Cully and Karse definitely gone

[AJ 0]

I''m delighted with whoever his targets are. He''s the manager and knows far more about football than you or me. But I confess I didnt know you were linked with El Ahmadi. I''m glad we snagged him quick if so as you''d no doubt have been neck and neck with us for his signature. Most of the names being bandied around please me at the momentBut I seriously doubt we''ll spend 20m .. and i''m sure as fuck you''re lot wont!Get real. We (both) are what we are. Us, an on the slide top 6 side you an on the rise Championship side. But both crucially with new managers and new aimsTop half for me this season, then push on next as our homegrown superstars start to fully flourishThere''s no quick fix at Villa. And after 2 seasons of garbage and nobody expects one.

[Jim Smith 2,345]

[quote user="AJ"][quote user="Cambridgeyellow"]Just like you told us you were nicking our players lol. You managed to boo O''Neill out of your club so getting rid off Lambert will be quite easy. Just like us and Colchester and Wycombe in the scheme of Paul Lambert you are a small club that he will use.

Its catch 22 as we found out if he does well he will walk out on you if he does not you will boo him out. It will genuinely be interesting as well to see if his methods work with your so called super stars ie if you even dare to speak out of turn you will be training in the field next door on your own. Can see Bent ect loving that. Hope to see you back when he leaves you - dont know if you noticed but he is so loyal that days after he signed for you he was one of the favorites for the Spurs job, if he is doing well you will never know when he is leaving.[/quote]Ha! Yes, we''ve been after ALL your players ... not bloody likely If, in 2/3 years Lambert gets asked to join one of the bigger clubs (Liverpool, Man Utd, Arsenal or Man City) then absolutely FINEHe''ll have had to have done a brilliant job at Villa first.Bring on the good times. Hope Hughton works outAJ

[/quote]

 

 

I think Lambert will do ok at Villa as they at a low ebb and arguably underperformed last season so it should not be hard to improve things in the short term at least. The point my fellow fans here are making though is that if he does do ok then be prepared for him to be linked with EVERY single job vacancy that arises at a top half premiership club or even some of the european clubs. He will appear in the betting, his name will be linked and in response he will not expressly rule himself out. It becomes tiresome after a while. Won''t pretend he''s not a good manager though because he is. I hope however that Hughton will be able to carry on his good work and from what i''ve seen the initial signs are promising.

[AJ 0]

[quote user="Jim Smith"]

I think Lambert will do ok at Villa as they at a low ebb and arguably underperformed last season so it should not be hard to improve things in the short term at least. The point my fellow fans here are making though is that if he does do ok then be prepared for him to be linked with EVERY single job vacancy that arises at a top half premiership club or even some of the european clubs. He will appear in the betting, his name will be linked and in response he will not expressly rule himself out. It becomes tiresome after a while. Won''t pretend he''s not a good manager though because he is. I hope however that Hughton will be able to carry on his good work and from what i''ve seen the initial signs are promising.

[/quote]I don''t see this as a problem at all (as already stated)There are probably 4/5 bigger clubs than Villa in England. And non of those are likely to come calling anytime soonBut if they do, Lambert will have had to have done a magnificent job for us to even get a look inIt''s a win win

[Jim Smith 2,345]

[quote user="AJ"]I''m delighted with whoever his targets are. He''s the manager and knows far more about football than you or me. But I confess I didnt know you were linked with El Ahmadi. I''m glad we snagged him quick if so as you''d no doubt have been neck and neck with us for his signature. Most of the names being bandied around please me at the momentBut I seriously doubt we''ll spend 20m .. and i''m sure as fuck you''re lot wont!Get real. We (both) are what we are. Us, an on the slide top 6 side you an on the rise Championship side. But both crucially with new managers and new aimsTop half for me this season, then push on next as our homegrown superstars start to fully flourishThere''s no quick fix at Villa. And after 2 seasons of garbage and nobody expects one.

[/quote]

 

 

Whilst O''Neill got you in he top six (only to be forced out) yuou haven;t beena top 6 side for a long time. You are an upper mid table prem team who have an outside chance of the Europa league if things go well in the next couple of seasons.

