Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: MAGNAN VILLAIN on April 25, 2012, 02:27:58 PM
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I know many of us on this and other Villa supporters forums are feeling sick, angry, upset, dreading the next few games, fearing the worst for the future etc, etc, .. has anyone spared a thought for poor old Doug?
Okay, he wasn't the best thing at Villa Park over the years, league and European success happened without him, but one has to admit he kept the club financially stable with no or little debt, and he wasn't called Deadly Doug for nothing with the managers who failed to deliver the goods. He lived for our club, like him or hate him his devotion to the club was unquestionable, so here's my question ..
How the hell can he be feeling at this moment with the state of the very thing he spent most of his life involved with?
Lets not forget he still attends the games home and away, so he's a multimillionaire people will say, but he sold the club for lots of money to someone he thought would improve the club, it hasn't worked out that way but he hasn't hidden away from the fans like his successor.
Poor old Doug, he must feel as bad as the rest of us at least, lets hope he puts Lerner in the picture and tells him what to do with you know who!
Get out those prayer mats, I think we might need them.
UTV.
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If i was Lerner i would get old Deadly back in the fold to sort this whole mess out.Maybe Lerner might learn how to run a football club then.Ive had my prayer mat ready since the first game of the season anyway.
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Have to respect Doug. Chairman for decades and even in his old, old age he still goes to more games than our current custodian Lerner. Without question I'd want him back to sort out the complete mess Lerner has got us in.
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I bet Doug never thought he would see us decline so much after he sold the club to Lerner. Poor doug. I bet deep down he is thinking that we should of got rid of Mcleish a long time ago but cant say anything
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As Club President I suppose he has to put a front on and follow the party line a bit.
But I bet he was humming along under his breath when we had a sing song in the last 5 minutes.
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I was talking about Doug on the way home last night. He must be desperate to get in there and sort this mess out.
Whatever's been said about Doug, he would have never appointed this ****** and allowed it to carry on.
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Even if he had been unfortunate enough to appoint him the axe would have fallen on ginger many weeks ago.
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The difference is that Doug was here and he cared - still does.
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The main thing everybody says to me whenever I mention Ellis, is
'He'd have got rid of this clown by now.'
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Poor old Doug? Fuck me. He's the last person I will spare a thought for.
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Things must be bad for us to have a 'Doug Love in'...
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The main thing everybody says to me whenever I mention Ellis, is
'He'd have got rid of this clown by now.'
Because it's the truth!
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For all Dougy's faults, he understood how to run a football club. We were always in decent financial state. I know many thought he was tight and didn't spend in key moments when spending could have reaped great rewards, but we only need to look at what Randy did with O Neill and the financial implications of the last year because of it. Doug never went overboard. To some extent he kept the fans ambitions in cheque by not spending huge amounts like Randy. With that expenditure, you're expectations build but we're not a club that can afford to outlay 40 million in a transfer window with very little back. It's not feasible. Now our squad is fooking shite.
In retrospect it was sensible of Doug, in that he'd always close up his purse quite quickly if a manager, most notably Gregory, dropped too many costly clangers. He did spend in fairness. Quite significantly. He'd never have allowed O Neill to spend so much, 3 summers running, with so many expensive flops.
AND...O Neill did well here. Of course, he was appointed by Doug.
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The main thing everybody says to me whenever I mention Ellis, is
'He'd have got rid of this clown by now.'
I am sure he would - BEFORE now.
I was no fan of HDE, but you can't fault his instinct for survival.
(That said - if we do go down, the old fella might lose the will !)
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For all Dougy's faults, he understood how to run a football club. We were always in decent financial state. I know many thought he was tight and didn't spend in key moments when spending could have reaped great rewards, but we only need to look at what Randy did with O Neill and the financial implications of the last year because of it. Doug never went overboard. To some extent he kept the fans ambitions in cheque by not spending huge amounts like Randy. With that expenditure, you're expectations build but we're not a club that can afford to outlay 40 million in a transfer window with very little back. It's not feasible. Now our squad is fooking shite.
In retrospect it was sensible of Doug, in that he'd always close up his purse quite quickly if a manager, most notably Gregory, dropped too many costly clangers. He did spend in fairness. Quite significantly. He'd never have allowed O Neill to spend so much, 3 summers running, with so many expensive flops.
AND...O Neill did well here. Of course, he was appointed by Doug.
I (we?) - wrong all along ! Bring back Doug ! Doug for Prime Minister ! Doug for King ! Doug is GOD ! Er, no.
