Randy Lerner

[Toronto Villa]

Gestede will score 20 in the championship

I don't think Gestede would score 20 on a pinball machine. Unless we shape the whole team around him.

He scored 20 in it last season.

One season PWS.  Daryl Murphy scored that many as well last season.

Isn't the more significant point that it demonstrates the quality of that division and the gap between the PL and the next tier down? That despite going down Burnley and Hul are in contention to come straight back up, and the likes of Gestede can score 20 goals.

[Irish villain]

Gestede will score 20 in the championship

I don't think Gestede would score 20 on a pinball machine. Unless we shape the whole team around him.

He scored 20 in it last season.

One season PWS.  Daryl Murphy scored that many as well last season.

Isn't the more significant point that it demonstrates the quality of that division and the gap between the PL and the next tier down? That despite going down Burnley and Hul are in contention to come straight back up, and the likes of Gestede can score 20 goals.

Fair point. It does show the difference in standard. It also underlines in red ink how utterly stupid we were to try to replace a player like Benteke  with a one-season wonder at that inferior level.

[supertom]

Gestede will score 20 in the championship

I don't think Gestede would score 20 on a pinball machine. Unless we shape the whole team around him.

He scored 20 in it last season.

One season PWS.  Daryl Murphy scored that many as well last season.

Isn't the more significant point that it demonstrates the quality of that division and the gap between the PL and the next tier down? That despite going down Burnley and Hul are in contention to come straight back up, and the likes of Gestede can score 20 goals.

I think many of Rudy's goals came courtesy of a half decent winger at BBurn. He's had absolutely no supply for us, without Amavi. And as we've seen, if you can't play to his one strength, he's useless. I just wonder if Garde's brand of football is too modern and forward thinking for a CF like Gestede, whereas someone like Pubehead could be having a field day with Rudy, whilst simultaneously making us thoroughly one dimensional.
That said we've yet to pick up any sort of dimension, under any manager since Brillo-head left. I suppose one gameplan is better than none.

Again, this summer is make or break. If we can't find a game-plan, be it under Garde, or another manager, we're going to tread water in the championship. Any players will have to suit whoever might be in charge. An old school manager may get something out Gestede, but I'm not sure someone a bit more cultured will. Not that I'm suggesting we should oust Garde just to get 20 goals from Rudy. As much as Blackburn have scored in the past couple of seasons with the benefit of playing to Rhodes and Rudy's strengths, they've been way off getting promoted.

[Toronto Villa]

IV, it hasn't worked out, but then again when a player does well the level below they might be ready to step up. You don't always know if it will work out. The one thing I will say is that when you buy a player like Gestede who is limited to say the least then you must buy the players and play with the tactics that will get the most out of him. It has to pretty route one stuff or a strategy to get crosses in quickly and often. Thing is in the PL you cannot be one dimensional which is also why Gestede looks so much more effective off the bench than when he starts. When we have based our game plan around him we have been figured out all too quickly.

Supertom, my post pretty much aligns with yours in terms of required resources for a player like Gestede.

[sickbeggar]

Personally i've seen no evidence that Garde is a modern forward thinking manager to be honest, unless the ability to get your team to pass and defend effectively is a trait of an old school manager. In that case, he's definetly one.

[aj2k77]

Gestede will score 20 in the championship

I don't think Gestede would score 20 on a pinball machine. Unless we shape the whole team around him.

He scored 20 in it last season.

With a team shaped around him. 2 wide men, plenty of crosses. We decided to go with the 1 fullback as the playmaker instead.

[aj2k77]

I assume the guy with the X-box is Paddy Reilly, the guy who turned up Veretout, Ayew, Amavi and Gueye? The better signings from the summer.

And have looked very very average, unless you are just comparing the to Westwood, Clark etc, then yes they're the better players but they also cost nearly £30m and compared to the rest of the league haven't pulled up any trees at all.

Don't get me wrong, I think they're Ok and will do better with better players around them obvioously but they certainly haven't looked anything like worth the money we paid.

[ChicagoLion]

I assume the guy with the X-box is Paddy Reilly, the guy who turned up Veretout, Ayew, Amavi and Gueye? The better signings from the summer.

And have looked very very average, unless you are just comparing the to Westwood, Clark etc, then yes they're the better players but they also cost nearly £30m and compared to the rest of the league haven't pulled up any trees at all.

Don't get me wrong, I think they're Ok and will do better with better players around them obvioously but they certainly haven't looked anything like worth the money we paid.

