Thursday, 29 July 2010 12:58
If you sat near me in the lower Trinity for the last two seasons you would know that I am not a big John Carew fan. I am actually one of the few who prefer to see Emile Heskey play over Carew - but maybe I was a little too quick to discard Carew.
Carew was in one of his moods against Walsall on Tuesday night and okay, it was only Walsall, but nobody could get near him. The ball stuck to his foot like chewing gum to a shoe.
He looked the complete striker; full of tricks and he even showed some pace. So is John Carew the answer to the Villa striking dilemma and is it worth giving him another season to prove that he really is a top class striker?
I am not sure he is the 'main man' and still have doubts that he can play the lone striker role; a role that Gabby plays so well. But if Gabby and Carew both played thirty plus games, I am pretty sure Carew would score the more goals.
The Fonz
One thing I do know is that Martin O'Neill must give Nathan Delfouneso a lot more time on the pitch this season.
The comments coming from France during the U19's tournament all seem to suggest that England’s only real star was Delfouneso. At least two 'football experts' said he was the only England player who would get into the Spanish team. We have a potential star in Nathan and we now need to start to let him blossom.
Actually, the more I think about it the more I start to think that we have the ideal combination of strikers in the four we have. Two target men in Carew and Heskey, exceptional pace in Gabby and the silky skills of Nathan. These four give us so many combinations; it could be lone striker or a pair and we also have lots of ways we can change it from the bench.
So, yes, I think Carew deserves another chance and I would be happy to see no changes to the Aston Villa strike force for this season coming.
Set as favorite
Bookmark
Email this
Comments (189)
Subscribe to this comment's feed
Craigy1874
said:
 |
... I agree mate, I think we do have a good combination of strikers but MON has to be up for actually changing the combination if things aren't going right. I still would be quite happy to sell Heskey though and replace him with someone better. Carew on his game is unplayable, the only problem I have is that his day doesn't come around as often as it should. |
Cuddy_Villa
said:
 |
... first? i think he does, the first goal that carew set up against walsall was good i dont think ive seen him look that sharp in quite a few games, when he got the chance last season when MON finally dropped hskey and put carew on, he showed what he can do for example the FA cup game against reading and he can outpower almost every defender, and if he does go we cant sing his song and that song is brilliant  |
Ascone Villa
said:
 |
... I can't believe you ever doubted big, bad John in the first place. Probably rightly criticized at times for not being "in the mood" but he is still our most talented and most experienced striker - and I think Gabby has learnt a lot from him. And, Andy... Emile Heskey? Really? You are the second writer on this blog who has said they would prefer to see Heskey play. The same man who wasn't involved in every 9 out of 10 goals Villa scored last year (in all competitions). Meanwhile, John Carew (who featured just one more game than Heskey did) banged in 16 goals in all competitions, grabbed 5 assists and won 4 penalties. It's time to put this unnecessary Carew-Heskey debate to bed for good. |
TheDiamond
said:
 |
... Carew has been my favourite Villa player over the last two seasons. He's a real match winner and the ideal role model for the Fonz. I'd like to have seen him start more games last season but he is also our only real impact player to spring from the bench. I'm all for selling Milner because he is worth the cash we'd get for him, but Carew is a player that is worth way more to the club than his price-tag. I will also quote a stat that has been mentioned on this blog several times. His goal ratio is 2.3 per 90 mins. Gabby's is 2.6 |
nath888
said:
 |
... I would be absolutely gutted if carew left. Its not just his football thats needed at villa, its his personality and banter with the rest of the team. It always looks like him, gabby and ash get on really well. i'd hate to see any of these three go as they're such an important part of the team. |
Mowgs
said:
 |
... For me Carew all comes down to fitness. If he's not fully fit his heart doesn't quite seem in it either. But when he's on a good day you can see how much he enjoys bullying defences. Away at Reading in the FA Cup last season was a prime example of what he's capable of when he's in the mood. |
SCOTT1
said:
 |
... if everything goes tits-up what would people feel about this team friedel cuellar collins dunne warnock gabby r.coker milner petrov a.young carew |
rollin-with-the-VILLA
said:
 |
... Would be sad to see him go as he has become a bit of a cult hero, but we need moregoals from somewhere- maybe the fonz is the answer- he definitely needs more. Playing time this year |
Bosnich13
said:
 |
... andy you write 'I am actually one of the few who prefer to see Emile Heskey play over Carew' - dude thats some killer icky-sticky green u gotta be smoking How? Why? are you even serious - Heskey offers nothing - i repeat nothing to our team - hes so slow (ive seen milk turn quicker), cant hold the ball up - lets be honest here, he cant - isn't a goal threat..like honestly when is the last time u came away from a game thinking jeeze Heskey had a blinder and was a threat all day...dont get me wrong i dont doubt for a second that he would be a good signing for a club like Stoke but we are not Stoke, we are Aston Villa - Carew on the other hand when in form (and i admit he must produce more regular) is unplayable and a constant threat - injuries havent helped big JC - if the niggling injuries go away and he remains 100% then its not even for debate, Carew every single time |
Cuddy_Villa
said:
|
... SCOTT1 im sorry but i have to disagree with you, i really hope MON does not play cuellar there this season and replaces collins at centre back with cuellar, i also dont think carew could play on his own because hes two slow, i would put gabby up there with him and i would replace reo-coker with downing |
Simeon
said:
 |
... Heskey is terrible. There is no way that any combination of strikers that included him could be described as ideal. I would hope that his role this season would purely be as backup, assuming that no-one is going to be stupid enough to take him off our hands. I agree that Delfouneso should get much more playing time this season. Ideally, we would be rotating the three main strikers, choosing the best combination for any given game. I actually believe that if we do this, we don't need to buy a new striker (which is lucky given that we don't have any money). Carew is unfortunately prone to injury. We should therefore play him when he is fit, and use Gabby and Delfouneso when he isn't. A good fourth striker would be nice, but given our current financial predicament, and the presence of Heskey on our wage bill, I think we will have to go without. But maybe this could present an opportunity for Weimann, or another youngster, to get some game time now and then. Amongst my many concerns is that Carew's agent has talked about Carew either being offered a new contract or being sold. It would seem that we are waiting to see what happens with Milner before deciding what we do, though I get the feeling that our manager would be happy to 'cash in' on Carew (to the tune of perhaps £3-4m?) if a suitable replacement could be signed. Obviously, a new striker of even remotely comparable quality is going to cost alot more than £3-4m given our manager's inability to find bargains, meaning that money from the sale of Milner would be essential. But with Milner leaving looking increasingly doubtful, my money would be on us having the same strikers we had last season. In theory, this shouldn't be a problem, because both Gabby and Carew are proven performers. When fit and playing, Carew scores alot of goals. Gabby, if he is given a rest now and then to maintain his sharpness, should be able to sustain his form, avoid the usual mid-season dip, and get 20 goals a season. And Delfouneso, though unproven in the Premiership (owing to him not getting a chance), I believe has the talent to be a terrific player, and should be good for at least double figures. 50 goals this coming season from these three, and a few more from midfield, and we could be sitting pretty. But this is a best case scenario, and the reality of the past few seasons suggests that it's not got a chance of happening. Heskey will play a decent number of games. Gabby will play every game going and get burnt out again. Carew will be in and out of the side, will score a decent number of goals, but fail to do the damage he's capable of. And Delfouneso might make the odd substitute appearance here and there, and start in however many minor cup games we play before we are knocked out. There is optimism, there is realism, and there is pessimism. But realism and pessimism are virtually impossible to tell apart. |
