Randy Lerner

[dave.woodhall]

80-90% of Villa fans who don't post on message boards wont even know who the General is
so I doubt if many of them are getting all worked up about it

So do you have to post  to have any knowledge of the club you have supported for 56 yrs?

That's not what's being said.

Yes it is.

No it is not. What's being said is that most Villa supporters, in fact most football supporters, don't really care about the ins, outs and politics of their club. They want to watch the match, read about the team and occasionally talk about it  but they don't particularly want to spend hours of every day arguing the toss on the internet. If it were any different the forums and blogs would have tens of thousands of contributors rather than a few hundred and I'd have long retired on the back of H&V sales that rivalled those of the Sun.

Are those necessarily mutually exclusive though?

They're not, but I believe most supporters just want to watch football. Even at the height of the Ellis wars most of our fanbase didn't care one way or the other.

[oldhill_avfc]

General Krulak is no doubt a brave man.  You don't become a General without having guts.

However his comments today are embarrassing.

Why is he no doubt brave?
There's many ways to become a general - I doubt being brave is one. 

You'd imagine being strategically aware and using tactical nous might be closer to the mark - but he's never demonstrated that either.  Why on earth Lerner thinks he's ever been asset to the board I'll never know.

Perhaps Lerner likes a man in uniform? lol

[Pat McMahon]

The saddest thing about the position we are in and the amount of press coverage we have got recently is that there has been nothing about any interest in anyone purchasing the club from Randy.

Obviously 95% of that occurs behind confidentiality agreements etc but it would be a rare light in the tunnel of mediocrity if a takeover story broke.

The club is a mess from top to bottom and we're about to lose about 40% of our turnover and have the image of a rotting sardine. The only people interested right now I imagine would be vultures looking for a cheap deal.

I think even those looking for a cheap deal will bide their time in the hope that we fall further and the asking price comes down further. 

My take completely too.

[Pat McMahon]

Surely Lerner won't want to sell us at the moment with the price he'd get now buyers won't consider us a PL side, he'll have to hope we come straight back up and then get rid.

Anything that Randy hopes or puts his mind to tends not to work out or happen and  I have absolutely zero faith in Lerner getting us straight back up.

I think the greatest hope for peace in the free world is that Randy takes over IS and gradually mismanages them downwards to local vandals status.

[kippaxvilla2]

Is there a survival plan?
The reason we are spending so much time talking about the General, is because no one from the club has told us what the plan is in this transfer window.
Twist or stick?

Garde has come out and said that he has players in mind and he has already mentioned wanting Remy.

Okay so where are the bids then?  Where are the signings?  There's another league game on Tuesday.  How long do we wait?  Until we've played our 23rd game? 

[aj2k77]

80-90% of Villa fans who don't post on message boards wont even know who the General is
so I doubt if many of them are getting all worked up about it

You'd be surprised. People who don't use heroesandvillains.info can read as well you know. Blinky has been in the press often enough down the years for a fair portion of fans to know who he is.

Same would go for Tom a Fox as well,
your the one that would be surprised to find the majority of Villa fans don't live in our little internet bubble, and find everything they do and say worth analysing

So most Villa fans haven't heard of Tom Fox or Colonel Blinky? Really?

[aj2k77]

I think Lerner well and truly busted the myth that in the sky money era premier league clubs are a money spinner. As well as the myth that we have the potential to swell our support by converting neutrals in the area, given there were no signs of this happening even when we were the up and coming club and jostling with Arsenal for 4th place.

So, I agree with you PW, there's not an obvious way out of this from an ownership perspective. Let's face it billionaires looking for an ego project will have their pick of clubs better than us, more undervalued than us and better located than us (well, in London).

One thing I would say is that even when we were challenging for 4th, we were doing it with functional football and British, hard working players. We didn't make too many marquee signings at all or play the kind of entertaining football that puts bums on seats. I'd say the increase in crowds to 40,000 average were just your standard Villa fans coming back to the fold. Marlon Harewood, Sidwell and Knight aren't going to put bums on seats, especially when you win less than 50% at home.

[London Villan]

Without winning a trophy we were averaging 40k and that was playing the industrial football we played at home. There would have been further growth had we actually won something.

[cheltenhamlion]

General Krulak is no doubt a brave man.  You don't become a General without having guts.

However his comments today are embarrassing.

Why is he no doubt brave?
There's many ways to become a general - I doubt being brave is one. 

You'd imagine being strategically aware and using tactical nous might be closer to the mark - but he's never demonstrated that either.  Why on earth Lerner thinks he's ever been asset to the board I'll never know.

Perhaps Lerner likes a man in uniform? lol

His military career is very impressive and started at the bottom of the ladder. I am very uncomfortable with the personal abuse he is attracting here.

[Rudy65]

From The Sun. Hilarious witticisms comparing Villa with the the U.S. military omitted.

The Sun

General Charles Krulak says Aston Villa will summon the spirit of the US Marines to escape the drop

Home Garde told: Don’t panic!

GENERAL Charles Krulak says Aston Villa will summon the spirit of the US Marines to escape the drop.

The rock-bottom Midlands outfit are marooned on eight points — a whopping 11 adrift of safety.

And they have had more managers than wins this season!

