Summer Transfer Thread: Speculation, Lies, Absolute Cr*p and Bosman Rumours

[TonyD]

I'm probably completely wrong but I have a feeling that Lambert isn't after Holt at all.

All the Norwich fans I know reckon he's not. It's just not his type of signing. He took no players with him from Colchester, for instance.

Lets hope he isn't.   

[john e]

I'm probably completely wrong but I have a feeling that Lambert isn't after Holt at all.

All the Norwich fans I know reckon he's not. It's just not his type of signing. He took no players with him from Colchester, for instance.

i reckon he's nailed on

Based on...

the evidence for me is compelling -

1. Holt is a Lambert type player, he also signed Wilbraham who is a big fella, even the MK Dons fans round here though he was a carthorse of a player

2. he's just had a very succesfull season under Lambert, as captain of Lamberts team

3. he's put in a transfer request, so there is a good chance he will leave

4. Lambert did not turn into Guardiola on the way over from the fens, posters wanting Lambert but not his methods or players are just living in a state of denial, Holt fits the bill as a Lambert striker

5.the player nor Lambert have issued any denials about him coming to VP

6. its already been sugested that Lambert has identified the players he wants to bring in, this is without assesing the squad to any great degree, so i'm assuming the some of the players will already be very well known to Lambert

7. he's getting on a bit, but that will be reflected in his price  of around 6 mill, that will not break Randy's bank

8. as much as we like to think otherwise, he has most in common in his footballing style with MON,
MON liked the big man up front, so does Lambert, he's even spoke to MON about the Villa job, so they still have a close relationship and a i believe a similarlarity in the way they see the game being played, although i believe Lamberts approach to be more modern and adaptable



all the evidence above is about interpretation,
 i remember last season when posters saw TSM in the dugout and saying he looked like he knew he was staying, and was nailed on for next season, others including me saw exactly the same thing and said he looked like a dead man walking and he was a goner,
it all depends on how you see and read what we know,

i'm saying Holt will be a Villa player next season, for the above reasons plus a bit of gut feeling if you like, thats my judgement but we will see, its another one of those situations that will have a definite outcome.

i feel its my duty to prepare the way, a bit like a modern day John the Baptist

[N'ZMAV]

I think Lambert and Holt have fallen out.

[Monty]

i feel its my duty to prepare the way, a bit like a modern day John the Baptist

Except lo, our Saviour did not come to earth to win flick-ons.

Anyway, all the things you say there are not evidence, just hunches. The only thing I've seen is that Lambo said "but we move on" about Holt. That's more compelling than any hunch so far.

[BedsVillain]

I've noticed that many are posting all these names from abroad.
I've no problem signing these players, but, how well do the posters of these names know the players mentioned?
I've heard of most of these players, but, apart from the odd international, club highlight or you tube clip I don't know a great deal about them.
Das Bost is an example. Yes, I've heard of him, he's obviouly a good player, but apart from a couple of clips I've never seen him play. Would he fit in at Villa? Would he complement Bent or would his style not work? 
Obviously the scouts would watch them for several games, but, what do the posters base their assumption that they would be good for Villa?
Do they watch them on a regular basis?
Is it word of the media?
Or, is it that they are a good player on FIFA 
I'm not knocking the posters, I'm just interested in their knowledge of the foreign market, as to be honest mine is pretty poor these days.

If you do want to watch a lot of foreign football, my advice is to open an account with BET365 and make sure you always have at least a pound in your funds. You will then be able to access their live streams of hundreds of games from all over the world with English commentary. Other betting sites may do the same, I'm not exclusively plugging BET365 by the way.

I've watched a lot of Ligue 1 and Eredivise over the last couple of seasons, mainly because of the Houllier, and then Arthur Numan link to Villa, looking to see who the hidden gems were. I'd never claim to be a scout, far from it, I'm a college lecturer...in Performing Arts! But it's fun watching teams I wouldn't usually watch and seeing the standout players, it's also good to try and catch any players that have been tenuously linked in the press or message boards. No harm done and yes I am a bit of a sad case who doesn't get out enough...