Craigy1874
said:
|
...SCOTT1 said: If he does decide to play 4-5-1 (which he won't) I would think young may be in the hole with downing playing on the left. |
Andy
said:
 |
... Andy...Please put 'Andy D' on your posts, because I can't be associated with my name being put against something that says Heskey is good for Villa. I'm not sure why you write Carew should be given a second chance. I'm not aware he's had a first chance..? He had the little spat with MON about being in the lappy club but he's been our number one target man since he's been at Villa. We need to keep Carew as he is quality. Selling Carew should not be an option. MON would be raving mad to even contemplate selling him at the moment. If we had plenty of cash and in a position to replace him then I'd say go ahead. However, we know he does a bloody good job, so why replace someone that's good and is settled in at Villa. |
Simeon
said:
|
... SCOTT1 I would much prefer to see Cuellar in the centre, with Luke Young in at right back. If I was picking the team, I'd inist on it. Reo-Coker in midfield would provide some much needed bite and athleticism. And I love the idea of Downing not being in the team and Ashley playing on his preferred left side. In such a formation, I think that Delfouneso could play either up front or coming in off the wing. The problem is that we will play 4-4-2, unless both Carew and Heskey are unavailable, because that's what our manager does. |
SCOTT1
said:
|
... agreed weve got to keep carew hes a leg-end.and to be fair i think we all would agree that even if no one came in or left wed all be happy with the squad as long as the team was set up in a certain way.im not trying to turn it into a mon-bashing post because its about carew but its only a tweak here and there! |
Jinksy
said:
 |
... Another Chance????? So what has he done wrong?? He sits on his arse watching that donky Heskey for 4months last season and still score 16 goals. He's miles the best striker we have & have had for years. Sorry but if you can't see that you need an eye test. He's the oly goal scorer at our club & on his day is un-playable...... Another Chance??? what to prove how much better he is that all our other strikers?? Your going to tell us how much you rate Reo-Joker next. |
SCOTT1
said:
|
... simeon i put the team in on the strength of young going.but im gonna go back to the argument about buying a mf when weve got one on the bench,im a massive fan of rc he does all the important things you need.put him in a 5 and it lets petrove pull the strings.he done for x amount of years at celtic and rcs presence would mean hed have to do less donkey work.how come everyone on here can see it but not mon?! |
Rortyboy
said:
 |
... Great post - talking about something real and not fantasy transfers. I am a big Emule fan. There are things he can do such as win headers, hold up the ball, bring in midfield players far better than Big John. Emule's touch is superb. But I also agree John scores and at the moment we need his goals. He is also good defending set pieces. I think the reason John goes missing in games is that some defenders can play him. For a big man he doesn't jump high and either defenders out jump him or they double up. Emule doesn't get out played by defenders in the same way and so is much more consistent. As for the Fonz he is a work in progress just like Gabby was. MON is correct to bring him on slowly - and perhaps play him on the wing a bit first. At this stage of his career he could easily crash and burn - as could Albrington the other real prospect we have. Plus I think the problem we have with Big John and Emule is that they encourage the long ball. This might be good away from home but is frustrating at VP. |
SCOTT1
said:
|
... rorty boy did you just put superb and consistent in the same sentence as heskey?its too early in the day to be drunk!!  |
Simeon
said:
|
... Andy Selling Carew would indeed be madness. A 30 year old with one year left on his contract and deemed surplus to requirements is not going to command a reasonable fee. If we keep him and we play him regularly, then he will probably score more goals than anyone else we have. It really is a no-brainer. But I guess we'll have to wait and see what our manager has planned. |
Luckynumber7
said:
 |
... Simeon - if i get an email at work that long, i'm straight on the delete key. You've goto to cut down the word count mate. Carew is amazing on his day. It was mentioned earlier; at Reading last year he was outstanding. Usual charges levelled against him though; he just isn't up for it enough. |
Dicky H
said:
 |
... Manchester United are ahead of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in the race for Rosenborg midfielder Anthony Annan, who shone for Ghana at the World Cup finals. (The Sun) THIS IS THE MAN WE NEED IN THE HOLDING ROLE - THE NEW ESSIEN |
jimboAVFC
said:
 |
... no way should be sell carew. two injury prone seasons and still get min 15 goals per season. was a good impact sub last season and is a major goal threat. heskey on the other hand has no goal threat what so ever, i know he works hard but there is no point having a striker who doesn't score goals. we need to sell him. |
VillaDude
said:
 |
... No one will take heskey off our hands, he's on too good of a contract and will want Stoke, Blackburn etc to match it.. Same problem we are having with all the other players we are trying to shift. |
Simeon
said:
|
... SCOTT1 I know there are a range of opinions about Reo-Coker, but I'm with you. He may not be the most technical of midfielders, but there are very few players in the Premiership who can run as far and as hard as he can for 90 minutes, and who have his aggression and tackling ability. In a five, he would be able to do Petrov's running and allow Stan to concentrate on keeping the ball moving. I'm still unsure as to what Petrov can bring to a midfield that aspires to be top quality, but he can fill in the gaps, do his fair share of defensive work, and get the ball to more creative players. Strangely enough, if we play 4-4-2 (as we surely will), Reo-Coker is even more essential. Petrov and Milner are too lightweight to win a midfield battle, whereas with Reo-Coker in there we have a fighting chance. Simply because he's the only strong, defensive midfielder we have, he'd be the first midfielder on the team sheet for me. But whether he gets a go in the league, only time will tell. |
Jinksy
said:
|
... Scott1 - You talk about people being drunk & put Reo-Coker in your starting 11....You must be s**t faced. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Luckynumber7 I think that if Carew is given a reasonably consistent run of games and allowed to build up and maintain his match fitness, he will look alot more up for it than he sometimes does. I agree that there are times when he doesn't look fit and interested, but I don't believe this is an attitude problem. He needs playing time, and he needs to feel valued. As long as that is happenning, he should be fine. I know my posts tend to be quite long, but I don't think there is a clearer way of making my points. Sorry about that. |
Rortyboy
said:
|
... This praise of NRC just confirms in my mind that the only players to get praise are the ones who don't play. Reo-Choker was dropped because whenever he won the ball - which he does well - he gives it away. He can't pass. He bottles it and makes some terrible decisions trying impossible passes. |
Simeon
said:
|