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Debates about Doug inevitably used to involve his supporters invoking how he may have had his faults, but that he took great care to make sure the club would be in safe hands when he selected a buyer, and not going to the likes of Gillett and Hicks. And that we ought to be grateful for that. Turns out he actually sold to a rich kid with more money than sense (an assertion that would hold true if Lerner were down to his last penny) and that the hands holding the VIlla are far from safe. Thus it could be argued that Ellis has to take at least some of the blame for our current predicament, for selling the club to a prize numpty who knows the cubed root of fuck all about both football, and it seems, business. And let's not forget the state of the club when he sold - in the doldrums, going nowhere, little money to spend on players, dwindling interest from the fans, lack of hope. A bit like where we are now, except Doug had a nice big chopper that he wasn't afraid to use, and he wouldn't be letting that wily old git Ferguson dictate his managerial recruitments.
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It's Doug's fault we have ended up with Lerner - DOUG OUT!!!
oh..........
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It's Doug's fault we have ended up with Lerner - DOUG OUT!!!
oh..........
ha ha ;D
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Things must be bad for us to have a 'Doug Love in'...
They are.
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Things must be bad for us to have a 'Doug Love in'...
They are.
My thoughts exactly. So, this is where we've come to!
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Things must be bad for us to have a 'Doug Love in'...
They are.
My thoughts exactly. So, this is where we've come to!
It is!isn't life a bitch?
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The only thing I would say on the subject is that when things were looking as bleak as they are now in general at the club he could pull a managerial rabbit out of the hat like Graham Taylor or Ron Atkinson. Possibly you could include Martin O' Neill in that but I think that was very much to do with Randy Lerner and the takeover too. What we need to do is to scrape our way to survival in the next three games and then replace the manager with someone who will inspire a feelgood factor for the future. That is one thing Randy might like to pick Doug's brains about.
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Wasn't he famous for saying that "Villa will never do a Leeds" while he was here.
He must be doing donuts in his wheelchair as the horror approaches reality
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Things must be bad for us to have a 'Doug Love in'...
They are.
My thoughts exactly. So, this is where we've come to!
It is!isn't life a bitch?
Yep, then your club appoints a manager like this...
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why opinion of Doug has changed in the space of 24hrs
http://www.birminghammail.net/news/top-stories/2012/04/26/doug-ellis-backing-under-fire-aston-villa-boss-alex-mcleish-97319-30841204/
>:( >:( >:( >:(
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Ok if Doug thinks our young players will get us to top 6 he is nuts.
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Things must be bad for us to have a 'Doug Love in'...
Indeed. This situation doesn't make me feel sorry for Doug, if anything it reminds me of Doug. The appointment of McNeill, the cycles of promise and despair, the lack of a coherent strategy...This is pure Doug. The only difference is Doug loved the media and Randy doesn't.
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why opinion of Doug has changed in the space of 24hrs
http://www.birminghammail.net/news/top-stories/2012/04/26/doug-ellis-backing-under-fire-aston-villa-boss-alex-mcleish-97319-30841204/
>:( >:( >:( >:(
Manages to get just about everything wrong in that interview:
The claptrap about McLeish's Blues past being the problem - No Doug, it's because he's crap.
He's a good manager - based on what exactly ? Two relgations in 3 PL seasons, with a 3rd possibly looming. In which case I'm also a good manager and will do it for half the price.
It would be a mistake to get rid of him - No Doug, it really, really wouldn't.
We'll be challenging in the top 6 next year - well maybe, but not in this division.
To be fair though I think he's just been wheeled on to the PR roundabout by Randy and co. and dare not toe the party line.
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Original post asked ..
"How the hell can he be feeling at this moment with the state of the very thing he spent most of his life involved with?"
Well, if his quotes in the Mail are true I think he's either mellowed with age or as ktvillan has said he just doing a PR job for RL.
We will stay up he says? .. I bloody hope so!
UTV.
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Think its just a bit of PR for RL.
Bet he's killing inside but loving the fact were wanting him back
For the record I don't, but I don't really want Randy right now. Its like chosing between hanging and drowning...
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The main thing everybody says to me whenever I mention Ellis, is
'He'd have got rid of this clown by now.'
Because it's the truth!
It couldn't be further from the truth he gave Graham Turner over 2 seasons and he was the worst manager I've ever seen at Villa Park.
He didn't get rid of McNeill either he just let us slip inevitably into the abyss without doing anything other than sanction the purchase of Warren Aspinall.
Doug in my view can't escape the blame for this mess. He lined his pockets by selling to Lerner, but what assurances did he get if any as to the type of owner Randy intended to be ? The fact is now that Doug sold to the wrong guy.
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He'd still have sacked Mcleish months ago
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He'd still have sacked Mcleish months ago
He wouldn't have employed him in the first place.
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Too right Doug sold to the wrong guy. If only he'd sold to Ray Ranson.
It's easy with hindsight to question whether Randy was the right man, but i'd assume with what he told Doug he planned on doing, and what he did actually do those first few years, I bet we'd have all sold to him as well if we were Doug.
