Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine

Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: Rick_avfc on June 13, 2011, 11:28:19 AM

Title: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rick_avfc on June 13, 2011, 11:28:19 AM
What are everyones realistic ambitions for AVFC?  Can we ever break into the top 4?  Is the top 6 going to be a tough ask?  Are we just looking for silverware and a top half finish?

Personally, I can't see AVFC ever gate crashing the top 4.  The teams in and around there have too much spending power and would be able to attract the top players due to the champions league.
Am I being too negative by saying that we should be aiming for 6th place as well as trophies? 
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: darren woolley on June 13, 2011, 11:32:57 AM
I think maybe in the future we could but at the moment we are not yet top 4 but saying that you never know in football anything is possible I hope in two or three seasons we will be in the top four and putting silverware on the table.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: garyshawsknee on June 13, 2011, 11:35:04 AM
At the minute our ambition should be to employ someone better than Mccleish. That would be a start.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rick_avfc on June 13, 2011, 11:37:59 AM
I know at the moment we are not top 4 but I just cant see it in the future either.  Who out of the top 4 can you see (in the future) dropping out only for us to replace them?
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: not3bad on June 13, 2011, 11:38:36 AM
At the minute our ambition should be to employ someone better than Mccleish. That would be a start.

Yep.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Summers on June 13, 2011, 11:39:43 AM
The new financial rules will change things up. Til then we need to employ a good manager, aim for the European places and take every competition seriously.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: not3bad on June 13, 2011, 11:41:51 AM
I know at the moment we are not top 4 but I just cant see it in the future either.  Who out of the top 4 can you see (in the future) dropping out only for us to replace them?

Its just pointless to speculate really.  How do you know what the face of football will be like in 5 years?  10 years?  What would Chelsea fans have been saying in 1991?  Would they have imagined in their wildest dream they would be where they are now?  What would Manchester City fans be saying in 2003?  What would Manchester United fans be saying after they'd just been relegated in the 1970s?  What would Aston Villa fans be saying when they were in the 3rd division?
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: manic-road on June 13, 2011, 11:42:08 AM
Being realistic, top six. Unless someone else comes in with billions to spend, that's the best we can hope for in the next couple of seasons.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Fergal on June 13, 2011, 11:45:57 AM
I know at the moment we are not top 4 but I just cant see it in the future either.  Who out of the top 4 can you see (in the future) dropping out only for us to replace them?
Arsenal or Chelski when Roman gets bored...
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Lucky Eddie on June 13, 2011, 11:48:21 AM
Realistic ambition is to renew, attend as many games as I can possibly afford, support the board, the team and the management regardless of whether or not I personally like them and have as much fun as possible with like minded family and friends.

Watching attacking football and venturing towards a Wembley trip would be a bonus.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Outcast2006 on June 13, 2011, 11:53:33 AM
Our ambitions should be to perform at the top end of the second tier of the league and have a good cup run now and then because that is all we will achieve without major cash investment the size of which our current owner cannot match
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Mark H on June 13, 2011, 11:59:05 AM
Realistically - 5th to 9th in the league , semi final in the Carling Cup and a nice run in the FA Cup whilst playing good attractive attacking football and bringing through our own young players complemented by some good players signed.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Diablo on June 13, 2011, 12:25:38 PM
World Domination!!! No more no less ;-)
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: lovejoy on June 13, 2011, 12:33:16 PM
Match Spurs and Everton
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Concrete John on June 13, 2011, 12:39:46 PM
I know at the moment we are not top 4 but I just cant see it in the future either.  Who out of the top 4 can you see (in the future) dropping out only for us to replace them?

Similar arguments could be drawn up while the Chelsea/Liverpool.Man Utd/Arsenal quartet had the places all to thmselves for best part of a decade.  However, Everton and Spurs, without Man City style money, got there.  That was through a combination of good management, steady investment and taking the opportunity of a team above them fucking up.

So we get a good manager and inveast steadily in the squad, so that when someone again fucks up we're in a position to take advantage of it.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: dave.woodhall on June 13, 2011, 12:42:20 PM
I know at the moment we are not top 4 but I just cant see it in the future either.  Who out of the top 4 can you see (in the future) dropping out only for us to replace them?

Its just pointless to speculate really.  How do you know what the face of football will be like in 5 years?  10 years?  What would Chelsea fans have been saying in 1991?  Would they have imagined in their wildest dream they would be where they are now?  What would Manchester City fans be saying in 2003?  What would Manchester United fans be saying after they'd just been relegated in the 1970s?  What would Aston Villa fans be saying when they were in the 3rd division?