... VillaDude You're absolutely right and it's a huge problem, to which there is no real solution, short of actually involving some of these players (though only the ones who are good enough) in the first team on a regular basis. Perhaps if we did that we might be able to move some players on in January when other clubs are looking for short-term signings to fill gaps in their squads. |
nath888
said:
|
... Is it me or is Jack wood(en)ward the most boringist cartoon character looking nob! His got a face like a rat catchers mallet! |
John Salter
said:
 |
... John Carew - Get rid of him?????? No way, not now, last season, this season or even the next. He's way, way, way better than Emile Heskey. Heskey if played anywhere would be good in the midfield, he's certainly not worth taking up a strikers position. John Carew looks fitter than ever, hopefully he'll stay injury free. The Fonz - Should have played more games last season and if MON doesn't give him the opportunity this year, he'll be in for even more critism and rightly so, especially as he was recognised as the best player in the under 19's in the tournament that's just finished. Gabby - Will be much improved this season and another year older, so more mature. The squad looks ready and fit on the official website. It looks as if Gabby's been back in the gym again so should be hold off the defenders even more. |
Jinksy
said:
|
... Rortyboy - When has Reo-Coker ever won the ball well? The bloke can't tackle, pass, shoot, is slow & when he runs he can't look up because he'd fall over if he did. One thing he is good at is pointing to another player when someone wants to pass to him....Apart from that he's quality.... |
leight
said:
 |
... big john on target again.. http://astonvillacentral.com/2010/05/amazing-shot-john-carew-fixes-sign-at-villa-park/ |
Rortyboy
said:
|
... Jinksy, One example sticks in my mind. MON played him right back at VP to mark Ronaldo. He did a fantastic job, marked him out of the game, Ronaldo got booked and then was take off by SAF because of an "injury". Also thinking about it at Anfield MOM performance. But he can't pass. |
Jinksy
said:
|
... Rortyboy - Is that the same game against Man U he made 2 takles & got sent off. The bloke is a complete and utter waste of skin & if i was MON i'd give him a free transfer. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Jinksy I know you are not a fan of Reo-Coker, and I agree that he is not a great passer of the ball, and I'm sure that there are times when he's chosen the wrong pass. But to say he's slow and can't tackle when this simply isn't true doesn't do your argument any favours. He is, in many ways, a limited player. But there's nothing wrong with that as long as he is told to play within his limitations and let other players do the work with the ball. One of Villa's big problems is that we don't have one single player with the vision and technique to make the play. Three seasons back, Reo-Coker had a good partnership with Barry in midfield. Reo-Coker was able to do the running and tackling, and Barry was able to make the play. Reo-Coker will never be a playmaker himself, but he can still perform a vital role for the team and prevent our midfield from being overrun time after time. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Jinksy I remember the game Rortyboy is referring to, and Reo-Coker wasn't sent off. If I remember correctly, the game he got sent off in was at Old Trafford (and I think Carson was sent off as well). The game where he marked Ronaldo out of the game was at Villa Park. Used in the right way, Reo-Coker would be an excellent player for us, and would definitely improve our team. And in a five-man midfield he'd almost always have someone within ten or fifteen yards of him to pass to, rendering his poor long-passing irrelevant. |
John Salter
said:
|
... Reo-Coker - I know it was a pre-season tournament but didnt NRC captain the team last year in the Peace Cup and win it? |
Jinksy
said:
|
... Simeon - To say "he can tackle" blows my argument out of the water is exactly like me saying he can't tackle & the man U game a couple of years ago proves it. He mad 2 tackles in the who game & got book for both of them. The facts are we paid 8.5 million for Reo-Coker & if he was any good MON who paid the money would pick him. I'd love to be sing his praises but to do that he has to 1st get into out team & 2nd play well. Both of these things he's never been able to do....& that is a fact i'm not making it up am i? |
micflair
said:
 |
... I love big john, after being dropped last season for his strip bar fun he came back and notched on times we badly needed it. In other news, just on sky sports that luke young has turned down the move to liverpool for family reasons.. |
VillaDude
said:
|
... I think with the players we have (Reo Coker, Petrov, Delph) we need to play 433/451. The players above are not good enough for 442, especially if Milner stays. Teams like Fulham and Sunderland totally out passed us at VP and while we played old fashioned 442. MON needs to update our style of play, but can you see it happening? |
Jinksy
said:
|
... John Salter - Yes he did & i've got every game full 90min & Re0-Coker wsa rubbish. The reson we won the thing was because of Albrighton, Guzan etc....Reo-Coker sole contribution was giving a shocking penalty away & lifting the cup.....Get your facts right we won in spite of Reo-Coker not because of him. |
Jinksy
said:
|
... Simeon - WRONG AGAIN, I'm not saying he got sent off in the game Rortyboy was refering to but he did get sent off at Villa park for his only 2 tackes against Man Utd.....FACT...Not at Old Trafford. |
John Salter
said:
|
... Jinksy - If he was so bad why did he retain the captaincy? I know Villa haven't seen the best of him but he did have a fall out with MON and since then hasn't had much of a chance. He was West Hams Captain and is capable of far better than we have seen of him. There are better in midfield but can you see anyone wanting to buy him? |
Jinksy
said:
|
... John Slater - can i see anyone wanting to buy him? NO i can't. Why? Because he is crap. Simeon - http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7043000.stm |
SCOTT1
said:
|
... jinksy he is limited but you have to have a mf that compliments each other.carrick can only pass thats it! but he still gets in the manure team.milner/petrov and rc is a mf with different qualities that compliment each other and incidentally rc at anfield last season was one of our best mf performances the whole of last season imo his backtrack tackle on gerard was out of this world. |
Rortyboy
said:
|
... I think the game in which Carson got sent off was the 1-4 defeat at Villa Park when we were down to 9 men by the end. Didn't Renaldo get the penalty that got Carson sent off. I probably wasn't thinking of that game |
nix2
said:
 |
... First the Carew Heskey debate. Be objective here. Heskey doesn't have bad games, he is always on form. Downside is his form is mildly better than Carew having a bad day. And when Carew has a bad day he gets frustrated and the whole team suffer because of it. If Carew could get rid of this frustration out of his game he would start every game and he and the team would be brilliant, but if he's having a sulk, start Heskey. NRC discussion, what did this guy do wrong? He captained the youth team to win the Peace Cup this time last season, he was superb when we beat Liverpool at Anfield, then had a punch up with MON and now nobody likes him. I'm a fan, he can't pass that well or get his head up, he's certainly more hurried than Stan in possession, but we play differently with him on the pitch. We shoot on sight, there's more scraps, its more of a battle. We don't try and be pretty, NRC is great at putting his head down and charging through players, he can do that all day long. He's a terrier, and should be played against teams we'd benefit from having a terrier against. Liverpool, Man Utd, Chelsea, Blackburn, the Scum and the Dingles. |
John Salter
said:
|
... Jinksy - As for getting facts right, what I said was that NRC captained the side during pre-season last year and Villa won the thing! So unless I'm missing something, I did get my facts right. Like a lot of people on here, you need to chill out a bit and not go on the attack when someone else has a point of view! |
Geoff
said:
 |