You can call us a championship side if it makes you feel better. Most of us would say that after a long absence we are back where we belong (although admittedly there are probably about 15 clubs who could say the same thing). You would do well to recall which 2 clubs it was you were battling against last time you were really in with a shout of the premiership title. That Gary Parker miss at Carrow Road still makes me chuckle to this day!

 

[Jim Smith 2,345]

[quote user="AJ"][quote user="Jim Smith"]

I think Lambert will do ok at Villa as they at a low ebb and arguably underperformed last season so it should not be hard to improve things in the short term at least. The point my fellow fans here are making though is that if he does do ok then be prepared for him to be linked with EVERY single job vacancy that arises at a top half premiership club or even some of the european clubs. He will appear in the betting, his name will be linked and in response he will not expressly rule himself out. It becomes tiresome after a while. Won''t pretend he''s not a good manager though because he is. I hope however that Hughton will be able to carry on his good work and from what i''ve seen the initial signs are promising.

[/quote]I don''t see this as a problem at all (as already stated)There are probably 4/5 bigger clubs than Villa in England. And non of those are likely to come calling anytime soonBut if they do, Lambert will have had to have done a magnificent job for us to even get a look inIt''s a win win

[/quote]

 

Maybe but you seem to think you''ve got 2/3 seasons. Ferguson will retire soon. Lambert wanst that job. Quite probable that one or more of Spurs, Chelsea and Liverpool will come up too in the next 12-18 months. Lambert would leave you for any of those jobs. Yes you are right that he will have to be doing reasonably well with you to get them but he might not be around for as long as you think to effect this great transformation.

[CanaryOne 0]

Villa look totally skint to me , cannot afford to pay compensation and reported to not be able to afford Naughton at £6 million , one signing a cheap foreigner nobody has heard of . I would think they will certainly be bottom 6 this season for sure.

[AJ 0]

[quote user="Jim Smith"]

Whilst O''Neill got you in he top six (only to be forced out) yuou haven;t beena top 6 side for a long time. You are an upper mid table prem team who have an outside chance of the Europa league if things go well in the next couple of seasons.

You can call us a championship side if it makes you feel better. Most of us would say that after a long absence we are back where we belong (although admittedly there are probably about 15 clubs who could say the same thing). You would do well to recall which 2 clubs it was you were battling against last time you were really in with a shout of the premiership title. That Gary Parker miss at Carrow Road still makes me chuckle to this day!

[/quote]

You''d probably best check your facts. Only 2 seasons ago we finished 6th for the third season in a row. And our overalll average premiership finish is 5thWe''ve been in and out of Europe more times than Status Quo over the last 30 odd years. It got to a stage not long ago when we started fielding YOUTH players (not in reserves) in order to get knocked out of the pointless Europe Cup ASAP. O''Neill famously threw a game in Moscow in order to concentrate on the league ... that didn''t pan out (or go down) wellI didn''t call you a championship club out of malice, far from it. That''s just what i realistically see Norwich as. Like Wolves, Cardiff, Ipswich, Birmingham, Forest, Leeds etc. Good sized clubs but from the second rung. That''s not a putdown. We all have our standing in football. And i''m sure Man Utd fans think of Villa as a step down from them. And rightly so.Where on earth do you get this ridiculous idea that O''Neill was forced out from ?He resigned, much to everyones shock 6 days before a season started and on the back of yet another 6th place finishMany would question (and many in the media did) whether he''d achieved ''enough'' with the resources he was given, granted. But i certainly don''t recall any Villa FORCING HIM OUTQuite laughably off the mark there matey!

[Indy 3,323]

Only 4 / 5 teams bigger than Villa, Really! What about Man City, Man United, Liverpool, Everton, Newcastle, Spurs and Arsenal, you guys are on par with Sunderland, QPR, Fulham, Stoke, as a mid to lower table club.

 

That''s my point with Lambert, not proven in a high profile job, not had the pressure he will have at Villa and is a gamble by you guys the same as Rodgers at Liverpool.