Manchester United have never been relegated. Ever. Not once.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: TonyD on June 13, 2011, 12:44:57 PM
Our aim should be to win trophies.   
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Salsa Party Animal on June 13, 2011, 12:46:05 PM
For our team we should aim for 3rd and FA Cup win as bare minimum, as title is very tough. But we would have new manager and he bring in 5 players and it might inspire us to go on an unbelievable run and win the title with Bent breaking goalscoring record.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rick_avfc on June 13, 2011, 12:47:36 PM
Ok, so lets not speculate about the what might happen in the future with other teams etc....
So if a neautral asked you "what is your realistic ambition of Aston Villa Football club and where you should or would like to finish, say over the next 3 years?", what would you say?
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: not3bad on June 13, 2011, 12:52:28 PM
Ok, so lets not speculate about the what might happen in the future with other teams etc....
So if a neautral asked you "what is your realistic ambition of Aston Villa Football club and where you should or would like to finish, say over the next 3 years?", what would you say?

I don't know about finishing positions but I'd like to see Villa parading the FA Cup round Wembley.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: dave.woodhall on June 13, 2011, 12:55:28 PM
I think realistially we can have a few years like we did under BFR/Brian Little - competing properly for the Champions League positions, getting one in a good year, the odd trophy or two.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: DeKuip on June 13, 2011, 01:35:49 PM
If I was only interested in the final score and league position then I'd watch the game on teletext.
But as I choose to pay a lot of money to go and watch, my realistic ambition is that we produce a team that's exciting to watch and is tactically and technically able to compete against anyone. 
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: German James on June 13, 2011, 03:33:53 PM
A trophy and at no time flirting with relegation would be the best thing possible next season. I would hope it might calm everyone down.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rip Van We Go Again on June 13, 2011, 05:20:52 PM
It's going to have to be gradual.
Whoever we get as new Manager, we may have to accept mid-table next term as it could be another of those dreaded transitional seasons.
I won't mind as long as there is some visible, steady progress in the seasons after.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: damon loves JT on June 13, 2011, 05:22:18 PM
Realistic Ambition = Heavy Balloon
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Outcast2006 on June 13, 2011, 06:06:33 PM
A trophy and at no time flirting with relegation would be the best thing possible next season. I would hope it might calm everyone down.
I think that is entirely unrealistic.

I think we would be doing well to finish mid table but a trophy is beyond us IMO
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rip Van We Go Again on June 13, 2011, 06:29:49 PM
A trophy and at no time flirting with relegation would be the best thing possible next season. I would hope it might calm everyone down.
I think that is entirely unrealistic.

I think we would be doing well to finish mid table but a trophy is beyond us IMO
I don't agree.
If one of the shittest teams in the Premier can win the League cup last season, i'm pretty sure we could.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Legion on June 13, 2011, 06:31:26 PM
One of?
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rip Van We Go Again on June 13, 2011, 06:38:34 PM
My only ambition for the team at the moment, is that we don't appoint Alex Niki Lauda McLeish.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Lambert and Payne on June 14, 2011, 09:51:13 AM
Top 7 finish, good run in the carling cup and winning the fa cup within the next 3 years. Good runs in europe and attracting some exciting new players to take us to the next level
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rick_avfc on June 14, 2011, 10:04:50 AM
Top 7 finish, good run in the carling cup and winning the fa cup within the next 3 years. Good runs in europe and attracting some exciting new players to take us to the next level

I agree!  I think thats very realistic for Avfc
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: eastie on June 14, 2011, 10:18:42 AM
Battling for 6th to 8th place with good cup runs thrown in and hopefully a cup final win somewhere down the line in the near future.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Billy Walker on June 14, 2011, 10:36:22 AM
Realistic ambitions for Villa? Well as the major club of the Midlands I think it would be criminal not to see ourselves as a major player in English and European football.  Or, to put it another way, I think we should have the ambition to compete at that high end of the football pecking order.

At the moment we seem to be settling for second and third best and this, in my view, is underselling our club on a massive scale.  I've just had a quick Wiki search for some stats on (as an example) the city of Valencia in Spain, and I quote:

"Valencia (Spanish: [baˈlenθja]) or València (Valencian: [vaˈlensia]) is the most populous city of the Autonomous Community of Valencia and the third largest city in Spain, with a population of 809,267 in 2010.[1] It is the 15th-most populous municipality in the European Union. About 1,175,000[2] or 1,564,145[3] people live in the Valencia urban area and 1,705,742[4][5][6] or 2,300,000[7] in the Valencia metropolitan area."

I then did a quick search for the City of Birmingham:

" It is the most populous British city outside London, with a population of 1,028,701 (2009 estimate),[2] and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the United Kingdom's second most populous urban area with a population of 2,284,093 (2001 census).[3] Birmingham's metropolitan area, which includes surrounding towns to which it is closely tied through commuting, is also the United Kingdom's second most populous with a population of 3,683,000."