... First priority in terms of strikers...Heskey needs to be sold. Bring in Robbie Keane. I would settle for a strike force of Gabby, Keane, Care, and Fonz. Thats pretty good. If Carew would go for that then thats fine. If he complains too much then they will sell him in January. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Jinksy I don't think you're being fair judging Reo-Coker on one game. Obviously I was wrong in thinking that he was sent off at Old Trafford, just as you were wrong to suspect that he was sent off in the game he marked Ronaldo out of. Rortyboy - Is that the same game against Man U he made 2 takles & got sent off. You say that if Reo-Coker was any good then, given that our manager signed him for £8m, he would play him. But our manager signed Luke Young for £6m, Young had an excellent first season, and then our manager decided not to pick him. Do you believe that our manager picks the team entirely on merit? I don't think he does, and it is for this reason, and for the fact that Reo-Coker and our manager had a disagreement on the training ground, that he doesn't play, rather than because he is useless. |
The Droyd
said:
 |
... In response to Andy who has written the article: You must take a lot of LSD if you believe Heskey to be better than Carew. How can you prefer a centre forward who doesn't score goals to one that does AND who does a better job as a target man? A centre forward should score goals or at least create them. Heskey does neither. There is nothing he does better than Carew. We should ship out Heskey and get in a goal scorer. |
Jinksy
said:
|
... John Salter - You are correct and i will take a chill pill. Simeon - I was not incorrect my comments were tongue in cheek in ref to him saying how great Coker was against Man U (Which is just not true) I referred to a game against Man U that he clearly wasn't any good in. I also do not base my rating of this loser on 1 game i base it on every single game he has unfortunately played for out great club. |
Simeon
said:
|
... The Droyd Don't we already have goalscorers in Carew and Gabby, and in Delfouneso? I think we should probably have four strikers, but unless we sell Milner, who are we going to be able to buy who would be value for money (and who wouldn't stop Delfouneso getting games)? And can we justify having five stikers if one of them is Heskey, with his considerable wages (assuming we're stuck with him)? As much as I think Heskey is useless, given that getting rid of him is going to be very difficult, if not impossible, I think we have to accept that we're stuck with him. But as long as he is only used in an absolute emergency, Delfouneso can actually benefit and get some real game time. I guess the only alternative is to let him go out on loan, and then bring in a striker on loan ourselves. |
Ghostrider
said:
 |
... Guys TBH, I would try and sell Heskey at all costs, then look to replace him with say Darren Bent, just think how many goals he would bag with midfield deliveries and pace we now have at our disposal. We colud then alternate between JC, GA, ND & DB' |
Jinksy
said:
|
... Simeon - It was 2.5 years after we signed Reo-Coker that MON & him had a fall out yet prior to this he was still awful & couldn't get a game because of his rubbish performances. MON kept playing him in hope he'd come good but it just didn't happen. That is why Coker had a go at MON. So to say he isn't picked because of the fall out is b****x & you know it. Luke Young doesn't play because he has fell out with MON & for that reason only. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Jinksy Apologies for not noticing where your tongue was situated when you were typing! However, I would still maintain that, in the game against Man Ure when he kept Ronaldo quiet, to the point where the ladyboy was substituted, Reo-Coker was unarguably excllent. He had a job to do, and he did it perfectly. I accept that your opinion of him is based on his Villa career as a whole, and whilst I can see where you're coming from, I still disagree with your overall assessment of his value to Villa. But one thing we do agree on is that Reo-Coker is unlikely to be signed by another club for a transfer fee. |
nix2
said:
|
... Luke Young doesnt play not cos he fell out with MON, its because when he plays our right side is weakened. You remember when MON played Coker at right back, and at times Milner. It was to strengthen them to cover the gap that L.Young left far too regularly when he'd lose the ball going forwards. Who would you have rather had attack with the ball Milner or L.Young. Now Cuellar is krap going forwards but he doesnt find himself out of position quite as often. FACT! |
Jinksy
said:
|
... nix2 - Wrong... It was because Bouma was injured & we didn't have a left back so Luke Young played left back...FACT... He then had a massive row with MON just before the peace cup & got sent home...Then his brother died & MON used this as an excuse to giver him loads of time of. Why? Because he didn't want to face him... Typical MON. |
The Droyd
said:
|
... Simeon, I think Delfouneso can finish and should be one of our 4 strikers. Agreed, 5 strikers would be ridiculous. Gabby is not good enough as a goal scorer. His value to the team is high and I like him but I would like to see another natural goalscorer in the squad. It is the major ingredient that we lacked last year. OK, playing a centre back at full back doesn't help our brand of football but we should have scored a lot more goals with the chances that were created. The amount of times I thought "If only Michael Owen was on the end of that instead of Gabby"... |
nix2
said:
|
... By the way L.Young has said NO to a move. Maybe sensible seeing as Collins looks like he's gonna have a lot of groin problems this season, so Cuellar will have to cover him. |
Andy
said:
|
... When my son read todays article he came running into me in a panic asking why the hell I'd written this article. Just to clarify to any of you guys that think I've lost my mind. I AM NOT THE SAME ANDY THAT WROTE TODAYS ARTICLE. That particular Andy has obvioulsy lost his mind.  |
Simeon
said:
|
... Jinksy! Our manager and Reo-Coker didn't fall out because Reo-Coker was playing badly. As I understand it, Reo-Coker had a go at someone for a bad piece of play in training, our manager said something to Reo-Coker, Reo-Coker told him to f**k off, and a wrestling bout ensued. I don't know whether Reo-Coker was able to apply the Sharpshooter, or whether our manager delivered the People's Elbow. Such details are lost in the mists of time. Anyway, Reo-Coker was already out of the team by this time, and even had there not been a fall-out, my guess is he wouldn't have played much anyway. He lost his place when Milner was signed, and our manager opted to play 4-4-2 with Barry and Petrov in midfield. After that, given our manager's preference for sticking with the same players, he was reduced to filling in at right back or right midfield on the odd occasion - neither being a position that suits his talents. Even when we were forced to play 4-5-1, it was Sidwell who got the nod. I think Reo-Coker had a good first season, and had adapted well to a new, depper-lying midfield role. I think it's a real shame that he wasn't allowed to continue in that role and get even ebtter at it. But I know you disagree with all this so I'll leave it there. |
AV4EVER
said:
 |
... I would pick Carew over Agbonlahor any day of the week, Villas top goal scorer last season and only played half the games, if it wasn't for his back I recon he would have got another 10 more. As for the Heskey v Carew debate, please don't waste my time or any other Villa supporter with that one. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Jinksy Excellent! I can agree with you completely on Luke Young. Nix2 Luke Young was fantastic, both at right back and at left back. He was decent going forward, but his main strength was defending. I can't ever remember thinking that he'd been caught out of position. I imagine it may have happened on a couple of occasions. After all, Luke Young isn't perfect. But he was never a defensive liability. He was, in my view, our player of the season, and although Petrov was good that season, I think he won the award partly out of sympathy, because he'd been utterly useless for 18 months previously. |
Carlos is a centre back!!
