'Waste of a Club'

[Rico]

It's all irrelevant now regarding who we would have preferred in the summer, but never in a million years did I think we would go and poach our calamitous neighbours boss. Maybe I am looking back on the Ellis years with Rose tinted glasses, but in reality apart from a few glorious years in the late 70s and early 80s I'm very much a child of the Ellis years, and again maybe it was because I was younger and fresh from the heady hights of winning the league cup, league championship, European cup and European Super Cup, but I can't recall such a sense despondency back then as I do now. And my god we were bad then, but I really can't recall us playing the anti football that we churn out on a regular basis now. So yes, it's a waste of a club, but we've been saying it for years. Until we get an owner with the funds and desire to make us challenge again then it's mid to lower table for us. That might be unpalitable to some, but it's the reality. The top six takes cash! And plenty of it! I just don't think Randy is willing to splash enough of it on a regular basis to push on.

[Can Gana Be Bettered!?!?]

I remember when I dropped one on the floor. It was a mint flavoured one as well. What a waste.

[john e]

Hey BDE you know me better than to call me an Ellis sympathiser, however, I really do not think he would have been crass enough to employ Mcleish. The route of the problem at VP is our absent owner. Mcleish is just the fall guy!
UTV.

Given the club was set on balancing the books and had no money to spend last summer, in addition to selling its two most creative players, and had several experienced players (Warnock, Dunne, Collins and Ireland) at loggerheads with the club, what manager worth his salt would you realistically have expected to want the Villa job?

Not one who had just got their team relegated from the Premiership, walked out of the club and then to cap it all pay compensation for him.... utter madness!

And won that club their first major trophy in living memory.
Give me a name though. Realistically..

Lambert, Coyle, Rodgers, Robinson, Hodgson, Poyet, Curbs, Keegan, Saunders, Keane, Clough, Southgate.

i'm not saying i would want all of them or that all of them would come, but you only asked for a realistic name, so theres a dozen names of the top of the head for starters, and i would prefer most of them to what we got,

[KevinGage]

I'm not going to revise the Herbert years as the good ol' days, but it never ceased to amaze me the calibre of manager we could attract, despite the handicap of having him as Chairman.

Now - the first time we have to balance the books a wee bit on Lerner's watch (we still spent £18 million last summer, so we aren't operating on the shoestring some make out) and the best we could get was McLeish?  Really?

[PeterWithesShin]

Lambert: Only if Lee Butler comes back.
Robinson: Not sure how the Blackburn keeper will help us.
Saunders: Much as I loved Ron I think he may be past it now.
Keane: Robbie as player manager?
Clough: Do we dig him up or use a medium for team talks?

[john e]

Lambert: Only if Lee Butler comes back.
Robinson: Not sure how the Blackburn keeper will help us.
Saunders: Much as I loved Ron I think he may be past it now.
Keane: Robbie as player manager?
Clough: Do we dig him up or use a medium for team talks?

i can see what you did there !

[PeterWithesShin]

I'm not going to revise the Herbert years as the good ol' days, but it never ceased to amaze me the calibre of manager we could attract, despite the handicap of having him as Chairman.

Now - the first time we have to balance the books a wee bit on Lerner's watch (we still spent £18 million last summer, so we aren't operating on the shoestring some make out) and the best we could get was McLeish?  Really?

The managers of Norwich, Leicester, Shrewsbury, Wycombe, relegation candidates Man City?

[Rico]

That's true. For all the crap managers, we still managed to poach Little from Leicester, Taylor from Watford and Big Fat Ron from Sheff Wed. We also managed to bring O'Neil out of retirement. Perhaps Lerner should sack Faulkner and employ Deadly as chief exec? Or better still employ someone who actually knows something about football.

[dave.woodhall]

That's true. For all the crap managers, we still managed to poach Little from Leicester, Taylor from Watford and Big Fat Ron from Sheff Wed. We also managed to bring O'Neil out of retirement. Perhaps Lerner should sack Faulkner and employ Deadly as chief exec? Or better still employ someone who actually knows something about football.

Two out of those three would have walked here to get the job and the third was the luckiest example of right place, right time we have ever known.

[andyaston]

It seems that you have not read what he wrote. He did not slag off Brum, but the opposite. He was in awe of Villa, the stadium and the club's potential. There could be nothing more respectful nor insightful.

I mean when have you ever heard anybody anywhere say “Oh I can’t wait to get to Birmingham me, if only there were a quicker way”? You need the two hours it currently takes on the normal horse drawn train just to prepare yourself for the horror of the place. Maybe the quick trains will only run one way, enabling people to escape at speed but approach the ‘second city’ with the same caution and reluctance they do now.

Thank you Dave I thought i'd read it right.

[Jimmy Smash]

Hey BDE you know me better than to call me an Ellis sympathiser, however, I really do not think he would have been crass enough to employ Mcleish. The route of the problem at VP is our absent owner. Mcleish is just the fall guy!
UTV.

Given the club was set on balancing the books and had no money to spend last summer, in addition to selling its two most creative players, and had several experienced players (Warnock, Dunne, Collins and Ireland) at loggerheads with the club, what manager worth his salt would you realistically have expected to want the Villa job?

Chris Houghton for starters.

Hindsight is a fantastic thing mate. I'd imagine you'd have been in a pretty small minority who'd have been pleased with Hughton getting the Villa job.

I didn't have hindsight... but I liked what he did at the Barcodes, thought he was extremely harshly treated there, and am on record of supporting him at the time. I thought he could have done a job for us. There were others too, on this site even.

[hawkeye]

Yep I suggested Houghton, and he would have been a far better bet than who we have ended up with.

[CJ]

Hughton was on my wish list too.

[rutski]

mcleish, got blosers promoted, relegated, won their first silverwear in their history. Hughton, got blose to the last 16 and pushing for play offs?? which one is preferential??
lambert and rodgers file under phil brown, paul jewell and steve coppell! they have achieved the maximum they will with either club.saunders, robinson and the rest named from the lower leagues need to do more,
as for our ginger,,, well i blame MON for spending every penny we frigging well had and then fuckng off as soon as the gravy train ended!

[paulcomben]

The good news is that you all seem ready to agree that HS2 is one massive waste of £40 billion +++. It is due to go right past my house, so would appreciate that.