Stephen Ireland

[paul_e]

cant perform if not playing regularly

He's had enough chances and the fans have been very supportive of him all things considered.  If he was a youngster fresh from the reserves I'd be willing to give him a bit more of a chance but this is a guy on the best part of 70k a week.

[richardhubbard]

I dont get the Collymore love in, the guy signed for 7m ,  spunked his time at the club earning god knows what.

I understand he was ill but all that talent , in my eyes he treated all with contempt .

Ireland a clueless knob.

Alpay had an ego of house

Callaghan was just useless

Hodge .....

It seems we generally sign good players on big money and once every five years , they turn generally shit


Our shit rate over last 20 years is pretty horrific if you add Curcic, Ginola and Balaban to that list.

[Greg N'Ash]

It's funny how all the players that have been given the cold shoulder over the last couple of years are the ones on the most money. Anyone who thinks its nothing more than an amazing coincidence is off their rocker.

Riiggghhhtt.....so the club's plan was to lower the wage bill by not using these players and therefore making them virtually unsellable to anyone? They would have been much easier to get off the wage bill if they were playing regularly and attracting interest, rather than moping around with the youth players.

Of course you're riigghhhttt! No club in their right mind would touch the likes of Bent with the barge pole because he's been frozen out at the Villa for most of the season. He'll be in the Villa reserves for the rest of his career.

no-one who can afford his wages will - the clubs that would have him will expect us to pay him off wages wise or else he will stay. See also Beye, Heskey, Harewood, Sidwell, NRC, Cuellar and all the others who went on a free or for a pittance at the end of thier contracts

[paul_e]

I dont get the Collymore love in, the guy signed for 7m ,  spunked his time at the club earning god knows what.

I understand he was ill but all that talent , in my eyes he treated all with contempt .

Ireland a clueless knob.

Alpay had an ego of house

Callaghan was just useless

Hodge .....

It seems we generally sign good players on big money and once every five years , they turn generally shit


Our shit rate over last 20 years is pretty horrific if you add Curcic, Ginola and Balaban to that list.

Collymore had, what is now, a well publicised serious case of depression to which Gregory's response was pretty much "you're young and rich, what have you got to be upset about" and not letting him have much to do with anything at the club.  Fundamentally he wasn't mentally prepared to be a 'celebrity' and he didn't cope with it, then on top of that we did very little to help him through it.  Yes he didn't have a goo time here but I don't think it was for want of trying.  The difference between him and Ireland is that I've never for a second thought that Ireland thinks of us as his club, he doesn't even pretend to be happy here.  Collymore I always thought wanted things to work out but it just didn't, and if you hear him talk about it now that's the impression you get as well.

[old man villa fan]

If we could find somebody to take him on a free transfer at the end of the season, pay him £40k a week and then we pay him off with £1.5m.  That would save us £2m next season if he is not going to get into the team.  I think it would be for the best if we cut our losses sooner rather than later.

[saunders_heroes]

I dont get the Collymore love in, the guy signed for 7m ,  spunked his time at the club earning god knows what.

I understand he was ill but all that talent , in my eyes he treated all with contempt .

Ireland a clueless knob.

Alpay had an ego of house

Callaghan was just useless

Hodge .....

It seems we generally sign good players on big money and once every five years , they turn generally shit


Our shit rate over last 20 years is pretty horrific if you add Curcic, Ginola and Balaban to that list.

Hodge was a class A tw@t, but he was a good player for us until he decided he wanted to leave and conquer the footballing world.

[N'ZMAV]

Collymore can fuck right off. Although, he has some decent opinions, what gets on my tits is he was a fucking waster, he seems to forget that when he's on his high horse.

[rob_bridge]

Collymore can fuck right off. Although, he has some decent opinions, what gets on my tits is he was a fucking waster, he seems to forget that when he's on his high horse.

Gregory's handling of him in hinsight was shit. However at the time the 'get a grip' was typical of managers at the time.

The end of the day he beat up his then girlfriend (in public). Sorry that is the act of a Grade A Bellend.

[richardhubbard]

Collymore not prepared to be a celebrity Really. Is that stan I wear a badge of honour of my past collymore who earns his living spouting his mouth of on radio , tv and in print.

He effectively robbed villa of 10 m , notvat lot in it with Ireland barring Ireland tastevin pink cars.

Collymore an a grade gob shite and  makes savage  look a class act
.

Depression or what ever sins he still a bully of a dogging knob.

Mind due never liked him at primary school

[SoccerHQ]

Not surprised by this.

I think Lambert would've ditched him after Wigan if there had been enough midfield cover but he didn't then step up against Bradford to compound things.

He totally lost me with his can't be arsed performance against Wigan really.

[SoccerHQ]

It's funny how all the players that have been given the cold shoulder over the last couple of years are the ones on the most money. Anyone who thinks its nothing more than an amazing coincidence is off their rocker.

Riiggghhhtt.....so the club's plan was to lower the wage bill by not using these players and therefore making them virtually unsellable to anyone? They would have been much easier to get off the wage bill if they were playing regularly and attracting interest, rather than moping around with the youth players.

Of course you're riigghhhttt! No club in their right mind would touch the likes of Bent with the barge pole because he's been frozen out at the Villa for most of the season. He'll be in the Villa reserves for the rest of his career.

He'll leave in the summer.

[damon loves JT]

Yes. We have had some low points this season but for me Wigan was the lowest.

[SoccerHQ]

Ireland also play his inglourious part in the two debacles beforehand aswell. Alll I can remember from him in that period was various scratches of head at the numerous times we had to kick off after conceding a goal.

I think Lambert lost faith in him from that period so not surprised by his exclusion now.

[KevinGage]

Thought he looked quite sharp up to and including the Man U game at home -and then he was dropped.  Which caused a fair degree of outrage around here at the time. 

He's been little short of woeful recently but -unless he goes out to a Championship side on loan- he's with us until the end of the season at least. We shouldn't be writing off players who can stll have a crucial impact for us - as CNZ is demonstrating at the moment.

[brian green]

The comparison between Collymore and Ireland can only begin when Ireland becomes an ex player.   I suspect that the fundamental difference will be that Collymore has made a genuine and sustained effort to acknowledge and correct his failings as a player and is fighting back from a genuine and serious illness.   If Ireland holds his hand up in future years and admits his failings post Man City I shall extend to him the same respect I extend to Collymore.

As I see the big picture with regard to under performing players on big wages and long contracts the fault lies with the administration of the club which has allowed us to become identified by players and agents as a soft touch and an easy ride.  My personal attitude to Stephen Ireland is that he is one of a number of parasites who have infested the club since MON went on his spending spree with the owner's money, for which I should add I hold the board of the club directly responsible for allowing him to do it.

Lowest of the low points for me was second half Millwall.