said:
 |
... Done deal for Milner at £25mill?? It's on Newsnow. Hope it's true. |
nath888
said:
|
... Will someone clarify please. I'm sure I saw on sky sports the other night that petrov was 3rd in the premier league for the most tackles won by a player? |
Simeon
said:
|
... The Droyd I don't think Gabby is a natural goalscorer, but as I've said before, I think he is well capable of getting 20 goals a season provided he's given a rest now and again so that he can stay fresh. His performance in the first half of previous seasons has been very good, consistently getting into double figures. If he was able to carry on this form throughout the whole season (by staying fresh rather than being ran into the ground), we wouldn't be talking about needing a new striker. |
b30 villain
said:
 |
... News Now? Cant see it Carlos just some story about him joining up with the team after failed bid |
VillaDude
said:
|
... Carlos...even though I would like the move to complete asap, i doubt that website would be the first to break the news.. |
naldy
said:
 |
... Does John Carew,deserve another chance ?,what a ridiculous question,he's been our top scorer for 3 years running,does Gabby deserve another chance should be the question ! |
DanWilson82
said:
 |
... Carlos, it's just some bull sh*t headline to get hits. It will be plastered all over the place if and when it happens. The same story also says Ireland is staying put which has never been confirmed. |
John Salter
said:
|
... Jinksy - Carlos is.... - There's nothing on Sky Sports, Five Live or the official Villa website about a Milner deal! Looks like crud, like that site! |
Craigy1874
said:
|
...Andy said: Wonder what author andy thinks about over 25s wearing football tops ? |
Craigy1874
said:
|
...But our manager signed Luke Young for £6m, Young had an excellent first season, and then our manager decided not to pick him Actually Young lost his place because his brother died and he was given compassionate leave. Then, when he came back, we had built the strongest defence in the league so he couldn't get his place back. It wasn't simply a case of MON "deciding not to pick him". |
Craigy1874
said:
|
...Guys TBH, I would try and sell Heskey at all costs, then look to replace him with say Darren Bent Straight swap or would we want a fee as well ? |
ahazzard01
said:
 |
... this is my first venture on this site and as a long standing villa fan i can safely say it's amazing how different we all think and feel. To be honest i wouldn't want us to sell carew but would lose heskey and replace him with a robbie keane. Def give the fonz more of a chance and albrighton too, but we gotta remember they are young and learning! Lets take cuellar out of right back as he isn't great passing the ball to whoever is on the wing. Lets get davies playing again as he could be great with dunne and maybe add a creative player in the middle. I do like milner but if he goes then he can be replaced by an ireland for a lot less. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Craigy1874 O'Neill and Young fell out. Then his brother died. We did well without him, but when he was available again, in my opinion he should have come back into the team, based on his excellent performances in the previous season when he was comfortably our best defender, and we would have done even better. Contrary to what some would say, Young is a better defensive right back than Cuellar, as well as offering more going forward. Cuellar clearly isn't comfortable in one-on-one situations against tricky wide players. He isn't particularly comfortable in the full-back position full stop. In certain games, I can see the logic of playing him there, because having three centre backs in a team will help in defending set-pieces and long ball football. If you're rotating the squad, then Cuellar could be used at right back to give Young a rest every now and again. But when you're picking your strongest team, Luke Young has to be in it. I think it's possible that our manager knows that the team would be stronger with Luke Young in it, but I also think that he would rather 'stamp his authority' rather than pick what is on paper the best team. After all, he is the manager, and he muct be feared and respected. I think the real question is why is that our manager seems to fall out with players so often? |
bobvillian
said:
 |
... you are all wrong about l.young.he fell out with MON after the peace cup last year. |
craigy
said:
 |
... Simeon now uv hit the nail on the head! Why do so many players fall out with mon? This is probably the main reason my total support for him is very slightly dwindling. |
Andy
said:
|
... I don't think I've ever known a season like it. We have Sidwell, Milner and now L Young in an on/off transfer farce..?!  I've not been taking much interest in the tranfers with other clubs, but are the other clubs having such a strange time with transfers as Villa seem to be doing...? |
Big Boi
said:
 |
... I think this post is missing a big point. Okay u say he deserves another chance?? Well tell me does Drogba deserve another chance? Cause that is basically what u are sayin. JC has been Villa's top scorer for the last 3 seasons,Drogba the same for Chelsea...now i dont think they will be askin if he deserves another chance!! Ok ul say Drogba got 30+ goals last season but we have to be honest and realise that chelsea are at a different level to us. 16 goals last season from JC is pretty good when we consider the level we are at compared to chelsea and the fact he was injured for a right few games. Ok some times he is frustrating...the chelsea fans wud prob say the same about Drogba but believe me they wont let it blinker them into thinkin they mite not need him. And on a final point, what wud we recieve for John 3/4mil?? Now tell me how much wud it cost to replace him with another player to get 16 goals nxt season?? |
Greg Davillain1887
said:
 |
... i say good riddance to young and reo - coker obviously troublemakers, young wasnt good enough for spurs, then was relegated with charlton, then was relegated with middleboro, cant get a game at villa, and loads on here would prefer martin out the door rather than this bog standard right back, reo was bombed out of west ham as a trouble maker aswell, seemingly he fell out with his team mates, if he could pass id like him but e has never fulfilled his potential, sell them now cleat the wage bill and get in 4 players who could start |
frem
said:
 |
... reo and sid i hope both go. Petrov has said he wouldn't mind them staying though. i hope they dont. i am still very worried. i just want the milner deal done. i hope he goes now. Who will be coming in ? criste knows. Panic buys at the end, jenas, cole and zamora or timed to perfection buys, keane, ireland and flamini. i hope mon starts getting them in soon |
frem
said:
|
... Aston Villa are the confirmed favourites to land Manchester City midfielder Stephen Ireland however it is not known whether the playmaker will be part of any deal involving James Milner leaving Villa Park. |
frem
said:
|
... ive just watched avtv and everyone looks happy. beye, davies, milner,and sid were or smilling. really if we can keep them together and just add ireland and keane, are squad would be very good with lots of options and competition |
kohoutek
said:
 |
... NRC=good engine, fast, breaks up play, can't pass, and obviously stupid enough to tell MON to f*ck off. He can stay, but needs to be used in a five-man midfield so he can lay the ball off to someone who can pass. LYoung=to be honest, so long since I've seen him play. He seemed alright, and I know he offers more going forward than Cuellar. There was the family death, the defense playing well without him...Something here still doesn't add up. The fact I'm reading the move to Liverpool is off because of "family reasons" maybe says it all. Course, don't know whether he'd get a game there, but he'd be making good money to have a nice seat watching a big side play. Carew/Heskey: Heskey is more athletic, works harder, has better touch, falls over. Carew is a better goal scorer, less flexible, slower, lazier. If we can get Carew interested and fit on a regular basis, he's worth carrying, but I don't think he's fast enough, agile enough, skilled enough to play upfront on his own. Would like to see Heskey go, play with Gabby or Fonz up front on their own, Ash in the hole. Carew brought on when we go 4-4-2, are playing a big side, chasing the game, etc. Which means it will be Carew and Gabby again. Maybe Fonz and Carew on occasion. |
dingbat
said:
 |
... frem- You would "look happy" if you had just had £35000 go in your bank account! Especally for doing nowt! |
kohoutek
said:
|
... Apparently the Mirror (I know) is saying Hodgson wants Petrov to replace Mascherano for £7m, and that Luke Young wants a pay-off from Villa before moving because he'd be on lower wages at Liverpool. |
bass
said:
 |
... Gabby is not fit to clean big johns boots! he is so average that if it wasn't for his speed he would have been playing for wasall last night!!! |
.vogra
said:
 |
... Carew is one of our top 3 players IMO, he's our best striker and folkall point of our strike force, without him up front we are completly toothless...he must stay, my strike force to start the season would be The Fonz and Carew.. |
Greg Davillain1887
said:
|
... gabby is a class striker, and because he is blessed with that pace he is always premiership quality, is getting better i bet he'll get 15 prem goals next season and break 20 in all competitions, itl be great in the europa league to see the kids get vital experience and if they shine they will get their premiership opportunity, its a pity we fell at the first hurdle last season for that reason alone |
MoodyVilla
said:
 |
