The Milner Novela... Final episode page 296

[TheSandman]

There is a Michel Platini shaped light at the end of the tunnel. Manchester City have to do all that they're doing now because they won't be able to in a couple of years time. The Sheikh money for wages will be limited to £40m, which, let's be honest, will be just enough to cover some wage problems in addition to turnover.

There was only one 'G20' (what an up itself name) club opposed to the Platini rules - Manchester City. Don't worry about winning the league, there's very little chance of them building a dynasty, and a good chance they'll be totally buggered by the time you bring up your half century.

Plus we're about to roger them hilariously by getting them to pay us for improving our squad. How nice of them to oblige.

Agree with your last point. Whilst any new rules brought in by UEFA are likely to put a spoke in Man City and soon potentially Liverpool's plans they will hardly be beneficial to us. Any rules from what i understand will be around self-financing and so on. Whilst it will stop Man City buying success it will also stop us on a much smaller scale doing it too. For example we are probably (I can't recall exactly) over the debt and wages to turnover rules that they will bring in for European competition in the next few years.

Even then what can be done? Man United are a considerably bigger, more widely supported and known club than we are. Hence, their turnover is massive. Any salary cap will perpetuate a kind of order where the biggrest ane wealthiest clubs are able to spend more and more money on players. We are less widely supported than the Liverpools., Man Uniteds and Arsenals who will thus be able to generate greater funds so they will immediately be advantaged over us. Even Spurs and Chelsea have greater revenue streams thus we will be looking at fighting the clubs who are on a simuilar level to us such as City, Everton and so on.

Plus, what's to stop Man City signing a sponsorship deal for £200million as a cover or selling a block of gold plated executive boxes to Sheikh Mansour for an inflated price. For every rule there is a loophole.

[supertommykN'iba]

Without trying to sound like a happy clapper, We're in a great position here. Ireland imo is a better player than milner. We're also getting a brilliant deal. We will still be suitably placed to put in a fight in the top 7, and we're run as an honest club, where money isn't the be all and end all. Saying that, turning into citys feeder club can't be a bad thing! Then to top it all off we have delph to come back, who has so much ability and potential, that we still may have a better midfield on the pitch instead of on paper come the end of the season.

[supertommykN'iba]

Without trying to sound like a happy clapper, We're in a great position here. Ireland imo is a better player than milner. We're also getting a brilliant deal. We will still be suitably placed to put in a fight in the top 7, and we're run as an honest club, where money isn't the be all and end all. Saying that, turning into citys feeder club can't be a bad thing! Then to top it all off we have delph to come back, who has so much ability and potential, that we still may have a better midfield on the pitch instead of on paper come the end of the season.

[Monty]

Fandom is a notoriously difficult thing to really cash in on. It's one reason football's such an unattractive industry to investors without egos. Only ticket and shirt sales make any real difference, and there's a limit to that. Plus the fandom which makes Man Utd's turnover so much bigger than ours is a temporary thing, a product of success, not a cause of it. Anyway, a large proportion of turnover is generated from European TV rights - that's the only cartel which UEFA perpetuates and can do something about.

We're not over the wage/turnover rules, but factoring in transfer fees and we are living beyond our means - but not by much, and certainly not in the long term. We should be ok. What the rules will mean is that clubs have to build up from the youth ranks, something we're ahead of many clubs on (Wenger praised our academy to the high heavens when we got Carruthers). The new rules give us more of a chance to succeed than before because the gap to bridge to the top 4, probably the biggest gap, would be made smaller and more doable without City's billions.

As for the sponsorship rules, I remember reading something in the sponsorship section of the Financial Fair Play document which made me very happy on this specific issue, but at five to two in the morning I'm afraid I won't trawl the section again.

[BannedUserIAT]

Assuming we do get Ireland, this is an opportunity for Villa to take advantage of the new rule and that there seems to be little money washing about at the moment (Bar man City, obv).

We get a home-grown player on our books (to add to our already increasing list). Good news. Even better would be if MoN spends the Milner money overseas, thus effectively stopping a chain of transfers within the premier league. Should he buy Keane, then that'll give Spurs the option of buying and the club they're buying off the option of spending (and improving) a well.

No. I'd rather see MoN take a chance in Europe, use a bit of our youth talent and force the other clubs in the Premier League to stick with what they have.

[TheSandman]

In an ideal world then we could nab Huntleaar and Flamini from AC Milan and sell Sidwell, Heskey, Davies and Shorey which would see us just about at a slightly positive nett spend. We would keep some of the six who could be beneficial to the squad as well.

