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Author Topic: Super Clubs  (Read 22029 times)

Online dave.woodhall

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #30 on: September 09, 2011, 11:42:25 AM »
I suppose the divide is between those who need to balance the books and those to whom money is no object.  Those I'd class in that 2nd category are the Manchester clubs and Chelsea only.

That's about right. We can say what we like to the contrary, but we aren't a 'big' club to anyone except ourselves. 

Online pauliewalnuts

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #31 on: September 09, 2011, 11:59:11 AM »
It's sad to admit but Villa, barring a drastic change of rules or takeover, are never going to be able to win the league again. It's just not possible.

Clubs like us, Everton, and plenty others who have had success in the past, can forget about challenging for titles.

It does make you wonder what the point of it all is.

Online dave.woodhall

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #32 on: September 09, 2011, 12:00:44 PM »
It's sad to admit but Villa, barring a drastic change of rules or takeover, are never going to be able to win the league again. It's just not possible.

Clubs like us, Everton, and plenty others who have had success in the past, can forget about challenging for titles.

It does make you wonder what the point of it all is.

Probably the same as the point has always been for 70-odd clubs. The difference now is that it's 80-odd.

Offline ktvillan

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #33 on: September 09, 2011, 12:00:49 PM »
It's true what he says but I don't see why he has to keep saying things like this - "managing expectations" I suppose, telling us we can forget trying to crack the top 4. Oh well, dream dead.  Sad to think that  even in the dark days of division 3 we had a chance of recovering and becoming champions of Europe, whereas now we have no chance at all unless the Sultan of Brunei and Warren Buffet rock up on our doorstep with their hands in their wallets. 

Online dicedlam

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #34 on: September 09, 2011, 12:01:35 PM »
We know it's true, so do the players, I just don't like hearing the manager say it.

You approach it in two ways. Be positive without being unrealistic or be negative and like any manager in any business your staff end up being de-motivated and will consider other options.

It's this sort of attitude, coupled with the style and approach to the first few games that confirm my, and many others, reservations about having this guy in charge.

I feel inclined to agree with this.  I think, given the climate of football at the moment and the fact that we are not in a position to financially compete with certain clubs, I would rather we had appointed a real Villa man to lead us through these unchartered territories.   My big worry about McLeish is that he is indoctrinated into this present day system of football, a paid up Fergie disciple who buys into the Sky TV perception of how football works.  He's part and parcel of the "industry", if you will.  One of the things I look for in a Villa manager is pride in our club and a bullishness.  I don't think McLeish has the nous to think outside the box and lift the club, to take the way the "industry" currently is and to say to hell with it, I can still beat the lot of them. 

Calling other clubs "superclubs" isn't the best way to motivate Aston Villa players or supporters, in my view.  It's one thing being realistic and saying other clubs have more resources than us at the moment, but calling them superclubs immediately gives them the upper hand over us when we get to play them.  Placing other clubs on a pedestal and making us sound inferior is just downright poor leadership in my view.  There's a fine line between calling other clubs superclubs and running on the pitch with an Arsenal shirt for Thierry Henry to sign.

Agree, 'superclubs' was a poor choice of words to use.

Even though he is probably right in what he say's, it sends out all the wrong messages to its fan base and players.

Was it last season he made remarks along the same line in saying ''Aston Villa are on a completely different agenda to us'' while he was at the noses?

He's an honest straight forward bloke, but he should be careful with his choice of words.

Online Stu

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #35 on: September 09, 2011, 12:06:11 PM »
It's sad to admit but Villa, barring a drastic change of rules or takeover, are never going to be able to win the league again. It's just not possible.

Clubs like us, Everton, and plenty others who have had success in the past, can forget about challenging for titles.

It does make you wonder what the point of it all is.

Probably the same as the point has always been for 70-odd clubs. The difference now is that it's 80-odd.

Not for £40 a ticket though.

Online Brend'Watkins

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #36 on: September 09, 2011, 12:06:23 PM »
You can't really argue with what he said, but it does add to the feeling that we've given up and are resigned to making up the numbers. Even though results were shite under GH, at least he seemed (at times) to communicate the belief that we could become competitive without the money of the super clubs. I feel that we lost that sometime during the summer.

If that is the case and it probably is why so openly admit it?  It serves no purpose other than to take away all that we have left......hope.

As Billy Walker pointed out in his post it would be good to see some 'bulishness' coming from our manager.  We're not stupid, we know there are these super clubs ( a horrible expression isn't it) with better players than we have in almost all positions, we know they have the resources to keep adding to their squads too but that alone shouldn't be the signal for the white flag 3 games into the season. 

We shouldn't be openly considered as some lesser club by our own manager, it just doesn't need to be said.  I want to start seeing AM talking us up, telling the world how he is going to make us take on these clubs and strive to beat them, enough of this having your belly rubbed bollocks, start showing you're ready to compete with who ever, regardless.