 

I do love the supporter who always looks at their club as a BIG club or a SLEEPING GIANT!

 

I know that we will be battling the same as this season to stay in htis league, we will fill our ground regardless of where we are and should we repeat a to 12 finish I would be over joyed.

 

I don''t think that would be good enough for you Villa fans and let''s be honest you don''t really have better players than our squad, given that you lost to us and finished well below us last season.

 

I''m not convinced that you guys really know what you have in Lambert as no one knows, he''s out of his comfort zone with this job and it will be good to see just if he is as good as he thinks he is!

[AJ 0]

[quote user="Jim Smith"]

Maybe but you seem to think you''ve got 2/3 seasons. Ferguson will retire soon. Lambert wanst that job. Quite probable that one or more of Spurs, Chelsea and Liverpool will come up too in the next 12-18 months. Lambert would leave you for any of those jobs. Yes you are right that he will have to be doing reasonably well with you to get them but he might not be around for as long as you think to effect this great transformation.

[/quote]1. Lambert would never be offered the Man Utd job even if he got Villa into the Champions League. I''ll rest easy there2a. Chelsea''s owners will always want a glamourous manager, we already know Di Matteo''s just took the job for a year before they appoint Guardiola next summer2b. Ditto Man City3. Liverpool and Spurs are no bigger than Villa at this time. Neither have a chance of winning the title ever again (have Spurs ever won it?) just like the Villa don''t. A sideways move at best4. Arsenal would never appoint him either. They''re too foreign obsessed, and want sexy football over results

So, unless he gets sacked. I reckon he''ll be here and winning stuff for at least 5 years. Put it in your diary nowUTV

[AJ 0]

[quote user="Indy"]

Only 4 / 5 teams bigger than Villa, Really! What about Man City, Man United, Liverpool, Everton, Newcastle, Spurs and Arsenal, you guys are on par with Sunderland, QPR, Fulham, Stoke, as a mid to lower table club

[/quote]

If it makes you feel better, keep telling yourself that mate .. Ha

Maybe Colchester fans felt the same when you told them Norwich were a bigger club

[nutty nigel 7,645]

Will be interesting to follow Lambert''s career Jim. Not sure Lambert wants the Man Utd job. It seems to me Lambert takes on challenges where the odds are stacked in his favour. Norwich in League One is a no brainer. The odds are that a half decent manager would see an upturn in our fortunes. But getting us to 12th in the premier league within 3 seasons would have beaten all expectations. However from there the odds are probably against a continued rise. So Villa just avoiding relegation is another no brainer. A half decent manager should improve on that and if he takes them to mid-table he will be deemed successful. But make no mistake he will know when to jump ship.

 

But, following Fergie at Old Trafford is a different kettle of fish. The odds would be against him improving the club and not winning the Premier League would probably be viewed as failure. My bet is that he would take on one of the big 5 or 6 clubs if they had a fall from grace and were in a position where he could build new momentum.

 

 

[Indy 3,323]

Liverpool or Spurs are no bigger......where did you finish last year?What players do you have that would get in the squad at Liverpool or Spurs never mind tha starting 11....

 

I think you need to come to 2012 and not live in 1981 AJ.

[Tumbleweed 106]

I''m surprised so many seem to think Lambert will fail at AV. There is simply no reason to believe why this should be so. Much as my respect for the guy has been seriously tarnished by the way he walked out, I think AV is exactly right for him. At Norwich he took an underperforming squad with limited funds, introduced discipline and togetherness and raised fitness levels. He''ll do exactly the same at AV and the potential is greater as the base (low prem rather than low Lge 1) is higher.

The ONLY reason I can find to doubt is that for the first time he will have big egos and big names to deal with. He may be OK with ex-tyre fitters from Shrewsbury but will he cope well with a big time high earning night club loving WAG adorned charlie? We''ll see but his no-nonsense style could reign that stuff in and work quite well.

I''d love City to wallop AV, as with any team, but AV could achieve 8th/9th/10th in what I thought was a bit of an average league last year. For us I''d still love anything from 17th upwards.

[Lavanche 0]

Hey AH!