... Great article, I am hugely inclined to agree in terms of options and ability. My worry is age and fitness, Carew has a recurring back injury and an indifferent attitude at times and Heskey despite all his good points just doesn't get enough goals. I have been banging the Carlton Cole drum for a long time and would ideally like to see us pick him up for £9m-£12m. He has the goal potential and close control of Carew and the physical ability and positioning of Heskey and would definitely have gone to the world cup had he been fit. He'd pick up where those two leave off in a season or two and we should be getting him now before someone else does. I've been saying for a while we should be looking at offloading Shorey, Osbourne, Beye/Young, Sidwell and Salifou and absolutely no one else, i'd only consider losing Heskey if we bought another target man in as we need one to play 4-4-2 and Carew will miss 20 games through injury this year. Delfouneso is bound to play more games this season and he's been progressed in exactly the right way. I still think it will only be in europe and the cups as he is still a litlle green for the league and needs to beef up. I don't believe he 'must' be played and the longer he is at the club the higher chance there is of him staying when he starts attracting attention from spam city. |
mickey86
said:
 |
... in an ideal world we would have both ireland and milner in the centre of midfield. young-milner-petrov-ireland-downing i can see milner coming back here in 2 years and id welcome him back. but for the time being i hope the transfer hurrys up and goes through. |
mickey86
said:
|
... as for saying carew deserves another chance - i wasnt aware that hed already had his last chance? have i missed something? cus when hes fit he gererally plays. |
MoodyVilla
said:
|
... Simeon, have you seen Luke Young train every week for 18 months. If you have then I take everything you say about him as given. If not then i'll go with the manager. |
McParland
said:
 |
... Deffinatey want to see big john carrew playing for us this season he is unplayable at times hes got everything height, strenght, and skill but sometimes lets himself and the fans down by not peforming to his full potential.So get out there john and show everyone what a smashing player you are, and no doubt by doing so will go down as a true villa park legend. |
blake0121
said:
 |
... kohoutek did u say HESKEY is more athletic and has a better touch than CAREW ARE YOU FOR REAL |
Chiefy
said:
 |
...Milner deal looks off – From someone who apprantley knows stuff or someone over at the citeh blog, |
Simeon
said:
|
... MoodyVilla I saw him over the course of one season, when he was our best defender and arguably our best performer. I also saw him on a few of the occasions when he played last season, and he performed to a decent standard - and a very good standard if you consider that he wasn't playing regularly. On the basis of what I saw, it was obvious to me that he improved the team whenever he played. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if, had he not played against Chelsea, we'd have shipped double figures. You're more than welcome to go with the judgement of our manager, although I would hope you would be capable of making up your own mind. But just consider this point, which is perhaps the most important point of all. If our manager decided that, after paying £6m for a player, that he wasn't capable of doing a job after just one season's service, who's looking silly? And Young's not the only example. So go ahead and trust our manager's judgement, and you too can be a fully paid-up member of the Silly Sect. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Chiefy I've had the feeling this transfer won't go through for quite a while now. If it hasn't already happened, I'd expect us to set a deadline by which Man City have to meet our asking price, which should they fail to meet will result in Milner staying, at least until January. It will be interesting to see who Man City's other targets are (although looking at their squad as it stands, it already looks good enough to challenge strongly for the title). More interesting still will be how Milner performs for us next season. I don't doubt his professionalism for a moment, but I wouldn't be surprised if he failed to reach the stndard he set last season, either because he wasn't quite 100%, or because the team as a whole didn't play as well. |
kohoutek
said:
|
... blake0121 0 yes, indeed. Not saying he's a better player overall, but he is more agile and flexible, probably faster, covers much more ground, and is better with the ball at his feet. I think he's a better athlete. However, JC is a better goalscorer, hands down. Obviously better in the air, much better at putting things on target. He's a poacher. In terms of pure athleticism, I'd expect Heskey to beat JC on most measures. That said, I'd rather have JC playing. He scores, Heskey doesn't. And his size/presence presents more problems for an opponent. |
Trinity1981
said:
 |
... The main point of the article is that with Carew looking fit and sharp then we don't need to look at signing a new striker. It is central midfield were we really need some flair. If we can sell some players I think we should try and get Parker (he says I wants to go) or David Bentley. Oh and I wouldn't mind Gareth Barry back especially if Liverpool want Petrov. |
blake0121
said:
|
... kohoutek at least we can agree that we would both rather play Carew over Heskey but your still over-rating Heskey: covers much more ground I agree with you there, but its pretty pointless when you see know result from doing so. better with the ball at his feet 100% disagree with you, Heskey in his prime wasn't better with the ball at his feet let alone the Heskey you see today, Carew on a good day the ball just sticks to his feet like glue don't believe me try find the Walsall game |
blake0121
said:
|
... Trinity1981 I wouldn't mind Gareth Barry back either but its not gonna happen not with the wages his on at man city (but you never know they might release him 1 day ) |
TheDiamond
said:
|
... More rumours on the Milner saga. Take it as you want. http://urloo.com/hpE0 This is the same paper that refuses to let go of the Ashley Young to Spurs rumour, thinks Petrov might go to Liverpool and brought us the Heskey to Blackburn pork pie. |
woody
said:
 |
... forget the john carew is he good enough crap.open your bloody eyes have you seen mr heskey play the last two seasons? we could do alot worse. still no signings then i see or sales or even loans. stick heskey coker and sidwell on ebay see what we get. |
Simeon
said:
|
... Trinity1981 I was reading an article about Scott Parker earlier, and it mentioned that Parker had been signed by West Ham for £7m three years ago. Three years ago, we signed Reo-Coker for £8m. Maybe we signed Reo-Coker because our manager rated him more highly. Or maybe we signed Reo-Coker because his wage demands weren't as high as Parker (which I think is definitely a factor). I think talk of us signing Parker is crazy. He'd destroy the wage structure at the club at a time when we are supposed to be trying to get the wage bill under control. And he would command a ridiculous transfer fee that we couldn't possibly afford unless we sold Milner - and even then we'd probably be looking at well over half of the Milner money being used to sign Parker. Bentley would be a very likely signing if we sold Milner (although this itself is looking more and more unlikely). I think he's a decent player, but I don't believe he'd work as a central midfielder in a 4-4-2. Meaning he'd probably take Downing's place in the team, unless Downing was shifted inside, though he'd be even less suited to central midfield in my opinion. As for Gareth Barry coming back, it won't happen. He's an excellent player and Mancini realises this having worked with him for more than two minutes. He'll have an important role to play at Man City this season, even if he gets a rest now and then as the squad is rotated. But even if he were to be kicked out of Man City, we couldn't afford his wages, and I don't think he'd be interested in joining a club with no prospect of winning anything. Our midfield is lacking in flair, and it's lacking in bite. But at least we can be sure that whoever plays will run around alot. Or at least a bit if they're a part-time DJ. |
mickey86
said:
|
... Mikey18 - did anyone see my comment on the previous post saying villa could swap ashley young for bentley, keane and jenas. it got dismissed immediately - but check the story that the mirror are going with today http://www.mirrorfootball.co.u...41395.html looks like the journalists at the mirror read the villa blog |
william mcgonagall
said:
 |
... Carew is our best striker .. Love him or hate him he does the job better than any other forward we have .. Heskey doesn't deserve to wear the Villa colours (or England) I don't care if Mon and Capello rate him, my personal opinion is Villa would be a better tam without him . |
SCOTT1
said:
|
... this swap deal better be b****x!if a.young leaves villa me,my brother and all the boys leave villa till mon goes!!!  |
Chiefy
said:
|
...Luke Young's proposed move from Aston Villa to Liverpool is off because he would have had to take a £10,000-a-week pay cut greed take over, enjoy it on our bench Luke !!! this swap deal better be b****x!if a.young leaves villa me,my brother and all the boys leave villa till mon goes!!! the rumour was started on here if you go back through the comments |
SCOTT1
said:
|
... well chiefy it adds complete credibility to blogs causing trouble because its been on the radio this morning! |
Villa_Chris
said:
 |
...well chiefy it adds complete credibility to blogs causing trouble because its been on the radio this morning! Which is why the blog should be a little more on the positive side and not looking at the negatives all the time maybe? |
Andy
said:
|
... I thought the default positive posters had stopped mentioning about those people that did not by default post positive comments. I felt a bit of an understanding that we are all Villans whatever our viewpoint coming on. I think even taglor was staring to be accepted and he'd mellowed. Villans United |
rocky5
said:
 |
...SCOTT1 said:anyone would think that this is the ONLY villa blog on the WORLD WIDE WEB |
Chiefy
said:
|
... MON commenting on the home form of the team, perhaps if the players didnt have to worry about the fans turning they would play with a little more freedom, just a thought |
Carlos is a centre back!!