Offline andrew08

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #37 on: September 09, 2011, 12:09:34 PM »
And another thing (grumpy old git mode) this non competitive time we're in is so bloody expensive to watch. I want my kids to go but in reality when they leave school they're going to have to have damm good jobs to afford it.

Online dave.woodhall

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #38 on: September 09, 2011, 12:10:33 PM »
It's sad to admit but Villa, barring a drastic change of rules or takeover, are never going to be able to win the league again. It's just not possible.

Clubs like us, Everton, and plenty others who have had success in the past, can forget about challenging for titles.

It does make you wonder what the point of it all is.

Probably the same as the point has always been for 70-odd clubs. The difference now is that it's 80-odd.

Not for £40 a ticket though.

That's a fair point but even though prices have rocketed in the past 20 years they've not had much effect on our attendances.

Offline Concrete John

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #39 on: September 09, 2011, 12:11:29 PM »
When Steve Keane said he wanted to take Blackburn into the Champions League, he was laughed at, and rightly so.  Are we really in all that different a position to them?

Offline Rigadon

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #40 on: September 09, 2011, 12:12:25 PM »
It's sad to admit but Villa, barring a drastic change of rules or takeover, are never going to be able to win the league again. It's just not possible.

Clubs like us, Everton, and plenty others who have had success in the past, can forget about challenging for titles.

It does make you wonder what the point of it all is.

Probably the same as the point has always been for 70-odd clubs. The difference now is that it's 80-odd.

Not for £40 a ticket though.

There's the rub!  Platinum prices for steel in our case and steel prices for copper lower down.  If we're cutting our cloth accordingly perhaps they could cut ticket prices?  Not going to happen is it.

You can't argue with what McLeish has said, it's just that the truth hurts. 

Online JJ-AV

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #41 on: September 09, 2011, 12:17:08 PM »
Don't hear Tottenham saying that, or are they a super club?

I admire McLeish's honesty, and I believe we're a year or two minimum from mounting a challenge again. But no one can convince me finishing in the top 4 isn't possible with a bit of clever investment.

Once you've got Champions League football it's all up to how you act on it. Spurs lost out this year, and are still yet to send big - but they've players like signed top-class players like Gallas, Modric, VDV and Adebayor in recent years.

I assume Redknapp will be off next Summer, wonder if they'll invest big and back a new manager then? I'd guess so and have another crack at breaking up the top 4.
« Last Edit: September 09, 2011, 12:19:08 PM by JJ-AV »

Offline VillaAlways

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #42 on: September 09, 2011, 12:20:58 PM »
Just watched the interview.Everything he said was spot on.We can't compete with these teams long term financially .He did however say we can compete with them on the pitch,when we play them.I am presuming this is the message he will pass onto the players when we do.

Online pauliewalnuts

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #43 on: September 09, 2011, 12:22:26 PM »
Spurs, I think, are realising that qualifying for the CL once is not enough, you have got to do it nigh-on year in, year out.

I think the situation we have now is that Liverpool have been on the slide for a while (revenues, small stadium, not in the CL) and are currently having one big roll of the dice to claw back what they've lost.

Spurs aren't going to be making the kind of investment necessary to buy year in, year out CL football.

Arsenal are really feeling the fact that there's a financial gulf between themselves and the top echelon of the English game.

I thikn we will have a scenario where Man United, Man City and Chelsea basically share the league titles, and this will go on until someone comes along and makes a vast investment in a club (and given that this has only ever happened in this country twice, it probably won't happen for a long time), or the rules change massively.

Effectively, we are getting a situation very similar to the Spanish league, where two clubs share all the silverware, and there's a massive gulf to the rest, except in our case it'll be three clubs.

Offline NeilH

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Re: Super Clubs
« Reply #44 on: September 09, 2011, 12:36:55 PM »
Spurs, I think, are realising that qualifying for the CL once is not enough, you have got to do it nigh-on year in, year out.

I think the situation we have now is that Liverpool have been on the slide for a while (revenues, small stadium, not in the CL) and are currently having one big roll of the dice to claw back what they've lost.

Spurs aren't going to be making the kind of investment necessary to buy year in, year out CL football.

Arsenal are really feeling the fact that there's a financial gulf between themselves and the top echelon of the English game.

I thikn we will have a scenario where Man United, Man City and Chelsea basically share the league titles, and this will go on until someone comes along and makes a vast investment in a club (and given that this has only ever happened in this country twice, it probably won't happen for a long time), or the rules change massively.

Effectively, we are getting a situation very similar to the Spanish league, where two clubs share all the silverware, and there's a massive gulf to the rest, except in our case it'll be three clubs.

That's about the top and bottom of it really. In a few years, when the Prem is utterly dominated by three uber rich teams, I'll be intrigued to see how Sky market it.

 


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