Tom Cleverley - Now signed for Everton

[David_Nab]

The pisser is we basically gave him first team football all season despite 90% of the time him being shit just so he can fuck off to Everton .who messed him about last summer leaving him no option but to come to us or play in the united reserves.

[Chris Jameson]

I hope I'm wrong about Sherwood as well, but I'm not convinced that he's anything more than a Keegan-style manager, someone who can motivate a team but does little else, tactically. 

My thoughts exactly, except substitute Stuart Pearce for Keegan.

[itbrvilla]

I hope I'm wrong about Sherwood as well, but I'm not convinced that he's anything more than a Keegan-style manager, someone who can motivate a team but does little else, tactically. 

My thoughts exactly, except substitute Stuart Pearce for Keegan.

My thoughts.  I'm dreading next season.

[Dante Lavelli]

My list of alternatives based on possible availability.  Varying quality but all probably have matched Cleverly for form at various points.

Ki / Shelvey / Dembele / Hughes (Derby) / Lucas / Loan a youngster from Chelsea / De Jong / Arteta / Aussie at Palace

The point being that he is replaceable.

Ideally we need a bit more muscle to either replace Westwood or complement him in a sitting two.  Versus Arsenal our midfield offered zero protection for the defence.  There is that slightly worrying quote from Sherwood where he says he likes all action midfielders, rather than specialist, which (imo) is always likely to result in a few chaotic performances (some great, some shite).

[passitsideways]

The pisser is we basically gave him first team football all season despite 90% of the time him being shit just so he can fuck off to Everton .who messed him about last summer leaving him no option but to come to us or play in the united reserves.

I think that's unfortunately far more reflective of how shit our options in midfield were, especially when Delph was injured. Sanchez had his ups and downs associated with settling in, Bacuna and Richardson weren't/aren't good enough to play there, Gardner needed playing time down in the Championship, and we couldn't afford moving Clark out of defence given how well he was doing there.

[PaulWinch again]

Thing is I wouldn't be that bothered about him going if I had any belief that we could or would spend decent money replacing him.

[Le Lapin]

The pisser is we basically gave him first team football all season despite 90% of the time him being shit just so he can fuck off to Everton .who messed him about last summer leaving him no option but to come to us or play in the united reserves.

The pisser is we basically gave him first team football all season despite 90% of the time him being shit just so he can fuck off to Everton .who messed him about last summer leaving him no option but to come to us or play in the united reserves.

Exactly what I'm thinking.  What a waste of a season for us. We get in a manager that gets him playing again, gets the best out of him, gets him on the edge of and England squad. And then he pisses off.

[not3bad]

I want to see what Villa have to say about this before I pass any judgements about what it might or might not mean.  Potentially worrying though, if it's a judgement from Cleverley about our ambition and potential.  And contradicts the words from Delph after he signed his new contract.

[mr underhill]

but Delph clearly has an emotional investment in a club that stood by him when he was almost permanently injured and a moral compass that is very different from most footballers. TC never wanted to be at Villa and epitomises everything that is wrong about PL footballers.

[Dave]

TC never wanted to be at Villa and epitomises everything that is wrong about PL footballers.

How's that then? It looks like he's signing for a manager that he's worked with before, that he clearly trusts for a club closer to his home that has better immediate prospects than us.

I'd rather he stay with Villa, but it's not like he's doing anything particularly horrendous by choosing not to.

[Toronto Villa]

TC never wanted to be at Villa and epitomises everything that is wrong about PL footballers.

How's that then? It looks like he's signing for a manager that he's worked with before, that he clearly trusts for a club closer to his home that has better immediate prospects than us.

I'd rather he stay with Villa, but it's not like he's doing anything particularly horrendous by choosing not to.

I agree. It's not like the decision to go to Everton is so utterly bizarre. There are plenty of reasons why they are a better choice than us for him today.

[Ron Manager]

Dave's right. You are forgetting he is not an Aston Villa player and never was. He can choose whatever club he wants to. The club that offers the best deal for himself and his family is the club that he will sign for. It may be us but most of the factors suggest it will be Everton.

We shall have to wait and see.

[aj2k77]

There's no way we should be offering Cleverley a contract that would cost us £17m+ anyway. 30 odd games and about 6 or 7 good performances. He was Ok-ish and there are better abroad for a lot less.

[KRS]

Not overly bothered if he goes or stays...he can be replaced but the only downside is that its likely to be more expensive to get someone as good if not better.

What I find more concerning is that ppl seem to have faith in Sanchez getting better. This bloke is clearly as gormless as Gabby with even less talent. The only way to improve Sanchez is to sell him and replace with a genuinely better player.

[SteveN]

Not too fussed about him going elsewhere, a hey-ho moment.

I would like to see a big ugly midfielder added who is a leader. Jedinek at Palace type of player, not sure if Sanchez fits the bill.