

I doubt Nike or Villa would be daft enought to blatantly rip off Inters away kit from this season



Bit too in your face for my liking

villains77 wrote: »

has anybody seen the new home jersey. what do people think of it think i be sticking with the 2 from this season. why cant we jsut keep a jersey for 2 seasons max 3 instead of forking out more money every season

I'm agreed with you there Villains77, this seasons home is a classic, i'd like to keep it along with last seasons(and 3rd this season). But Villa do have a ridiculous turnover in shirts going back to late 1990s, any particular reason?(beyond money, all other clubs keep their home for 2 seasons).

New home kit out August 20th

villains77

stick with this seasons thanks

villains77

wheres most people going for the game sunday. any suggestions?
come on villa

Helix

well, considering its a nike kit, and we're supplied by nike, and its going to have some relevance to england, and that one has a big ass cross of st george on it... im quite worried lol

i wouldnt mind if it looked nice, but its tacky as hell

Helix

villains77 wrote: »

has anybody seen the new home jersey. what do people think of it think i be sticking with the 2 from this season. why cant we jsut keep a jersey for 2 seasons max 3 instead of forking out more money every season

nobody has seen the new home jersey, and i wouldnt think we will til the season starts in july

the reason for 3 home jerseys in 3 seasons is because thats what nike negotiated with us when they became our kit supplier. the club have no say in it beyond initially agreeing with it 2 years ago

invincibleirish

Yeah but Villa have been doing this for ages, at least 10 years. bet HDE had something to do with it.....

villains77

i saw it on some site on google cant find it now will try get it in work tmrrw and i add it in when i get the time. but i have seen it. i googled new aston villa home jersey 2009/2010 and it came up on one of the sites

JPA

Helix wrote: »

its going to have that horrible red cross on it that inters away jersey had, i can feel it in my waters. ridiculously short sighted from villa if it does, itll completely kill overseas sales

Surely not, too blatant. Something more subtle I'd imagine, I hope!

Helix

villains77 wrote: »

i saw it on some site on google cant find it now will try get it in work tmrrw and i add it in when i get the time. but i have seen it. i googled new aston villa home jersey 2009/2010 and it came up on one of the sites

its not real tho, its just a mock up

theres literally hundreds of them

we were late again confirming our sponsor for next season. nike need to know (apparently) 9-12 months before the jersey is to be out who the sponsor will be. we didnt confirm acorns til december/january so we're behind the other second tier nike clubs in design terms

at least thats how the story goes

wynters

That 9-12 months thing can't be accurate can it...? Remember a few seasons ago Hummel had an online vote for fans on th OS to choose the new design? That was only around March or so...

This seasons kit is nice. As long as they stick to the traditional claret torso and blue sleeves, and don't go prcikin around with all the bells and whistles ( collars, unnecessary stripes, not to mention St. George's crosses and sh/t!) I'll be happy.

(I'll go fckn spare if it's anything remotely like that Inter jobby! I mean it.)

wynters

Stories in this mornings press saying Villa are offering Barry £75k a week to stay. Good to see that the club are publically showing their desire to keep him. Give him food for thought. Would go a long way to softening the blow of losing captain Laursen if we managed to keep him...

I think I'd stay put if I were Barry... for another year at least. Surely the Holy Grail for any professional footballer (with any integrity) is still the WC? Barry is in the England starting XI based on his performances and form for Villa. If he were to move to a CL club who rotate players, he'll play less games. And if his appearances are staggered, his consistency (possibly his greatest attribute) and form may suffer. Can he take the chance on missing out on playing in a WC, when England probably have their best squad and manager in 20 years??? The way he plays, Barry still has 3 or 4 more seasons to play in the CL... This is arguably his last opportunity to play in a WC.

There's more England players at Villa compared to any of the top 4, so chances are he'd be seen MORE regularly by Capello at Villa, where he stands out. The grass ain't always greener on the other side. Ask Robbie Keane.

Also, if he were to have a good WC, he could sign a massive contract as a free agent...

Esse85

Id rather Barry goes now to be honest, Im sick of hearing about him especially when he was average in a lot of games this season. It'll be good for him and good for the club if he moves on this summer.

invincibleirish

Barry is already gone in spirit i'd say, he had a decent 2nd half against Boro but has flattered to deceive for large parts of the season. He's not worth 75k or the captaincy which he should never have been given after Laursen got injured.

Yeah it'll be weird to see him at Pool or wherever but even if he did stay Villa need to sign some quality in midfield anyway.

Helix

reports in the press we're going to try and bring olly back

called this a few months ago, and wouldnt be surprised at all

Helix

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_5338780,00.html

stan signs for 4 more years

shoutman

Would be amazing if Ollie came back, I haven't been following him at all in Italy, how has he been getting on?

Also great news that the Petrov deal is done and dusted, hopefully MON will change his tactics and start doing things asap rather then as late as possible.

Helix

cannavaro signed for juve, so that'll pretty much be the end of ollie over there. he was only bit part as it was

Savman

I have a feeling Mellberg would be a bad move. There is no room for sentiment in the PL.

Helix

i agree, but there is room for a good player with a proven premiership track record

invincibleirish

Bring back king Olof!

"I could never think about playing for Birmingham City. That's not an option,"

Legend

Helix

someone mocked this up on villa talk, absolutely lovely jersey. hopefully this is the sort of approach we'll see nike take (basing it on the england away kit from 96)

wynters

Olly would make sense. The manager who signed him for Juve has been sacked. They've only gone and signed the World Cup winning captain who should be a guaranteed starter in Ollys position and no one's gonna be displacing Chiellini in that team. We need someone with authority at the back. Olly knows the ropes and most of the squad already so there'd be no issue getting him settled in... makes sense.

He's not 32 til September... still 2 good years in him.

villains77

lovely jersey is it the real away jersey or just one of them designs that are all over the internet


as for mellberg it makes sense to have him back and he does know most of the players wouldnt take him as long to settle in. id be up for a return. hes a legend

Helix

villains77 wrote: »

lovely jersey is it the real away jersey or just one of them designs that are all over the internet

its just a fan made one based on the website for the jersey, he actually fixed it up a little bit again to tie it in more with the website. ill be amazed if this isnt pretty damn close to how it looks come the unveiling on sunday: