Seeing as it's summer, limited banter and an experiment

A lot of names are going to get linked with the job and there is going to be a lot of speculation but as I sort of tried to point out the other day, we just have to wait as it really, probably, isn't going to happen any time soon.

It should happen soon but it sort of feels like they had all their eggs in one basket and now that I've written the above, it will happen on Tuesday, but I just hope they don't default to The Faulkner Option (TFO), of 'must have Premier League experience and be someone that seems to like me'.

If I were to take a guess, I'd say forget Martinez, Lambert or Rodgers and think more about managers that bring something else to the table in terms of pedigree and stature. You could put the likes of Benetiz on that list for what he has to offer, but I think he is too old. I know 52 is the new 42 but we want someone that is actually in his early 40's who has his career in front of him.

Don't get me wrong, Benetiz still has a career in front of him but you just have the feeling that he is already connected to a club and that he would only ever be temporary. We want someone that will come to us and make Aston Villa his club and that takes time and you need to still have that fire in your belly.

I also don't want to get tagged as an ageist but I think you know what I mean. We can go temporary and not guarantee anything or risk it on someone that can fall in love with the club, also with no guarantees, but if it comes off he'll be more inclined to stay.

Villa Banter

I'm going round in circles, because there is nothing to really write about that you don't know and I'm trying to stay away from speculation. So, because of that and because it is summer, I've set up this discussion page for Villa banter.

It is an experiment and the people that register or use it will be the ones that guide it. It is looking for sensible governance and should be accessible for everyone, not just those under 25, but mostly for those under 50 - so keep it clean, make sensible suggestions and above all, try and keep it fun.

There are lots of forums for Aston Villa fans - I sort of want this to be a fairly neutral place, so I've left it completely clean - even in terms of design. As long as something is sensible and not too crazy, we can play with it and it also means, because there isn't going to be a post every day during the summer and it might very well be only once or twice a week, there is somewhere to go that can be less talking about the post and talking about what you want to talk about.

So on that, click here to visit Villa Banter, login with your Facebook or Twitter account or create an account (if you use the same email address you used here and you use Gravatar, your avatar will follow you) and have fun.