From AVFC....Release list

[spangley1812]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

Thats just your opinion......he cant be sub standard to have played for England so many times and scored over 100 premiership goals and those are the facts

Most of the abuse hurled at Heskey was misdirected. To put the burden of goalscoring on a player who doesn't score many is the fault of his managers. Heskey was a very effective target man and that should always have been his primary use. It's lazy to criticise him when others are more culpable, particularly the manager that has just departed from our club.

Good points mate and it wasnt his fault that he was given the contract that he was

[Rip Van We Go Again]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

Thats just your opinion......he cant be sub standard to have played for England so many times and scored over 100 premiership goals and those are the facts

He was hopelessly sub-standard for us, by any definition of what a Premiership footballer should be.

9 goals in 90 appearances for an outlay of £12m + I'd expect that sort of goalscoring ratio from a full back.

You mention the 100 Premiership goals and England appearances, most of which were procured before we were lumbered with him.

I know this site is famed for it's revisionism, but he's only just gone and people are lamenting him.

[dave.woodhall]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

And it's a strange definition of sub-standard that describes an entire career played in the Premier League, at a level only a minute fraction of players can ever attain. He may not have been good enough with Villa, he definitely got paid too much but almost certainly he got further in his career than any of us will in ours. Anyone making a cheap, easy joke about him should remember that.

[Risso]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

Thats just your opinion......he cant be sub standard to have played for England so many times and scored over 100 premiership goals and those are the facts

Those 100 goals came in nearly 18 seasons!  9 league goals in nearly four years for us.  He's not sub-standard, he's downright bloody hopeless.

[Rip Van We Go Again]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

And it's a strange definition of sub-standard that describes an entire career played in the Premier League, at a level only a minute fraction of players can ever attain. He may not have been good enough with Villa, he definitely got paid too much but almost certainly he got further in his career than any of us will in ours. Anyone making a cheap, easy joke about him should remember that.

I agree the cheap shots from people who've barely seen him play (for other teams) are wrong and while I concede that he's had his moments throughout his career, decent England appearances and (I think) 20 goals in one season for Liverpool, he was way past his best for us and he WAS sub standard in a Villa shirt, which at the end of the day is all that concerns me, i'm not interested in barnstorming performances for Leicester and Liverpool and the complimentary remarks from Michael Owen.

A past it player when we signed him.

[dave.woodhall]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

And it's a strange definition of sub-standard that describes an entire career played in the Premier League, at a level only a minute fraction of players can ever attain. He may not have been good enough with Villa, he definitely got paid too much but almost certainly he got further in his career than any of us will in ours. Anyone making a cheap, easy joke about him should remember that.

I agree the cheap shots from people who've barely seen him play (for other teams) are wrong and while I concede that he's had his moments throughout his career, decent England appearances and (I think) 20 goals in one season for Liverpool, he was way past his best for us and he WAS sub standard in a Villa shirt, which at the end of the day is all that concerns me, i'm not interested in barnstorming performances for Leicester and Liverpool and the complimentary remarks from Michael Owen.

A past it player when we signed him.

We pretty much agree of most of the Heskey debate then. I can't help but think that much of what's being said about him now was said about Sir Graham 19 years ago.

[Damo70]

The fact that he had become a figure of fun in the eyes of the media and hence the eyes of casual fans and played for the noses by the time he came to us didn't help to say the least. I was quite happy that we bought him when we did to strenthen the squad and as a back up to Carew. Good at some things, always did his best, had his limitations and had a pretty poor goalscoring record for a PL and international striker. As has already been touched on, not his fault if taking all that into consideration people paid big transfer fees and wages for him and picked him for England.

[Californian Villain]

A past it player when we signed him.

This is the bottom line, and I bet even Emile couldn't quite believe it when we offered him that contract.

[PeterWithesShin]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

Thats just your opinion......he cant be sub standard to have played for England so many times and scored over 100 premiership goals and those are the facts

Those 100 goals came in nearly 18 seasons!  9 league goals in nearly four years for us.  He's not sub-standard, he's downright bloody hopeless.

I bet you'd swap your career for his though.

[Risso]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

Thats just your opinion......he cant be sub standard to have played for England so many times and scored over 100 premiership goals and those are the facts

Those 100 goals came in nearly 18 seasons!  9 league goals in nearly four years for us.  He's not sub-standard, he's downright bloody hopeless.

I bet you'd swap your career for his though.

You could say that about any footballer who's ever pulled on a pair of boots.  Should we not comment on any of them because they all earn lots of money?

[PeterWithesShin]

and at the age of 34 need never work again.

And?
Joey Barton need never work again, he's still an arsehole.
Emile isn't, but he's still a very lucky, sub standard footballer.

Thats just your opinion......he cant be sub standard to have played for England so many times and scored over 100 premiership goals and those are the facts

Those 100 goals came in nearly 18 seasons!  9 league goals in nearly four years for us.  He's not sub-standard, he's downright bloody hopeless.

I bet you'd swap your career for his though.

You could say that about any footballer who's ever pulled on a pair of boots.  Should we not comment on any of them because they all earn lots of money?

Well I wouldn't swap with the Barnet reserve keeper. Or 1000s of others.

But I would with Emile, as i'm sure you would. So i'm not going to slate someone when I wish I had a fraction of their ability and had spent the last 15 years playing and scoring for my country, playing at major tournaments for my country, winning a few trophies, playing for Villa, scoring for Villa, scoring in front of the Holte all the while earning more money than I can ever dream of.

[Percy McCarthy]

Man, when Emile broke into that Leicester team he looked like the future of English football.

Unfortunately for English football, he was.

[Rip Van We Go Again]

But I would with Emile, as i'm sure you would. So i'm not going to slate someone when I wish I had a fraction of their ability and had spent the last 15 years playing and scoring for my country, playing at major tournaments for my country, winning a few trophies, playing for Villa, scoring for Villa, scoring in front of the Holte all the while earning more money than I can ever dream of.

Tell you what, I'll never say another bad word about Marlon Harewood.
He's much better at football than me and minted to boot,

[PeterWithesShin]

But I would with Emile, as i'm sure you would. So i'm not going to slate someone when I wish I had a fraction of their ability and had spent the last 15 years playing and scoring for my country, playing at major tournaments for my country, winning a few trophies, playing for Villa, scoring for Villa, scoring in front of the Holte all the while earning more money than I can ever dream of.

Tell you what, I'll never say another bad word about Marlon Harewood.
He's much better at football than me and minted to boot,

The Marlon Harewood who has never won anything, never played for England and has spent a fair part of his career outside the top flight?
But hey,if it makes you happy to bring up a player that has failed to do a lot of the things that make me wish i'd had Emile's career just to try and score a point on the internet then knock yourself out.

[Risso]

But I would with Emile, as i'm sure you would. So i'm not going to slate someone when I wish I had a fraction of their ability and had spent the last 15 years playing and scoring for my country, playing at major tournaments for my country, winning a few trophies, playing for Villa, scoring for Villa, scoring in front of the Holte all the while earning more money than I can ever dream of.

Tell you what, I'll never say another bad word about Marlon Harewood.
He's much better at football than me and minted to boot,

The Marlon Harewood who has never won anything, never played for England and has spent a fair part of his career outside the top flight?
But hey,if it makes you happy to bring up a player that has failed to do a lot of the things that make me wish i'd had Emile's career just to try and score a point on the internet then knock yourself out.

If anybody is indulging in petty point scoring, it's you.  The "he must be good he's earned lots of money" is really rather a feeble argument.  And Fletch is right, Marlon Harewood has played for Villa, and scored for Villa, so by your reckoning, you'd want to swap careers with him.