Tim Sherwood at least guided Villa to a 1-0 victory at Bournemouth on the opening day of the Premier League season.

Following Sherwood’s sacking, new boss Remi Garde has picked up just four points from nine games.

But board member Krulak — reclusive owner Randy Lerner’s right-hand man — claims Villa should draw inspiration from his own glittering military career.

The 73-year-old was a commander in the first Gulf War and also served in Vietnam.

He told SunSport: “I faced way bigger 'losing battles' than this — and won them.

“You can’t tell me this is impossible. Three wins in a row and we are back in the mix.

“That’s what Randy believes and what everyone at the Villa believes. The day you don’t believe is the day you quit.

“Let’s just look at Desert Storm. It was 4am and we were standing next to minefields separating Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. There were trenches filled with gas, massive artillery ready to rain down on us and the threat of chemical attack.

“My next in command looked at me and said, ‘How are we gonna get through this?’

“I said, ‘We’re gonna do it, we’re gonna go through this like a knife through butter’.

“It’s easy to give up but you can’t do that. We fought our way through those minefields and the rest is history.

“Never forget that Randy’s father was also in the US Marines and he shares these values, these beliefs.”

A belief in miracles would probably be handy right now.

Villa have gone 19 games without a Premier League win and still need four points to pass Derby’s record low of 11 points during a Prem season, set in 2008.

There are suspicions Villa will keep their powder dry in this month’s transfer window and save their money for the Championship.

But Krulak added: “I speak to Randy almost every day.

“He is a man of high values and integrity — the equal of anyone I have ever known.

“His word is his bond. Nobody has their sights set on anything other than staying up and Randy is backing the manager 100 per cent.”

What other businesses would let a 73 year old man, who knows nothing about the company he represents comment on our current mess?  Dont these guys know when to retire We are a laughing stock.

Awful

[shipscat]

Surely Lerner won't want to sell us at the moment with the price he'd get now buyers won't consider us a PL side, he'll have to hope we come straight back up and then get rid.

Anything that Randy hopes or puts his mind to tends not to work out or happen and  I have absolutely zero faith in Lerner getting us straight back up.

I think the greatest hope for peace in the free world is that Randy takes over IS and gradually mismanages them downwards to local vandals status.

  Applause!  Unfortunately,it's in his nature that General Krulak always plays a adventurous hospital ball,when a nice easy recycling of possession is required.I've encountered numerous American marines in the past,and they all seen to have some dodge of downtown reality...Which would be absolutely priceless in the Villa dressing room,if only for the dose of salts administrated to some of our priceless pooches,but sounds supremely naive and cumbersome out of a hack's report.

As for Randy,I wonder if is own son,Max, is planning a little more time in the Uk, casting an eye.He's seen us at least a couple of times over the Christmas period.

[auntiesledd]

General Krulak is no doubt a brave man.  You don't become a General without having guts.

However his comments today are embarrassing.

Why is he no doubt brave?
There's many ways to become a general - I doubt being brave is one. 

You'd imagine being strategically aware and using tactical nous might be closer to the mark - but he's never demonstrated that either.  Why on earth Lerner thinks he's ever been asset to the board I'll never know.

Perhaps Lerner likes a man in uniform? lol

His military career is very impressive and started at the bottom of the ladder. I am very uncomfortable with the personal abuse he is attracting here.

It's a shame he decided to come out with the guff he has then, otherwise his thoughts would've remained a mystery - along with his other good buddy.

[SheffieldVillain]

General Krulak is no doubt a brave man.  You don't become a General without having guts.

However his comments today are embarrassing.

Why is he no doubt brave?
There's many ways to become a general - I doubt being brave is one. 

You'd imagine being strategically aware and using tactical nous might be closer to the mark - but he's never demonstrated that either.  Why on earth Lerner thinks he's ever been asset to the board I'll never know.

Perhaps Lerner likes a man in uniform? lol

His military career is very impressive and started at the bottom of the ladder. I am very uncomfortable with the personal abuse he is attracting here.

It's a shame he decided to come out with the guff he has then, otherwise his thoughts would've remained a mystery - along with his other good buddy.

Why does the fact his comments are considered guff call for comments about his military career, and Randy Lerner's sexual preference?

[kippaxvilla2]

There's no doubting his bravery and military career records so let's stop focusing on the personal.

Let's instead focus on the absurdity of the football comments particularly in relation to Randys so called backing of a survival plan - precious little of which has been in evidence so far.

[themossman]

General Krulak is no doubt a brave man.  You don't become a General without having guts.

However his comments today are embarrassing.

Why is he no doubt brave?
There's many ways to become a general - I doubt being brave is one. 

You'd imagine being strategically aware and using tactical nous might be closer to the mark - but he's never demonstrated that either.  Why on earth Lerner thinks he's ever been asset to the board I'll never know.

Perhaps Lerner likes a man in uniform? lol

His military career is very impressive and started at the bottom of the ladder. I am very uncomfortable with the personal abuse he is attracting here.

It's a shame he decided to come out with the guff he has then, otherwise his thoughts would've remained a mystery - along with his other good buddy.

Why does the fact his comments are considered guff call for comments about his military career, and Randy Lerner's sexual preference?

Also can you be specific about his strategic failings, militarily and in relation to Aston Villa?