Houllier confirmed as new manager. Press Conference p22

[Concrete John]

he'll have to spend his first season here removing the rot that had set in during the final stages of MoN's tenure.

I don't want to go on about the old manager, but seriously - what 'rot' had set in?

Milner wanted to move and he's gone now.  A few players were unhappy about (shock horror) being out of the side.  But when you saw us play under MON there was a togetherness and they all fought for each other.

I think Houllier is inheriting a good squad of players and getting the club in a good state of affairs!

[pmk1981]

it just seems like he wants another big club before he retires and this is a stepping stone !!

What, at 63?

yea !!  hodgson is 65 and just took over liverpool,  fergie is nearly at the point when he cant control his bladder and he is still managing ( granted he has been there for ever )  if houllier is still as good as everyone says he is, he will have his 2 year contract here and when he is 65 take over at somewhere else

[darren woolley]

Welcome Gerard hope we have a long and succesfull time together.

[Small Rodent]

I'll just point the immediately negative posters to my signature.

...stands back and waits for the usual bleating of it's my opinion and should be respected...

No it doesn't.

And where is that list of 100 managers one poster would have preferred above Houllier? I want to see it and the reasons why each would be better equipped.

[Chris Smith]

which demands just one thing: to progress year on year".

Anyone taking exception to that wants their head examining.

That's exactly what we want. We know that Randy wants steady, sustainable growth and Houllier has clearly bought into that ethos. If you expect different set your sat nav for Eastlands.

[BannedUserIAT]

he'll have to spend his first season here removing the rot that had set in during the final stages of MoN's tenure.

I don't want to go on about the old manager, but seriously - what 'rot' had set in?

Milner wanted to move and he's gone now.  A few players were unhappy about (shock horror) being out of the side.  But when you saw us play under MON there was a togetherness and they all fought for each other.

I think Houllier is inheriting a good squad of players and getting the club in a good state of affairs!

Ultimately, I'm sure Milner was persuaded by money but I think there'd be some consideration to MoN's ability of lack thereof to get us above the 6th place.
Some of the unhappy players (NRC and Young as an example) have been brought back into the squad so we now know that they WERE good enough. MoN just held a grudge.
MoN was very hesitant to give the youngsters a chance. In Albrighton and Clark, we've seen that that was poor judgement.
Bizarre tactics, formations and substitutions.
Lack of substitutions seemingly to spite the crowd.

Jesus! If you seriously think that there was no rot setting in under MoN then you've not been keeping track of the last 12 months.

This 'togetherness' you speak of was absolutely brilliant at the start but seemed to have turned into 'togetherness against the gaffer' by the end.

And is the club in a good state of affairs? The list of overpaid MoN-rejects says otherwise.

[Monty]

I like Houllier. At the top of the game there's a little elite who all know and, mostly, like each other. This network at the top includes the likes of Ferguson, Wenger, Hiddink, Van Gaal, Lippi - and our very own M. Houiller. He commands the utmost respect at the highest levels of the game, for his youth development, long-termism and tactical flexibility as much as anything else (he had quite a fight with Lacombe when at Lyon when he wanted to change their 4-2-3-1 to a more orthodox 4-3-3 - he got his way, they won the league, went back to 4-2-3-1 when he left and promptly lost it).

My small worries are procedural, though. Out of managers with Premier League experience who were available, I'd have Houllier over Sven, certainly Curbishley or anyone else you care to mention. The trouble is, is Premier League experience really that important? Gerard is getting on a bit, our next appointment might not be far off, and who would it be then? Would Jol have become available? Would Randy and co. have realised there is football outside the British Isles worth as much if not more in terms of experience? And what is the long-term plan with Gerard? I have a hunch that he could be manager for maximum two seasons, before we bring in the more long-term team builder and Gerard becomes more of a director with responsibilities for youth development and a few other things.

Again, I have to say that I'm happy with Houllier himself, as he's a good man, a good manager and in many ways precisely what we've been looking for. However, the club's long-term strategy has to be called into question somewhat, and I suppose we won't get an answer about that until next summer at the least. If Gerard is temporary as bona fide manager, it would be very unwise to say so at this juncture.

[martyn ellis]

I've said this before elsewhere and I'll say it again. Most of the stuff on here is reasonable comment, even from those who express reservations about the appointment (for example see Monty's comment above). But some of the gutter criticism with no foundation, alongside personal insult, makes me embarrassed. Do people not realise this is an open site and that anyone (yes even Mr Houllier) can pop along to see what the fans are saying - makes me cringe. There is too much thoughtless slagging off of a highly respected, widely experienced, educated 'football' man as if he's some thug who has just burst into our house from the street and invaded our dinner party.
The actions (or comments) of a few tar us all with the same brush I'm afraid, so we all become ungrateful Villa fans. Thank God that for every ill-considered or abusive comment, there are enough posters on here to respond rationally and to put forward the views of most Villa fans with an element of rationality.

[Brend'Watkins]

I've said this before elsewhere and I'll say it again. Most of the stuff on here is reasonable comment, even from those who express reservations about the appointment (for example see Monty's comment above). But some of the gutter criticism with no foundation, alongside personal insult, makes me embarrassed. Do people not realise this is an open site and that anyone (yes even Mr Houllier) can pop along to see what the fans are saying - makes me cringe. There is too much thoughtless slagging off of a highly respected, widely experienced, educated 'football' man as if he's some thug who has just burst into our house from the street and invaded our dinner party.
The actions (or comments) of a few tar us all with the same brush I'm afraid, so we all become ungrateful Villa fans. Thank God that for every ill-considered or abusive comment, there are enough posters on here to respond rationally and to put forward the views of most Villa fans with an element of rationality.