Agree, those players have shown some potential but not good enough to build the team on. my comment was more about the regime that put that squad together and thought it was good enough.

[PeterWithesShin]

They also had Rhodes who scored 21 so Blackburn weren't set up for just one man.

Obviously he needs crosses to be really effective but as you said we have Amavi who can can put in cracking crosses and they can hardly have foreseen he'd be out for so much of the season, plus i'd imagine they'd have expected/hoped for more appearances from Adama. As well as more from Jack and Gil. The potential supply line is there, but a combination of injuries and lack of form have stuffed that.

[Yossarian]

Does anyone else hear David Bowie's Andy Warhol from Hunky Dory whenever they read Randy Lerner but "Andy Warhol" is replaced with "Randy Lerner". "Randy Lerner looks a scream, hang him on my wall...". No? Just me then.

[Villa in Denmark]

I assume the guy with the X-box is Paddy Reilly, the guy who turned up Veretout, Ayew, Amavi and Gueye? The better signings from the summer.

And have looked very very average, 1 unless you are just comparing the to Westwood, Clark etc, then yes they're the better players but they also cost nearly £30m and compared to the rest of the league haven't pulled up any trees at all.

Don't get me wrong, I think they're Ok 2 and will do better with better players around them obvioously but they certainly haven't looked anything like worth the money we paid.

Agree, those players have shown some potential but not good enough to build the team on. my comment was more about the regime that put that squad together and thought it was good enough.

1. I was comparing them to Gestede, Richards and Lescott who you removed from the quote.

2. This bit is important, but I think the overriding problem all season hasn't so much been that we've got 25 players who are completely shit to a man, but we've not had 11 men on the pitch who want to work as a team, apart from that run of 5 or 6 games before the Liverpool debacle.

In that kind of environment everyone looks shit, unless they pull the odd rabbit out of the hat as Ayew has done on a couple of occasions.

They've certainly been the ones that have looked the most like competent footballers for the majority of the time, with mentions for Cissokho since he returned and Okore/Lescott for the 5 or 6 games mentioned above.

I'm struggling to think of anyone else I'd describe as competent from the regular 15-18 names that are around the teamsheet.

Amavi - Potentially the brightest of the bunch. If you're not convinced about him defensively, he ought to make an excellent left sided midfielder.

EDIT - missing half of a sentence.

[Louzie0]

http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-ignominy-of-aston-villa-1455834198
News of our demise has even reached the WSJ. Nice watercolours though

I agree, good ones of VP.
Interesting that the writer is in favour of promotions/ delegations to liven up the home game.

[tomd2103]

Gestede will score 20 in the championship

I don't think Gestede would score 20 on a pinball machine. Unless we shape the whole team around him.

He scored 20 in it last season.

One season PWS.  Daryl Murphy scored that many as well last season.

Isn't the more significant point that it demonstrates the quality of that division and the gap between the PL and the next tier down? That despite going down Burnley and Hul are in contention to come straight back up, and the likes of Gestede can score 20 goals.

Wasn't having a go, just pointing out that strikers sometimes have a hot season and to judge them on that might not be the wisest move.  Daryl Murphy, for example, couldn't stop scoring last season, yet he hasn't got anywhere near that kind of form in the rest of his career,  the otter factor to consider is the level.  I remember watching the Youtube video of Gestede's goals last season and thinking he benefitted from some pretty ordinary defending. 

As for Rudy himself, I still think he could have a role as an impact sub coming on in the latter stages. 

[Toronto Villa]

Didn't take it that way Tom. And you might be right and that was Gestede's one bright season. I hope not for our sake but he seemed to make easy work of some of the CB's in that division. I still stand by the point that I made on another thread that the Championship has maybe 4 or 5 good sides to contend with along with whoever comes down. After that our success will be very much down to how well we do against a lot of very average or poor sides. Not saying it will be easy because it won't be but it shouldn't be as challenging as some might think especially if we can develop any kind of momentum. We should have more than enough with a couple of astute additions to come back up.

[LeeB]

I assume the guy with the X-box is Paddy Reilly, the guy who turned up Veretout, Ayew, Amavi and Gueye? The better signings from the summer.
Where consensus seems to have been that Richards, Lescott and Gestede were Sherwood's own picks?

Throw in Traore also who will end up being a significant player

He may well do, but spending a fair chunk of our meagre kitty on him as a promising talent, when we've got gaping sink holes in our first team was utter folly.

Like buying a massive hot tub for the garden, only you still live in a tower block.