It won't cut down our wage bill much unfortunately but signing three decent players in Ireland, Flamini and Huntleaar will probably increase ticket sales and merchandise sales and give us a greater chance of achieving something on the pitch meaning more money.

[villa for life]

We want Ireland, but does he want us? Didn't he say he wanted to stay at city? If he does want a move, quotes usually do get leaked about a preferred club ect....I just worry, he is kind of being forced to come..

[Dante Lavelli]

Assuming we do get Ireland, this is an opportunity for Villa to take advantage of the new rule and that there seems to be little money washing about at the moment (Bar man City, obv).

We get a home-grown player on our books (to add to our already increasing list). Good news. Even better would be if MoN spends the Milner money overseas, thus effectively stopping a chain of transfers within the premier league. Should he buy Keane, then that'll give Spurs the option of buying and the club they're buying off the option of spending (and improving) a well.

No. I'd rather see MoN take a chance in Europe, use a bit of our youth talent and force the other clubs in the Premier League to stick with what they have.

Ooh now that would be a cunning plan, however from droopy's comments I think some deals are already set up.

[Guy M]

We want Ireland, but does he want us? Didn't he say he wanted to stay at city? If he does want a move, quotes usually do get leaked about a preferred club ect....I just worry, he is kind of being forced to come..

If he said he wanted to leave, he'd effectively reduce his value (bad for Citeh)  and forego his contract being paid up (bad for him).

Until our valuation of Milner is matched by Citeh's offer, his hand isn't being forced either way and so he's being a bit canny. What I want to know is whether Milner is doing the same thing or whether the article a couple of weeks back about an advisor who said Milner wanted to go constitutes a transfer request. We've DEFINITELY been here before, haven't we?

[Guy M]

No need for McGeady. We have plenty of options there.

Spot on. If there was even a chance MON was going to buy him, I can't imagine Celtic would have accepted Spartak's offer or he'd have travelled over there to meet with the club.

As Troy Eccles said in The Milner Novela, I'd love to see us spend all the cash we get abroad and continue to develop the youngsters and at the same time scupper the merry-go-round that appears to be hinging (hingeing?!) on this deal.

[Guy M]

Assuming we do get Ireland, this is an opportunity for Villa to take advantage of the new rule and that there seems to be little money washing about at the moment (Bar man City, obv).

We get a home-grown player on our books (to add to our already increasing list). Good news. Even better would be if MoN spends the Milner money overseas, thus effectively stopping a chain of transfers within the premier league. Should he buy Keane, then that'll give Spurs the option of buying and the club they're buying off the option of spending (and improving) a well.

No. I'd rather see MoN take a chance in Europe, use a bit of our youth talent and force the other clubs in the Premier League to stick with what they have.

As much as MON's changes last night in terms of personnel and formation give me hope that this pre-season has been the final wake-up call he needed to see that more of the squad can and should be used, I fear hoping for him to spend all the money abroad and scupper the transfer merry-go-round is a step too far even for a die-hard MON supporter and Happy Clapper such as me.

Nice idea however.

[Guy M]

http://www.skybet.com/betting/football/transfer-specials/t10003041.html&aff=705

Seems like the bookies think we'll be getting Ireland, Keane and poss Bellamy in.

Not linking to relevant odds any more so can't comment directly, but it was Skybet who had Richard Dunne as odds-on to come to us in around June or July last year. Don't have access to the place I need to get into to check exactly when at the moment.

[The Man With A Stick]

No need for McGeady. We have plenty of options there.

Spot on. If there was even a chance MON was going to buy him, I can't imagine Celtic would have accepted Spartak's offer or he'd have travelled over there to meet with the club.

I hope you're right but one of the Glasgow papers (Evening Times, don't know how reputable they are though) said yesterday that he was reluctant to move over there.  Trappatoni had advised him not to, as he thinks he'd struggle to settle.  They reckon there's a £9.5m offer coming in providing the Milner deal goes through.

Pray to god we don't sign McGeady, he'll just hold Albrighton back.  After the pre-season(s) he's had, what kind of message would that send out to the kids?  They might as well not bother.

[Karl Bridges]

We want Ireland, but does he want us? Didn't he say he wanted to stay at city? If he does want a move, quotes usually do get leaked about a preferred club ect....I just worry, he is kind of being forced to come..

In his perfect world he would probably stay at City, where he has been for a long time. I think it's more a case of Mancini telling him to do one because he doesn't rate him. I hope this makes Ireland want to stuff that back down his throat by being brilliant for us.

[Drummond]

If Stephen Ireland comes to Villa and puts the effort in to perform the way that Richard Dunne has I'll be more than happy.