should we really be spending £24million on one player??

[German James]

Yes we should be. There's too much ridiculous money in the Premiership, but I've come to the conclusion that anyone serious about competing at the top end is unfortuantely going to have to pay for it. Our present strikers are pretty average, and Bent is (sorry, would be!) a cracking buy!

[magic monks]

If we pay £24m then that means all of the 'Villa are doing brilliantly' bonuses have kicked in, so yes he's worth it. What the Villa world doesn't need right now are 3 more Sidwells, all on top dollar wages. 

[Concrete John]

Two things:-
1.  Despite where we are in the league right now, the sides we were challenging, and hopt to be again soon, would do this so so should we.
2.  It's a position we have cover in, so if bent did get injured we wouldn't exactly be stuck playing Gabby/Heskey/the Fonz.   

[Risso]

Yes.

One class player to make the difference, rather than three players costing £8m and all earning £60K a week.

[Rip Van We Go Again]

Yes.

One class player to make the difference, rather than three players costing £8m and all earning £60K a week.

You've pretty much described O'Neill's transfer policy.

[Mazrim]

Yes.

One class player to make the difference, rather than three players costing £8m and all earning £60K a week.

You've pretty much described O'Neill's transfer policy.

One for starters, two for the bench.

[UsualSuspect]

Should we spend big money on 1 player?

Yes without a doubt

For too long we were tatting about with players in the 4 - 7 million range and for the most part they have been shit.

A big marquee signing is what we need, it shows our intentions

[Rip Van We Go Again]

Yes.

One class player to make the difference, rather than three players costing £8m and all earning £60K a week.

You've pretty much described O'Neill's transfer policy.

One for starters, two for the bench.

More like one for starters and two to ignore and act as if they don't exist.

[midgeavfc79]

We should be under no illusions, we will be lucky to get 3 points out of 9 with our next three fixtures, due to the way we have been playing.
Once you are down there it is even harder to get out of it, January could leave us stranded! even if we have a decent run in to April.
By bringing a natural goalscorer in we will add firepower to a team who seem to lack ideas around the 18 yard box, I personally wouldn't pay more than 12 mill but in terms of money saved by avoiding relegation then paying over the odds will save Mr Lerner lots of pennies in the long term.
No pressuer then for Mr Bent if or when he signs.....

[El Hurricane]

He is going to be worth it.Am I right in saying only Drogba and Rooney have scored more goals since 2005,he's the kind of player we need,be nice to walk out of Villa Park with a smile on my face rather than a scowl.

[willywombat]

He is going to be worth it.Am I right in saying only Drogba and Rooney have scored more goals since 2005,he's the kind of player we need,be nice to walk out of Villa Park with a smile on my face rather than a scowl.

You are indeed ccrrect

[El Hurricane]

He is going to be worth it.Am I right in saying only Drogba and Rooney have scored more goals since 2005,he's the kind of player we need,be nice to walk out of Villa Park with a smile on my face rather than a scowl.

You are indeed ccrrect

Well that's an endorsement right away,you get the feeling that when were involved in big games like Man U in the Carling Cup Final Bent is the kind of player that can make a difference and give us the belief we can at the very least compete!

[Pat McMahon]

Bent is far too expensive for my liking and I reckon the £10m or so Sunderland paid for him is about the right price, but at least he has proven that he can score goals at this level for Sunderland and Charlton (I can't remember his record at Spurs), neither of whom were great teams. I have felt for a while that he would be a decent fit for us, especially with the number of balls we sling into the box, so let's hope he comes to us asap.

One potential problem I see is that the £18m - 24m price tag  can be an incredible burden on a player when they are out of form and lacking confidence (look at those Birtles and Davenport acquisitions Man U made in the 70s and 80s and our own dear SVC), and I think fans of any club are less forgiving of the big buys - "he's only here for the money", "he doesn't care about the club" etc. And if my memory serves me well our history of very expensive signings is not overburdened with success. If he comes I really hope he gets off to a flying start to avoid that type of pressure building up.

I must admit when I knew that GH would be dipping into the transfer market I expected more unexpected Makouns than Bents, so top marks to him for keeping me on my toes....

I do wish we could hack into Harry's top secret address book of agents, though - £18m plus in a season when Van de Vaart cost £7m is absolutely crazy.

[Simba]

Yes. And about time too.

We always do well with a great Centre forward/striker. Pongo, Hitchens, even Lochhead, Dwight, Andy Grey and so on.

Let's just hope GH can make this work. No sarcasm I really hope he can get this club jumping.

Well done Randy and all concerned. Maybe, just maybe the Villa are back!

[Diablo67]

Hey....I only wondered ;o)

Guess I am in a minority.
As I said, Bent is a good player........but £18-24M........doubt it.........really hope I'm wrong if we get him and we go back to our rightful place as the best team in the midlands.

Would also like to see Benzema come to us too