I''m from Finland and none outside of England thinks Aston Villa is any bigger than Stoke or Sunderland or West Ham.

Norwich might have been gone from premiership, but if we can hold our place next few years we will be in same cast with you again as we were in 90''s for finnish people.

I know it is hard to accept that glory days of Aston Villa are long gone and you have to get your coach team free like you were a 5th tier team, but hey dont worry we will have good games together fighting against relegation!

[ricardo 7,409]

All this was obvious from the start.

[Mike 2]

AJ you''re funny! Deluded but very funny.....

Lambert will be with you 12/18 months max if he does well or you sack him sooner (you normally start bleating after 4/5 games I believe) because you have expectation clearly linked to the 70''s.

Lambert did an excellent job but really glad we''ve got the better deal now. Houghton has more class...

Enjoy next season, we will.

[Jim Smith 2,345]

[quote user="AJ"][quote user="Jim Smith"]

Whilst O''Neill got you in he top six (only to be forced out) yuou haven;t beena top 6 side for a long time. You are an upper mid table prem team who have an outside chance of the Europa league if things go well in the next couple of seasons.

You can call us a championship side if it makes you feel better. Most of us would say that after a long absence we are back where we belong (although admittedly there are probably about 15 clubs who could say the same thing). You would do well to recall which 2 clubs it was you were battling against last time you were really in with a shout of the premiership title. That Gary Parker miss at Carrow Road still makes me chuckle to this day!

[/quote]

You''d probably best check your facts. Only 2 seasons ago we finished 6th for the third season in a row. And our overalll average premiership finish is 5thWe''ve been in and out of Europe more times than Status Quo over the last 30 odd years. It got to a stage not long ago when we started fielding YOUTH players (not in reserves) in order to get knocked out of the pointless Europe Cup ASAP. O''Neill famously threw a game in Moscow in order to concentrate on the league ... that didn''t pan out (or go down) wellI didn''t call you a championship club out of malice, far from it. That''s just what i realistically see Norwich as. Like Wolves, Cardiff, Ipswich, Birmingham, Forest, Leeds etc. Good sized clubs but from the second rung. That''s not a putdown. We all have our standing in football. And i''m sure Man Utd fans think of Villa as a step down from them. And rightly so.Where on earth do you get this ridiculous idea that O''Neill was forced out from ?He resigned, much to everyones shock 6 days before a season started and on the back of yet another 6th place finishMany would question (and many in the media did) whether he''d achieved ''enough'' with the resources he was given, granted. But i certainly don''t recall any Villa FORCING HIM OUTQuite laughably off the mark there matey!

[/quote]

 

Well I would imagine that the likes of Leeds, Forest and wolves would take exception to being called "championship sides" as well. You lot certainly do seem to suffer from delusions of grandeur. I apologise if I was not fully aware of the stats of your recent league finishes but the fact remains that you are miles away from being a top 6 side now and highly unlikely to break into the top 6 at any time in the near future.

As for the O''Neill thing I wasn''t suggesting the fans forced him out although he got a fair bit of stick for certain things as i recall. The fact Villa had to pay him compensation for his departure suggest though that something or someone within the club led to him quitting.

 

[AJ 0]

[quote user="Indy"]

Liverpool or Spurs are no bigger......where did you finish last year?What players do you have that would get in the squad at Liverpool or Spurs never mind tha starting 11....

[/quote]

I would say, with the resources given and transfer money spent. Liverpool''s season was akin to the Titanic sinking110m spent (give or take) on a new midfield/attack and they still failed miserably. They even gave us 20m for a one legged Downing!We meanwhile, had a minus 20m transfer pot, the worst manager in Villa history, a threadbare squad and still managed to stay up beyond anyones expectations. Even I had a big cash bet on us being relegated at Christmas time. It was that badIn some ways McLeish should''ve got manager of the year just for keeping us up. Depite his best efforts to avoid it.Spurs are a bunch of southern fairies. Dipping their feet in the big time waters ever so briefly, but actually winning nothing. As per usualHorrible club. Fawned over and talked up by endless ex players in the media as a ''big'' club, but in reality they''re as far away from the top of the tree as us all.UTV

[Fiery Zac 1,066]

[quote user="AJ"][quote user="Jim Smith"]

Maybe but you seem to think you''ve got 2/3 seasons. Ferguson will retire soon. Lambert wanst that job. Quite probable that one or more of Spurs, Chelsea and Liverpool will come up too in the next 12-18 months. Lambert would leave you for any of those jobs. Yes you are right that he will have to be doing reasonably well with you to get them but he might not be around for as long as you think to effect this great transformation.