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He'd still have sacked Mcleish months ago
History suggests otherwise.
All managers appointed by Doug at the start of or during a season remained manager until the end of their first season.
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Doug weren't called Deadly for nothing.
Mcleish would've been out as soon as Ellis noticed the income..I mean attendance dropping at Villa Park.
We'll never know, but I'm pretty sure.
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And I'm pretty sure Ellis would never have appointed him in the first place. Steve Stride would have had a word in his hearing aid
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Doug weren't called Deadly for nothing.
Mcleish would've been out as soon as Ellis noticed the income..I mean attendance dropping at Villa Park.
We'll never know, but I'm pretty sure
Off the top of my head i'm sure they dropped under Turner, JG and Mr Fickle and they kept their jobs for a while.
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Remind me. Why do they call football fans fickle?
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Remind me. Why do they call football fans fickle?
Because they don't understand the meaning of the word.
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Original post asked ..
"How the hell can he be feeling at this moment with the state of the very thing he spent most of his life involved with?"
Well, if his quotes in the Mail are true I think he's either mellowed with age or as ktvillan has said he just doing a PR job for RL.
We will stay up he says? .. I bloody hope so!
UTV.
Maybe dementia has set in
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I saw Doug buzzing up the M6 in his Roller for the Blackburn game. He still gives a shit, which is more than can be said for the present incumbent.
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He'd still have sacked Mcleish months ago
He wouldn't have employed him in the first place.
but he did employ Turner, McNeill and Venglos so that's not entirely true. I'm no Doug hater but people seem to forgotten that we ACTUALLY went down under his watch. Things aren't good but lets keep things in perspective. Doug spurned numerous great opportunities as chairman to make us great.
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Eff me. We are so dejected that we yearn for Deadly?! And while we're at it, let's appoint Billy McNeill manager and Steve Hodge as captain.
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why opinion of Doug has changed in the space of 24hrs
http://www.birminghammail.net/news/top-stories/2012/04/26/doug-ellis-backing-under-fire-aston-villa-boss-alex-mcleish-97319-30841204/
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Oh my...
“The game is not about management, it is about players.
So why did you think changing them every five minutes would get us up the league Doug?!
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Too right Doug sold to the wrong guy. If only he'd sold to Ray Ranson.
Don't ever forget that everyone's favourite money-laundering (allegedly) hairdresser Carson also approached Doug to buy the Villa...
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Too right Doug sold to the wrong guy. If only he'd sold to Ray Ranson.
Don't ever forget that everyone's favourite money-laundering (allegedly) hairdresser Carson also approached Doug to buy the Villa...
Thank God we didn't sell to him... we'd have been financially ruined... and ...er... relegated.
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Too right Doug sold to the wrong guy. If only he'd sold to Ray Ranson.
Don't ever forget that everyone's favourite money-laundering (allegedly) hairdresser Carson also approached Doug to buy the Villa...
Thank God we didn't sell to him... we'd have been financially ruined... and ...er... relegated.
But at least our owner doesn't turn up to games out of choice.
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Too right Doug sold to the wrong guy. If only he'd sold to Ray Ranson.
Don't ever forget that everyone's favourite money-laundering (allegedly) hairdresser Carson also approached Doug to buy the Villa...
Thank God we didn't sell to him... we'd have been financially ruined... and ...er... relegated.
But at least our owner doesn't turn up to games out of choice.
Thank God for Randy
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I bet he's absolutely gutted. In between counting his millions.
Perhaps we can ask a few of his former players, employees and managers widows what they think.
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Can't believe what i've seen this morning. Pro Houllier and Ellis posts? Is McLeish that bad that amnesia is spreading throughout the club? Whatever next? Steve Hodge to make the greatest Villa eleven of all time?
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I think there's a pretty stench-worthy amount of hypocrisy and revisionism on this thread!!
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He'd still have sacked Mcleish months ago
He wouldn't have employed him in the first place.
but he did employ Turner, McNeill and Venglos so that's not entirely true.
To be fair TV, none of them had a history of relegation or boring football.
Turner was lower league but played some good football under Shrewsbury, he was a bit like Poyet now.
McNeill had done okay with Man City and Venglos was a respected European coach.
They all had reasonable records prior to Villa, McLeish's CV was poor.
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I notice that there is an extreme shortage of rose coloured spectacles on eBay; you lot haven't been buying them up have you?
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Oh i'll spare thought for him all right. Made a mint from selling the club after putting nowt in himself for 25 years. Sold it to the yank version of himself, presumbly advised Lerner to go for or selected MON himself. Must be pissing himself. i know one thing, however much he claims to love the club, if he was 30 years younger and Lerner offered him back the club for what he sold it for, he'd run a mile.
Probably still can't believe his luck.