said:
|
... Always the fans fault. How about the manager and players earning their money for a change and doing the job they're supposed to and stop looking for excuses. Decent managers/players step upto the plate when things get hard and just get on with it and show their class. |
Alan fron Aussie
said:
 |
... Hi all, just a question that I would like to ask of you. Would you think that if we sold AY and got the 3 players mentioned from spurs and then got ireland plus say 20m for milner and spent it on a couple more players that it would make the team a better one ???? just thought i would throw it around. |
Lew Chatterleys lover
said:
 |
... I suggest we all go to the first game against West Ham wearing ANYONE BUT HESKEY t shirts, the guy is an idle, goal shy carthorse who should never have been signed in the first place, I'm sick of watching him limp round the centre circle, falling over, and contributing nothing. For those who prefer him over Carew you are deluded, long live King John ! |
Andy
said:
|
... Chris...A blog or forum or whatever thrives when it has diversity. If every post was sugar coated just for those, like yourself that just seem to want a positive lsant on everything, then this blog would probably die. To prove my point on this, look what happened when Damian left O****e. They writers that took over did not use controversy or questioning posts about or club. It was all positive stuff. Loom what happened. It sank faster than Heskey wearing lead boots...! The other thing is that theres generally three types of people on here. Those that are just positive by default and believe almost anything the club says or does, those that are by default negative that complain agout everything no matter what positive things actually happen and then there are those that are positive about Villa and love Villa deeply, but they are prepared to ask questions. |
Chiefy
said:
|
... Andy -- then there are those that love the club and support the club, ask questions during closed season but support during the season because they believe it to be best for the club !!  |
mon 4-5-1
said:
 |
...The other thing is that theres generally three types of people on here. Those that are just positive by default and believe almost anything the club says or does, those that are by default negative that complain agout everything no matter what positive things actually happen and then there are those that are positive about Villa and love Villa deeply, but they are prepared to ask questions. Andy - there are also those that are frustrated, because they feel that after years being in the wilderness this was a golden opportunity for genuine progress for our club. The sad part is it has been waisted by O'Neil, with every passing moment,due to his actions. I count myself in that group.
He is still our player, and it is not his fault he was benched last season. Believe it or not he was one of our top performers season before last. |
Chiefy
said:
|
... mon 4-5-1 -- no it is not his fault that cuellar played out of position to form one of the strongest defences in the league |
taglor
said:
 |
... Of course Harry would be happy with that he needs to get rid for the new 25 man rule, it would make sense as he seems to plan things before the season unlike our potato headed manager that falls out with every player we have |
taglor
said:
|
... LOl im sure he would. Mind you I fell out with myself this morning for forgetting milk last night, couldn't have my cereals could I, had to have a quiet word with myself like. Ps I am drinking yorkshire tea out of my villa mug right now, thus proving I am a massive Villa fan! |
John Salter
said:
|
... According to Sky Sports, Petrov wants NRC and Sidwell to stay at the club!! Fulham are favourites to sign Luke Young now as he's turned down Liverscum. He's more likely to go back to London, so he'll probably be gone by the start of the season and he'll have the same sponsor |
Villa_Chris
said:
|
...Ps I am drinking yorkshire tea out of my villa mug right now, thus proving I am a massive Villa fan! You are officially Andy's favourite villa fan Andy I agree, I'm not saying it should be all positive, but a little more on the positive side as the majority of the posts are a little too negative. I too get fed up of the same old bull that comes from managers and players week after week...biggin' up the opposition before a game etc. |
mon 4-5-1
said:
|
... Chiefy – Impressive defensive record is based on the fact that Dunne had been bought into the centre of defence, to replace a half fit Curtis Davies. He provided some experience,and stability. It is similar to Rio Ferdinand , Vidic partnership, and if you look at most successful defensive units, the foundation is always based on the centre pairing they are key. If the above was not true, then why do other TOP CLUBS not play there centre backs in the full back role? I think this is wishful thinking, that we are more cohesive team playing Cueller out of position at right back. Even the player has come out and said he would prefer to play in the middle, what more evidence does the Cueller at right back brigrade need? Anyway if you feel Cueller makes us a stronger denfensive unit, we can hope O’Neil will play Curtis Davies at left back and bench Warnock this season. Then hopefully he can try and ship out Warnock. Actually thinking about it why not play Collins and any other Central Defenders we have in the middle of the park, surely if will make us an even stronger defensive unit. |
td
said:
 |
... 'given our manager's inability to find bargains', Simeon milner 28 mil young 28 mill whats the profit on those offers ? think about it, oneil is the only way forward, trust in him |
Chiefy
said:
|
... Mon 4-5-1 - opta stats had cuellar not far from dunne and he was out of position, I am not saying he is the best but i dont think he gets enough credit |
RichT
said:
 |
... What do you guys make of this from todays Guardian?- Having made front-page news earlier this week for offering to find a nice sanctuary for para-sailing Russian donkey Anapka, Harry Redknapp is showing no such compassion to David Bentley, Jermaine Jenas and Robbie Keane, who he appears ready to ship out to Aston Villa in exchange for Ashley Young. Having stuck one of their comedy £30m price-tags on a winger so mediocre he couldn't even get in the England World Cup squad, Villa were obviously hoping to ward off potential suitors, but clearly hadn't bargained for 'Arry's initiative and imagination in the face of transfer market adversity. Loose Young - Bad. Get Keane and Bentley (they can keep Jenas)- Good? |
John Salter
said:
|
... Trinity1981 - How do you think Barry would be received at Villa Park if he came back? The chances are he will be one of the players that Mancini considers getting rid off, the only reason he'll keep him is because he's English, home grown and a tick in the box with the new regulations. Scott Parker - I doubt very much if David Sullivan would want him to leave East Pork, especially now that he's re-iterated it to the Hammers fans. Would he add any bite to our team anyway? Only if we lost Petrov and it would be like for like. |
taglor
said:
|
... I love harry for loving animals and offering to look after the donkey. He's also looking at setting up an animal sanctuary, this makes him my no1 choice for manager now and it even makes me slightly soft towards spurs. Ps None of that is sarcastic, I just like animals more than people |
Andy
said:
|
