Turning points ?

[eamonn]

Us ''strengthening'' the squad with MON's reliable old signings, in this case Emile.
And a week or two later Arsenal buying Arshavin despite them missing the deadline cos of the snow clogging up the fax machine at Lancaster Gate or somesuch guff.

[hawkeye]

for me it was the 3 games including everton FAC, moscow and Chelsea, it was pretty obvious that we had run out of gas in the match that we won at Bburn, instead of rotating then we lost the next 3 followed by the draw against stoke, the players that he had used were on thier knees so he panicks for moscow, it was all too late MON blew it then,

[DeKuip]

The Abu Dhabi takeover over of Man City knocked the stuffing out of Randy's plans. It came at just the wrong time for us, not only because they lured two of our best players away and the message that sent to their team-mates and our supporters, but the realisation that with their limitless amount of money it was another club we realistically had no chance of competing with. Losing to them at the end of 09/10 was the day we stopped being Champions League dreamers for a long time to come.

[cdbearsfan]

Six league titles and five FA Cups in just over a quarter of a century. Plans in place to expand Villa Park capacity to 130,000.

Then some inconsiderate bastard shoots Franz Ferdinand.

We've never been (consistently) as good since.

[olofmilosevic]

I vote for people that insist on finding something to be depressed about AND THEN trying to bring everyone else down with them!!!!

[lovejoy]

MON leaving. With him at the club I believed. The managers we have attracted since then don't have the same buzz.

[LeeB]

MON leaving. With him at the club I believed. The managers we have attracted since then don't have the same buzz.

The horse had bolted by then, been caught, and was being processed at the glue factory.

[russon]

MON leaving. With him at the club I believed. The managers we have attracted since then don't have the same buzz.

Agreed

[Neil Hawkes]

MON leaving. With him at the club I believed. The managers we have attracted since then don't have the same buzz.

Agreed

Disagree........McLeish will have a better record than MON before he departs, the only people that seem to have a problem with him is some of the fans - the club & players don't.

Feel free to throw it back in my face if it's a disaster, but don't be shy in acknowledging the success.

To come back on topic - Vidic staying on the pitch in the cup - proved there and then that by hook or crook, we would be prevented in our attempts to compete with the big boys.

[Chris Smith]

MON leaving. With him at the club I believed. The managers we have attracted since then don't have the same buzz.

Agreed

Disagree........McLeish will have a better record than MON before he departs, the only people that seem to have a problem with him is some of the fans - the club & players don't.

Feel free to throw it back in my face if it's a disaster, but don't be shy in acknowledging the success.

To come back on topic - Vidic staying on the pitch in the cup - proved there and then that by hook or crook, we would be prevented in our attempts to compete with the big boys.

That's a bold prediction, Neil. I'd like to think you're right but to a certain extent it depends on how the finances pan out over the next couple of years.

Stoke again for me. We were coasting with a few minutes to go, they'd hardly troubled us all game. I think the team lost momentum and the players individually lost confidence in our ability to do it afterwards.

Also, Lerner putting a brake on the spending. I'm not arguing the rights and wrongs of it but it changed the feel of the club.

[Ads]

Stoke.

Some how, the worst side I'd ever seen at Villa Park, said without hyperbole, managed to fuck it all up.

[ktvillan]

MON leaving. With him at the club I believed. The managers we have attracted since then don't have the same buzz.

Agreed

Me too - I believed we would eternally finish around 6th to 8th and be watching turgid 70s style anti-football ad infinitum.   

Real turning point was the day Randy decided MON would have control of all playing matters including deciding on the wages.  No doubt a wise decision given MON's lengthy successful background in accounting, budgeting and negotiating.

[London Villan]

Stoke... at the end of the week we had.


I can remember my mate telling Villa to go for it, for the goal difference, but moaning at me for telling them to waste the last five minutes!

[john e]

The signing  of M Harewood for me,
 I remember it well in shear disbelief, as daft as it seems i lost an awfull lot of trust in MON after that,  not really a turning point for Villa as a whole but for me things would never the same

[Neil Hawkes]

That's a bold prediction, Neil. I'd like to think you're right but to a certain extent it depends on how the finances pan out over the next couple of years.

Bold it is, I just have a feeling this appointment is right for us.
I will admit that when he was linked with, then first appointed, I though WTF - but since then, from the first press conference, from the reactions of the limited squad and all his meetings with supporters, press etc, he knows the club, he wants the club to do well and most importantly, the club appears to come first.
Our progress will probably not be spectacular, but I expect it to be steady and year on year improvement. Could have all the makings of a manager that stays with the club for beyond 5 years and while we may not impose upon the giddy heights of continuous Champions League football, (unless that particular circus implodes), I do think we will achieve regular silverware and European qualification.
Before anyone asks...........I'm still taking the tablets.