Now, I know this not an exact science and we have a number of clubs competing with us in our area, but reading this I feel that, at the very least, we have the potential to be competing at the very top of the game.  Everything is there to be one of Europe's top club sides.  Where is the ambition?  I totally appreciate everything Randy and the Board have done for us up to this point in time but I'm beginning to think, as things stand, that we do not have the finances or acumen to push our club to a level where we really should compete.  I want our club winning the League and the European Cup again.  Aiming for cup runs and seventh placed finishes would be - for me - totally and utterly letting the people of Birmingham down. It's a huge, huge underselling of our club and region.  It's incredibly frustrating.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: The Situation on June 14, 2011, 11:00:39 AM
Realistically with a the right manager we should be able to re-establish ourselves as a top 6 team. Winning a cup would be nice too.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: VWBelgian on June 14, 2011, 11:03:05 AM
Top 7 finish, good run in the carling cup and winning the fa cup within the next 3 years. Good runs in europe and attracting some exciting new players to take us to the next level

I agree!  I think thats very realistic for Avfc

I go for that!
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: nepal_villan on June 14, 2011, 11:19:01 AM
To be on par with Everton, Spurs and to a degree Arsenal. We can't match Chelsea and ManCity financially and ManUtd and Liverpool (when clicking) are the two true giants of English football.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Billy Walker on June 14, 2011, 11:37:00 AM
To be on par with Everton, Spurs and to a degree Arsenal. We can't match Chelsea and ManCity financially and ManUtd and Liverpool (when clicking) are the two true giants of English football.

When they are spending more money than everyone else.

 Liverpool didn't win an FA Cup until 1965 - that, for me, does not a true giant make.  Man Utd were nothing until the 1950's.  Cash and ambition is what it is all about.  Relatively speaking, Villa have been hamstrung in these areas since the mid-twentieth century; if we had enough money to really compete it would make for a different story, surely.

With our present set up I'm sure we can compete for top six football but in an ideal world that should be the very minimum of our aspirations.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: nepal_villan on June 14, 2011, 12:40:03 PM


 Liverpool didn't win an FA Cup until 1965 - that, for me, does not a true giant make.  Man Utd were nothing until the 1950's.  Cash and ambition is what it is all about.  Relatively speaking, Villa have been hamstrung in these areas since the mid-twentieth century; if we had enough money to really compete it would make for a different story, surely.


Britain is right up there with America as a world power. America was nothing until 200 years ago. :D
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Billy Walker on June 14, 2011, 01:01:37 PM


 Liverpool didn't win an FA Cup until 1965 - that, for me, does not a true giant make.  Man Utd were nothing until the 1950's.  Cash and ambition is what it is all about.  Relatively speaking, Villa have been hamstrung in these areas since the mid-twentieth century; if we had enough money to really compete it would make for a different story, surely.


Britain is right up there with America as a world power. America was nothing until 200 years ago. :D

Aye, and China and India will overtake America.  Maybe Brazil too.  The point is nothing stands still!  We were a great club long before Man Utd, Liverpool, Chelsea and Man City - money and ambition has got them/will get them to where they want to be.  "True giants": is there any such thing in football really?  If by "true" we mean "original" then I would say Villa are the "true giants" of the game and - with money and ambition - can be again. 

Scrapping it out for bosses of basement Premier League teams and potential Championship managers (if true) is simply hugely underselling our club and smacks of a criminal lack of ambition.  I trust Randy, however, and believe the ambition is there for us to hire a top class manager.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Austin1975 on June 14, 2011, 04:02:08 PM
The way things stand at the moment, Premiership survival  >:(

____________________________________________________________________________________________

The future's not bright, it's ginger and sweaty.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: DrGonzo on June 14, 2011, 05:38:11 PM
Have some 'bottom love' with Pippa Middleton.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: TheSandman on June 14, 2011, 06:23:03 PM
Europe and cup runs.

Do I expect us to do that next season? I don't know.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: dave.woodhall on June 14, 2011, 07:39:02 PM

Liverpool didn't win an FA Cup until 1965 - that, for me, does not a true giant make.  Man Utd were nothing until the 1950's. 

Liverpool had won the league as often as we had by that point, and what Manchester United have done since World War 2 eclipses any of our achievements. You can't say that because you were good once you should always be on top, otherwise every season the honours would be divided between us, Sunderland, Preston and the Royal Engineers.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Ads on June 14, 2011, 07:41:28 PM
Given McLiesh's record, survival would be an immense achievement.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rick_avfc on June 14, 2011, 08:01:40 PM
With the imminent arrival of AM then it looks like bottom half of the table! 
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: villanic on June 14, 2011, 08:28:31 PM
With McLeish on his way to get a goal a game will be ambitious!
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Rigadon on June 14, 2011, 08:40:38 PM
6th and a cup run is about par isn't it?
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Hampshire Villa on June 14, 2011, 09:18:00 PM
 right now....... staying in the premiership
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: Villanation on June 14, 2011, 09:20:38 PM
right now....... staying in the premiership

Ditto...Under McLiesh if we can survive and retain Premership status through this next season we will have done really really well IMO.
Title: Re: Realistic ambitions
Post by: *shellac* on June 15, 2011, 10:32:36 AM
Between 8th & 14th next season with a good cup run.  Hopefully, not under the management of McLeish.
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