...Must point out that it's Yorkshire tea in my mug in Dorset. Only the best will do tags....Already on my third mug of Yorkshire. |
taglor
said:
|
... Haha, I just wish I could afford the holy grail "Yorkshire Gold"! Yep, animals are always there, so are people but the difference is you don't always want the humans to be there. |
Arbee
said:
 |
... Ashley Young is doing a live webchat at 1.30pm today....is this wise given his track record? |
Luckynumber7
said:
|
... all the boys look like they're having a good time if you see the pics from training in portugal. things like that make me believe that all we be fine when the season starts; it's 50% in the players head as to whether we do well or not anyone seen today's latest rumour nonsense? Jermaine, Robbie and Bentley - for Ashley young. Hmmm - can't see much milage in that one |
Villa_Chris
said:
|
... For those who don't follow Twitter.... Damo's post just Ashley Young aka Webcam is doing a live webchat at 1.30pm today. Really, is this advisable given his track record? Only playing Ashley xxx |
Villa_Chris
said:
|
...He added: "Can someone tell me why we have an international week on the week of the season starting? Harry has a point here... Its a joke. Who wants to see England play so soon after such a s**te world cup? I certainly don't! |
Aero-4-Villa
said:
 |
... ^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "...and then im gonna strangle martin... until he lowers his bloody asking price!" |
John Salter
said:
|
... Villa_Chris - I agree totally and Harrys right, it's a joke. Personally I hope no-one turns up to watch. Capello should've been sacked and the likes of Lampard banned from the team. |
Villa_Chris
said:
|
... International summer over....all fans are bothered about now are their club team. Like you say; hope no-one turns up. Stupid idea. Really gets my back up. |
Trinity1981
said:
|
... Lew Chatterleys Lover first game against West Ham wearing ANYONE BUT HESKEY t shirts These are the type are comments that really annoy me. Any player who wears the Villa shirt should get our full backing when the season starts. The last thing we want is at the first game of the season our own fans slagging off one of our own players. So let's back every Villa player during every game this season. We have the chance to get off to a flying start this season with six games that are all ones we can win. If you are planning to slag any player off Lew Chatterleys Lover then please give the game a miss. |
Chiefy
said:
|
...Any player who wears the Villa shirt should think themselves lucky because we wont have one |
taglor
said:
|
... Yeah we should have even cheered for alpay and baros  If only we had a billionaire owner we could sign some good players.................... |
Luckynumber7
said:
|
... Any player who wears the Villa shirt should think themselves lucky because we wont have one and as long as they're under 25! |
Chiefy
said:
|
...Any player who wears the Villa shirt should |
John Salter
said:
|
... Trinity1981 - Although I would rather not see Emile Heskey playing as a striker for Villa, I think your right and it wouldn't do anyone and especially the club any good if on the first day of the season we all turned up like that. If Emile plays anywhere, MON should try him in midfield when Petrovs out. With his passing, strength and ability (when he's not falling over) I think he'd be good in the middle. |
Chiefy
said:
|
... Lionel Heskey is a legend !!! Only one lionel Heskey who used to by s**te but now he's alright walking in a heskey wonderland |
mickey86
said:
|
... also, im 25 next year, does this mean that this seasons shirt will be the last one i can wear? |
john doyle
said:
 |
... i wish all you marmetts would wake up out there Luke Young is the best full back at villa park he dont wing like warnock or baybe he can pass the ball unlike carlos if he was good enough for liverpool why aint he good enough for us 2 seasons ago he was our 2nd best player behind the great martin Laurson class is permant all it needs is for the great dictator to give him a chance same for NCR at least he can last 90 mins unlike his PETrov who can only play for 60 mins tops and is without the WORST captain this great club as ever had there is no doubt in any villa fans mind even the marmetts that our captain should be the dunny monster all day long how can petrov urge players on in the last 20 mins he aint got no breath left to walk never mind talk and hesky should be paid up his contact to leave same as sidwell as these 2 should never and i repete never wear the shirt again |
Chiefy
said:
|
...also, im 25 next year, does this mean that this seasons shirt will be the last one i can wear? yes |
TheDiamond
said:
|
... Have a look at this. Wasn't the idea of offloading Davies to Spurs started here also and again this was originally printed by the Mirror Group. http://aggbot.com/docs/link.ph...&r=tw&c=36 |
Chiefy
said:
|
...Lionel Heskey is a legend !!! Irony |
Andybob
said:
 |
... I would truly love to see Heskey sold and no one bought unless another player is sold. I would love to see us play a 4-5-1 with Young and Albrighton on the wings, Milner behind the striker with Reo-Coker/Sidders and Petrov. I would truly love to see Carew start with Gabby coming off the bench as we know Carew can actually score, but Gabby does seem to score more in the first few minutes. With the Fonz and Weihmann (who I think is better than the Fonz even with an average Cup with Austria) |
Write comment
This content has been locked. You can no longer post any comments.
Social Aston Villa Blog
NewsNow is the source for absolutely all the latest football news. For the latest Aston Villa news 24/7 click here.
Transfer Window Watch
Players In
Brett HolmanPlayers Out
Emile Heskey, Carlos Cuellar, Brad GuzanFeatured on AV Central
Get the latest browser
It's not that IE sucks, it's that IE isn't the best, so we suggest you use another browser. Try Firefox or Chrome and you'll have a better time online. But if you must use IE, please use the latest version.
Lucozade Sport on Twitter
Lucozade Sport loves football as much as we do. They’ve been fuelling Aston Villa players for over 15 years and using this expertise to support amateur footballers across the country. Visit their Twitter page for videos and expert advice.
The Villa Blog on FHM
FHM have chosen their favourite football blogs and chosen The Villa Blog as the number one Aston Villa blog! Click the badge to read the article.
Get your online avatar
This blog is Gravatar friendly. That means, if you use Gravatar and leave a comment using the same email address on both sites, we'll show your avatar. Click the Gravatar logo to get one.
Submit your opinion
Have something you feel strongly about? We are now accepting submissions for inclusion in the blog. Click here to contact us and we will send you instructions on how you can submit your articles that might get published on the number one Aston Villa Blog.
More AVFC Blog Posts
- Two cows on top of a hill, one called Paul, one called Randy
- A definite no from Solskjaer and time to move on
- Will it be Solskjaer, will it be someone else, we have to wait to see
- Is that a no from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to Aston Villa job?
- Ole Gunnar Solskjaer set to be named Aston Villa manager today?
- Transfer window open, no manager and silly season starts
- Birds flying high you know how I feel: Time for a bite
- Alex McLeish: Going, going, finally gone
- Norwich 2 Aston Villa 0: McLeish to go and Faulkner to step down
- Aston Villa at Norwich for final game of season
Login