Lambert in or out? Poll reset with majority 'in', 7th May

[PeterWithesShin]

This bit is particularly snidey.

Of course, it has all ended happily. No trophy for the 17th season in succession, but at least Villa will take their place in the Premier League next season.

It is incredible, really, what Lambert - and to a lesser extent the club - has overseen in terms of managing expectation. Hats off. They've managed it downwards magnificently.

[PeterWithesShin]

I wonder if he would write a similar article about Pardew and Newcastle for example?

[PeterWithesShin]

Does anyone out there have the remotest idea of what £100m looks like? I don't.
Yet this is the loss borne by the club on top of record revenues.
It is a fantastic sum. Put into sharp focus by the fact that both West Bromwich Albion and Swansea City - both of whom will finish above Villa this season - have posted a profit.

Want a bet that happens next season? And anyway, what does that have to do with anything ya prat?

And before anyone starts yes, it is relevant.

Sorry Neil, carry on.

Manchester City and Chelsea won the Premier League and Champions League last season because of what, exactly?

I'm no expert but i'm going to guess because they spent more money than anyone else? How is this relevant to Villa?

Sure, they had the best teams. Assembled at a cost in excess of £1.7bn...

No shit Sherlock Street. And the relevance we are are still waiting for?

But waste, sadly, is nothing new at Villa Park. Thankfully, steps are being taken to address that issue.
But bright new dawn? Hang on a minute.

So actually, despite telling us not to start because it was relevant, it actually wasn't?

[KevinGage]

I just don't see the point of it.

He asks why people are celebrating staying up - they're not, they're celebrating the fact we didn't go down, are we supposed to not be relieved at that?
Being happy in this instance is not some sort of acceptance of a new level of expectation. Ask Newcastle or Sunderland fans if they were as happy not to go down, too.

He then throws a load of moans together about Lambert, one of which is Bradford, which pretty much every single Villa fan would agree on, and was months ago, and another is Chelsea away, even longer ago, then gives some begrudging praise for recent results.

For a change, a club and fans have stuck with a manager when things have gone shitly, yet there always has to be someone ready to stick the boot in.

I read it as an end of season review -with reference to our recent past and succesful era for context.

With that in mind, it would be a bit weird if he completely airbrushed the Bradford and Chelsea horror shows from existence.

[PeterWithesShin]

I just don't see the point of it.

He asks why people are celebrating staying up - they're not, they're celebrating the fact we didn't go down, are we supposed to not be relieved at that?
Being happy in this instance is not some sort of acceptance of a new level of expectation. Ask Newcastle or Sunderland fans if they were as happy not to go down, too.

He then throws a load of moans together about Lambert, one of which is Bradford, which pretty much every single Villa fan would agree on, and was months ago, and another is Chelsea away, even longer ago, then gives some begrudging praise for recent results.

For a change, a club and fans have stuck with a manager when things have gone shitly, yet there always has to be someone ready to stick the boot in.

I read it as an end of season review -with reference to our recent past and succesful era for context.

With that in mind, it would be a bit weird if he completely airbrushed the Bradford and Chelsea horror shows from existence.

If that was the case, why does he mention Bradford and Chelsea more than once and yet hardly mention any of the positives from the season?

[ozzjim]

I read it earlier and wondered what his agenda was. Who does he support? And is he one of the MON followers, which might explain it a bit.

[pauliewalnuts]

He used to come to the odd Villa match with us at school, but he was a Blues fan.

However, that's not what his problem is, until relatively recently he's been pretty impartial and of the "if it is good for the region's football, it is good for me" school, which is laudable.

It just seems he's had a bee in his bonnet about us recently.

I don't even understand what he is trying to say in most of that article. Says we've wasted hundreds of millions but then moans about expectations being managed down when we cut back?

As for the Chelsea and Man City references, I don't know what he is trying to say there.

[frankmosswasmyuncle]

Sorry.
Strikes me as a journo having a cheap shot at an easy target. No doubt, no-one knows better than us that we've struggled over recent seasons.  A lot of Prem clubs - eg Stoke/Sunderland have had no heights to come down from!
It's really easy to have a go at what teams haven't done - most teams win nothing - but he seems to be relishing in the fact that we haven't.
Has he done similar articles on 17/18 other Prem clubs?
Following his "model" here, we all could - just insert club name!
If  he pops into the Plough on Worcester St I'll confront him. Hope he brings a mop. But the best thing about being a journo is you can say what you like, put it up in lights and no-one ever gets the chance to answer your shit in the same way.
Wanker!

[dekko]

He strikes me as being very similar to a few posters here who would relentlessly slate the team and manager while minimizing and downplaying anything positive.  Some people just looooove having a moan.

[pauliewalnuts]

It strikes me as if he had a real assassination piece ready to roll when we went down, but then we didn't, so he made a few tweaks and ran it anyway.

I mean, surprised Villa fans are glad we didn't go down? Really?

[PeterWithesShin]

He used to come to the odd Villa match with us at school, but he was a Blues fan.

However, that's not what his problem is, until relatively recently he's been pretty impartial and of the "if it is good for the region's football, it is good for me" school, which is laudable.

It just seems he's had a bee in his bonnet about us recently.

I don't even understand what he is trying to say in most of that article. Says we've wasted hundreds of millions but then moans about expectations being managed down when we cut back?

As for the Chelsea and Man City references, I don't know what he is trying to say there.

It does seem strangely negative, and yet doesn't even make sense as a hatchet job.

And I didn't get the Man City or Chelsea comments either, which is why I took the piss above.

[pauliewalnuts]

It isn't the job of the press to support us, I get that, entirely, but that piece was just a bitter sounding, nonsensical, incoherent rant.

[PeterWithesShin]

It isn't the job of the press to support us, I get that, entirely, but that piece was just a bitter sounding, nonsensical, incoherent rant.

I wonder if he was pissed when he wrote it?

[KevinGage]

You see what you want to see, I guess. 

Because he's not fawning over Lambert (as is the recent trend) or in the 'Lambert we trust' vanguard, he is being snidey, or someone has pissed on his chips. 

Maybe he just thinks the jury is still out on the bloke, based on the many mistakes made this season.  By any reasonable measure, it has been a poor campaign.  A poor season with some fantastic brightspots, undoubtedly.  But poor all the same.

[DeKuip]

Moxley is a nose working the Daily Mail. Doesn't that tell you something.
Even the recycling plants can't wash the shit out of that paper.