We could employ Mourinho and you'd get some who'd think it was a bad appointment. 

The internet is everyman's soap box to air their thoughts.  I doubt very much that GH, even if he were to read some of the stuff written about him would give it any more notice than some deranged idiot telling anyone in his vicinity  to "repent".

[Concrete John]

he'll have to spend his first season here removing the rot that had set in during the final stages of MoN's tenure.

I don't want to go on about the old manager, but seriously - what 'rot' had set in?

Milner wanted to move and he's gone now.  A few players were unhappy about (shock horror) being out of the side.  But when you saw us play under MON there was a togetherness and they all fought for each other.

I think Houllier is inheriting a good squad of players and getting the club in a good state of affairs!

Ultimately, I'm sure Milner was persuaded by money but I think there'd be some consideration to MoN's ability of lack thereof to get us above the 6th place.
Some of the unhappy players (NRC and Young as an example) have been brought back into the squad so we now know that they WERE good enough. MoN just held a grudge.
MoN was very hesitant to give the youngsters a chance. In Albrighton and Clark, we've seen that that was poor judgement.
Bizarre tactics, formations and substitutions.
Lack of substitutions seemingly to spite the crowd.

Jesus! If you seriously think that there was no rot setting in under MoN then you've not been keeping track of the last 12 months.

This 'togetherness' you speak of was absolutely brilliant at the start but seemed to have turned into 'togetherness against the gaffer' by the end.

And is the club in a good state of affairs? The list of overpaid MoN-rejects says otherwise.

Yes, I have been watching for the last 12 months, I just don't read things in the way you do.

If MON was in some way responsible for Milner wanting to leave, would the same not be true of SAF (Tevez) or Wenger (Adebayor) or Moyes (Lescott)?  No, I think that money talks in all these cases and find it odd that only in our case did the manager have something to do with it.

And you can't in one hand argue about the overpaif unused players and in the other say these players are good enough and should be used more.  If we had sold them we couldn't use them!

I think Clark had a job to get in as we were so well covered at CB.  Not so with albrighton, but then he's looked a LOT better now than when he did get his chances last season, so maybe this is just his time?

I wouldn't argue that everything was right under MON, but I would argue that most things were and there was no rot.  We hear these rumours about player unrest, such as Warnock, but why focus on that instead of Ashley Young (our best player) saying during pre-season he wants to stay and sign a new contract?

Any manager who takes over a club that finished 6th and reached a cup final has a LOT to work with and is coming in at a good time.

[mrfuse]

Wouldnt have been my first choice but like all appointments Im willing to see what the new man brings to our great club.

Really hoping he sees the young talent we have and develops it as it looks like our only way forward, maybe also young french talent too.

[claretandblue barmy]

Good luck to GH here's hoping you have a long and very successful time in B6 !

[WarszaVillan]

he'll have to spend his first season here removing the rot that had set in during the final stages of MoN's tenure.

I don't want to go on about the old manager, but seriously - what 'rot' had set in?

Milner wanted to move and he's gone now.  A few players were unhappy about (shock horror) being out of the side.  But when you saw us play under MON there was a togetherness and they all fought for each other.

I think Houllier is inheriting a good squad of players and getting the club in a good state of affairs!

Ultimately, I'm sure Milner was persuaded by money but I think there'd be some consideration to MoN's ability of lack thereof to get us above the 6th place.
Some of the unhappy players (NRC and Young as an example) have been brought back into the squad so we now know that they WERE good enough. MoN just held a grudge.
MoN was very hesitant to give the youngsters a chance. In Albrighton and Clark, we've seen that that was poor judgement.
Bizarre tactics, formations and substitutions.
Lack of substitutions seemingly to spite the crowd.

Jesus! If you seriously think that there was no rot setting in under MoN then you've not been keeping track of the last 12 months.

This 'togetherness' you speak of was absolutely brilliant at the start but seemed to have turned into 'togetherness against the gaffer' by the end.

And is the club in a good state of affairs? The list of overpaid MoN-rejects says otherwise.

Yes, I have been watching for the last 12 months, I just don't read things in the way you do.

If MON was in some way responsible for Milner wanting to leave, would the same not be true of SAF (Tevez) or Wenger (Adebayor) or Moyes (Lescott)?  No, I think that money talks in all these cases and find it odd that only in our case did the manager have something to do with it.

And you can't in one hand argue about the overpaif unused players and in the other say these players are good enough and should be used more.  If we had sold them we couldn't use them!

I think Clark had a job to get in as we were so well covered at CB.  Not so with albrighton, but then he's looked a LOT better now than when he did get his chances last season, so maybe this is just his time?

I wouldn't argue that everything was right under MON, but I would argue that most things were and there was no rot.  We hear these rumours about player unrest, such as Warnock, but why focus on that instead of Ashley Young (our best player) saying during pre-season he wants to stay and sign a new contract?

Any manager who takes over a club that finished 6th and reached a cup final has a LOT to work with and is coming in at a good time.

Well if rot means 6th place and visits to wembley then long live the rot!

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Has GH confirmed his assistant and first team coach?

Phil Thompson commented, "Had circumstances been different, I would have been delighted to accept the chance to join Gerard Houllier and work with him and Patrice Bergues once again at Aston Villa", so I assume Bergues will be joining us, which from what I read last night, is a top draw coach.

[Salsa Party Animal]

To me the 7-12 comments is bare minimum requirement for our club. Also he like the club factilities and working environment which would mean he can focus on the team and organising new staff. Instead of worrying about developing the training ground or whatever.