[/quote]1. Lambert would never be offered the Man Utd job even if he got Villa into the Champions League. I''ll rest easy there2a. Chelsea''s owners will always want a glamourous manager, we already know Di Matteo''s just took the job for a year before they appoint Guardiola next summer2b. Ditto Man City3. Liverpool and Spurs are no bigger than Villa at this time. Neither have a chance of winning the title ever again (have Spurs ever won it?) just like the Villa don''t. A sideways move at best4. Arsenal would never appoint him either. They''re too foreign obsessed, and want sexy football over results

So, unless he gets sacked. I reckon he''ll be here and winning stuff for at least 5 years. Put it in your diary nowUTV[/quote]

Many neutral pundits said Norwich to villa at this point in time (don''t want to hear about your glorious history 30 years ago) was a sideways move as well... And anyway, of course he''d take the Liverpool or spurs job. In a heartbeat

[Mike 2]

Jim,

Villa''s a stepping stone to a move to Germany or abroad I reckon..... 18 months top. 

Personally without the cash Av will struggle because they were d*g sh*te last year. Worse club we saw all season. Reckon when it becomes apparent he has no cash & 12th is not good enough, he''ll leave like O''neill

[CanaryOne 0]

What has Lambert ever really achieved 1- He won League 1 with a club that were always going to win that league2- Finished 2nd in the Championship (wow thats never been done before) 3- Finished 12th in the Premiership (see above)Lets be honest there is every chance Lambert may be massively overrated , no certainty whatsoever that the lower league management team will be a success at a club that looks in rapid decline.

[AJ 0]

[quote user="Mike "]

AJ you''re funny! Deluded but very funny.....

Lambert will be with you 12/18 months max if he does well or you sack him sooner (you normally start bleating after 4/5 games I believe) because you have expectation clearly linked to the 70''s.

Lambert did an excellent job but really glad we''ve got the better deal now. Houghton has more class...

Enjoy next season, we will.

[/quote]

All we won in the 70''s were 2 League Cups! (granted that matches your entire history in terms of trophies won)I know, you desperately want to think Lambert will jump ship from us as he did you and Colchester. But surely even you can see the difference ?He''s done his latest Quantum Leap and found himself at one of England''s biggest/grandest old clubsHe wont be wanting Ziggy to turn up and beam him away anytime soon. It''ll only be downhill once he does leave. This is his BIG chance. And i''m told he more than knows it and is more than ready to make himself succesful now he''s got the chance

[0ridgemanddMMyyyy0Falseen-USTrue 0]

The one good thing is that Villa fans won''t know when he is going. They like us and Colchester will wake up one morning to read Lambert has resigned - a leopard doesn''t change its spots. 

[Jim Smith 2,345]

[quote user="Tumbleweed"]

I''m surprised so many seem to think Lambert will fail at AV. There is simply no reason to believe why this should be so. Much as my respect for the guy has been seriously tarnished by the way he walked out, I think AV is exactly right for him. At Norwich he took an underperforming squad with limited funds, introduced discipline and togetherness and raised fitness levels. He''ll do exactly the same at AV and the potential is greater as the base (low prem rather than low Lge 1) is higher.

The ONLY reason I can find to doubt is that for the first time he will have big egos and big names to deal with. He may be OK with ex-tyre fitters from Shrewsbury but will he cope well with a big time high earning night club loving WAG adorned charlie? We''ll see but his no-nonsense style could reign that stuff in and work quite well.

I''d love City to wallop AV, as with any team, but AV could achieve 8th/9th/10th in what I thought was a bit of an average league last year. For us I''d still love anything from 17th upwards.

