Birmingham Mail and Villa coverage

[Bottom Right 89]

What always bothers me and you can't discuss this with a nose without sounding bitter is that Enk never touched the ball from Mellbergs throw. Strictly according to the rules of association football that cannot result in a goal - it should not have counted. However it did and is still regarded as one of Small Heaths greatest moments.

Yup, should have been a corner.  Problem was Enks reaction, he obviously didn;t know the rules.  He should have just confidently picked it up and threw it towards the corner flag, wagging his finger saying he never touched it.
Talk about an incident that completely destroyed a promising goalkeeper's career.

and didn't Pete get a welcome to the Sty wanker sign and slap around the face too ?

UTV
The Doc

Yep at least that feral got what he deserved.

I see a lot of similarities between Gollo and Enckelman, both young lads, decent shot stoppers thrown in to a pressure situation - if there is any justice our new number one will have a stormer on halloween and win us the game hopefully with a goal from either a goal kick or a last minute volley Peter Schmeichel style. He will then take a booking as he reveals a t-shirt with Shit on Paul Tait written on it.

[nodge]

Didn't the ref (Ellary?) try and bullshit his way out of it by saying it touched the bottom of his boot?

[The Left Side]

Small time club, small time newspaper

[Percy McCarthy]

Small time club, small time newspaper

Each an embarrassment to the city.

[Somniloquism]

Didn't the ref (Ellary?) try and bullshit his way out of it by saying it touched the bottom of his boot?

It was Ellery, who was already up in the Blues half and in some replays, doesn't seem to be looking at the ball at the time.

[Ads]

In fairness it's difficult to make a decision when you had several hundred of them running around on the pitch. He'd have probably been attacked if he'd had given a corner.

[Stu]

It was definitely offside though. I also remember De La Cruz hitting the crossbar as well, so it wasn't all one way despite what the Mail would have you believe. If they want to reminisce about a real hammering though they could always talk about the 5-1 scoreline.

Dazzler was put through by Darren Purse, it was a legitimate goal.

[kippaxvilla2]

They barely try and hide the snide digs nowadays.

There are plenty of reasons why Gary Rowett to Aston Villa wasn't going to happen, these are the key ones

Gary Rowett won't be moving top Aston Villa, it's fair to say that it was never on the cards though.

We understand that the Birmingham City boss will be staying put and there was never any suggestion that he would be on the shortlist for the Villa Park role.

There are plenty of reasons why Rowett was never likely to make the switch, here are the key ones.

New look


Gary Rowett is settled at Blues and has just refashioned his first-team, he has moved from a 4-2-3-1 system to a new 4-4-2/4-4-1-1 shape.

He will be keen to see how this pans out for Blues.

Better placed

There is the small matter of Blues sitting in sixth place in the Championship.

Despite the riches on offer at Villa, there is also a great degree of turbulence too.

That has never been more evident than in the league position.

Blues are currently better placed for promotion than Villa and nobody wants a crack at that glory more than Rowett.

Love

Birmingham City's manager Gary Rowett celebrates after the game against Sheffield Wednesday
Birmingham City's manager Gary Rowett celebrates after the game against Sheffield Wednesday
This is a job that means the world to Rowett, it's a job that is more than a job.

When asked by Brian Dick about the Derby links recently, he said: "All I can talk about is the present and the present is I love my job, I have said it before.

“I look at the previous people that have had this role as manager of Birmingham City and there are some fantastic managers that you almost don’t feel as you should actually be holding the same position as those.

“I am very fortunate to have done it and I appreciate that. That’s all I am looking at.”

The recent WM phone in with the fans highlights the adulation that Rowett has from the fans, that is a clear bond that the manager would not wish to break with a move to the local rivals.

Or anyone else for that matter.

Ambition and aspirations are not a key factor for Rowett in any other way than he wants to succeed with Blues.

Squad depth and progression


The manager has more attacking options than ever before in his managerial career.

He now has multiple options, at No 10, three wingers, four central midfielders, four strikers.

Being manager of Blues is no longer necessarily the one arm tied behind the back slog it once was.

The depth and quality of his squad could get even better when the takeover goes through on Oct 17.

No-one's expecting an open cheque book but more investment has been promised.

Rowett would want to be in place to utilise that.

Bond with fans is still very, very strong.

There has been some criticism of his substitutions - and a hostile reaction to Wolves defeat - but it's still largely 'Gary, Gary give us a wave' and the recent WM phone in remained as much a love in as last season's.

Staff


It's not just his career he's mindful of, he's very much one of a four-man team with Kevin Summerfield, Mark Sale and Kevin Poole, who all seem very settled and working extremely well as a back-room staff.

He has autonomy with the team.

No chairman telling him which players to pick, no interference from the boardroom.

Relief


Blues fans will breathe a sigh of relief.

It would have been the worst possible scenario for Rowett to leave for Villa, but in reality it would never be on the cards.

Had Rowett been a manager of any other Championship club, it's feasible that Villa would consider him.

The way it stands, a Rowett appointment would risk a backlash from sections of both sets of fans.

That isn't something that Villa need at the moment, but even if they had tested the waters, it would have been a fruitless attempt at stealing their neighbour's prize apples.

Gary Rowett will one day be a Premier League manager, maybe even an international manager.

He has every attribute that a top quality manager needs, now Villa must try and find the same formula for Villa Park.

[Nev]

Reads like a Small Heath fanzine article.

[LeeB]

I missed the bit where we actually offered him the job.

[LukeJames]

The sign of an irrelevant club is getting excited over being above your local rivals in the league.

[dave.woodhall]

They're not even trying to hide it now...

http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/aston-villa-david-wagner-cheeky-11984390#rlabs=3%20rt$category%20p$6

[exiled on the wirral!]

That's not even remotely funny.

[LukeJames]

Well that is fucking horrendous.

[kippaxvilla2]

Why would your own local paper publish that load of shit if there isn't an agenda against the club.