[john e]

i feel its my duty to prepare the way, a bit like a modern day John the Baptist

Except lo, our Saviour did not come to earth to win flick-ons.

Anyway, all the things you say there are not evidence, just hunches. The only thing I've seen is that Lambo said "but we move on" about Holt. That's more compelling than any hunch so far.

of coarse they are not evidence, if we had solid evidence we wouldnt be having the debate, we would know for sure

i'm just giving my view based on what we know what we think and what we make up

[Concrete John]

All we actually 'know' is that he played for Lambert at Norwich and has handed in a transfer request.  And I'd point out that he did that prior to Lambert leaving and quite possibly prior to us even talking to him.

[Lowendbehold]

Given that Holt put in a transfer request some weeks before Lambert was confirmed as our manager, I doubt he did it just so he could join PL here or wherever.  I suspect its to do with money and if its nothing to do with PL and we want him he might come here.  I suspect though that he just wants away from NCFC for more cash.

[DrGonzo]

Jesus, enough about Holt ffs.  Is it really that big an issue??  We've had al,ost as many pages as we did on the Barry saga! There is no reason to expect Lambert will want to sign Holt just because he used to play for him.  Leave it alone.  Please.  I'm feckin' bored of hearing about him. 

Frankly I just want us to start signing players...after the horrors of the last 2 years I want to feel as though the club is underway, and not drifting along like the Mary Feckin' Celeste.  I want some indication of the direction that Lambert wants to take us. 

Oh and if he could just get rid of Warnock and Hutton while he's at it that also would be nice.

[john e]

Jesus, enough about Holt ffs.  Is it really that big an issue??  We've had al,ost as many pages as we did on the Barry saga! There is no reason to expect Lambert will want to sign Holt just because he used to play for him.  Leave it alone.  Please.  I'm feckin' bored of hearing about him. 

Frankly I just want us to start signing players...after the horrors of the last 2 years I want to feel as though the club is underway, and not drifting along like the Mary Feckin' Celeste.  I want some indication of the direction that Lambert wants to take us. 

Oh and if he could just get rid of Warnock and Hutton while he's at it that also would be nice.

its no good getting upset talking about Grant Holt mate,
 you better get used to it, he'l be playing for us next season

[villanois]

I don't blame Holt in wanting away from Norwich. He scored 70 goals in 3 seasons, was instrumental in them climbing from 66th in the league, on the verge of administration, up to 12th in the league. Last year he scored 17 goals, helping Norwich to a nice windfall for their league placing. As a 31 year old he apparently has gone to the chairman and asked for a renewed contract that reflects that his earnings are well below market value for a 17 goal a season epl striker. From comments that have been made, he was not looking to break their wage structure, just wanted another year extended on his contract. The chairman sent him packing with the I'm a tough chairman you won't get a penny from me routine.
Then read the Norwich forums they have turned on Lambert, Holt and Villa, like a pack of hyenas, crying about lack of loyalty. I watch interestingly to see what develops with Holt as I think Lamberts comments about behind the scenes broken promises reflect the contract discussions of Holt and the lack of loyalty from Norwich towards Holt was key in driving Lambert out.

[Concrete John]

No, you think he will be.  It's far from fact and I'd go with the earlier poster who gave it a 20% chance.

[Caiphus]

Man U can have Kagawa, give me Keisuke Honda instead.  I know it was only against Jordan but he absolutely carved them to shreds with a hat-trick and an assist in a 6-0 rout.

[john e]

No, you think he will be.  It's far from fact and I'd go with the earlier poster who gave it a 20% chance.

correct,
 i think he will be playing for Villa next season, and you think it has a 20% chance of doing so.

well soon be August, we will know by then

[Monty]

Man U can have Kagawa, give me Keisuke Honda instead.  I know it was only against Jordan but he absolutely carved them to shreds with a hat-trick and an assist in a 6-0 rout.

He's probably on bollockloads of money at CSKA, so if he leaves he'd be likely to go to a club in the Champions' League rather than us. I agree with you though, always been a big fan of his. I love his direct dribbling style, really exciting to watch.