[/quote]

 

I agree with this and Nutty''s point above. I don;t think he will fail there and he has taken the job precisely for the reason that he should be able to turn things around relatively easily thus adding to his reputation in the process. Whether he can get them challenging for any honours is a different matter but i would back him to have them back pushing for the top 8 or 9 which would presumably be regarded as moderate success.

I honestly believe (for a variety of reasons) that he is eying one of the very top jobs and abig factor in his move from us to Villa is that he doesnlt think a club like Man United would appoint a manager purely on the back of sucess at a club like Norwich but he does think he would have a chance if doing well at Villa. It is a stepping stone for him - just as we were. As AJ has said it may not matter if he brings them success in the meantime (as he has with us and he''s left us in very good shape) but the interesting thing will be if one of the top jobs comes up relatively soon. Alternatively i will be interested to see how he reacts if things don;t go well and he gets criticised. he never had to deal with that with us but the few occasions where a bit of criticism did come his way suggest he won''t take it well. I could see him walking if he ever got sustained stick.

[Mike 2]

Quote "He''s done his latest Quantum Leap and found himself at one of England''s biggest/grandest old clubs"

Has he left you already then? Blimey even quick for him......

 

[AJ 0]

[quote user="Ncfc"]What has Lambert ever really achieved [/quote]That is, a VERY good question/pointAll he''s done so far is raise the levels of expectancy at a couple of unfashionable lower league clubsBUTEvery manager needs to start their career somewhere. He''s put in the spade work and has now earned his chance at a big club. Whether he''s good enough to take that on and really make a name for himself nobody knows. It''s no different to Rodgers at Liverpool. He''s achieved nothing (in fact apart from doing alright at Swansea he''s done absolutely NOTHING)But, the feel good factor is back all over Birmingham. And even if he fails, the relief at seeing the back of McLeish will shine on for a long time yetLets all just enjoy our new respective managers

[Mike 2]

Jim,

The way Villa fans are reknowned for moaning and getting on their managers back, I can see some really fun happening...... not all fans are like us and supportive and certainly not (high pitched voice) Villa......

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="AJ"]4. Arsenal would never appoint him either. They''re too foreign obsessed, and want sexy football over results[/quote]This single statement alone shows how completely clueless you are about football.Under Wenger, Arsenal have finished in the top four EVERY SINGLE YEAR, whilst managing to have an overall transfer defecit of just 4.5 mil compared to the Chelsea''s and Man City''s who''s is closer to 500 mil or more over the same time span.Add in the titles and cups during this period along with the attractive style of play, and if that''s not getting results, I don''t know what is.O''Neill left because the board wouldn''t keep spending money to get results (just like at Norwich), he hasn''t got a clue how to work on a budget.I can''t see Villa being a consistent top half side again for a long time to be honest.

[AJ 0]

[quote user="Indy_Bones"][quote user="AJ"]4. Arsenal would never appoint him either. They''re too foreign obsessed, and want sexy football over results[/quote]This single statement alone shows how completely clueless you are about football.Under Wenger, Arsenal have finished in the top four EVERY SINGLE YEAR, whilst managing to have an overall transfer defecit of just 4.5 mil compared to the Chelsea''s and Man City''s who''s is closer to 500 mil or more over the same time span.Add in the titles and cups during this period along with the attractive style of play, and if that''s not getting results, I don''t know what is.

[/quote]I'' not sure which bit of the above goes against anything i said TBF ?As I said, Arsenal put playing sexy football ahead of actually winning anythingAs proven by their xxx amount of trophy less years. I have 3 Arsenal season ticket holding mates (long term ones) and you ask any one of them if they''re happy paying nearly £900 a season for ''oh so close, but oh so far'' every season. Are they heck!They want TROPHIES

[Mike 2]

To be fair you can''t get more unfashionable than Villa so maybe it''s a marriage made in heaven.....

Reckon Lambert will do well and get his preferred job... 12-18 months.

Hughton will enjoy working for a board that will support him and give him time.

Very happy to have a better manager on board.