Tyrone Mings

[PaulWinch again]

All he said was "we must stick together". It's an impressive leap to go from that to him "sussing" we have fans that aren't helping.

Indeed.

[AV82EC]

He’s quite vocal on social media and seems to have quickly sussed out the fact we have a group of fans who really aren’t helping.

I saw that and he’s dead right. The total frustration of some of our supporters has been simmering under the surface since relegation, it hasn’t gone away, not sure what it’s going to take to purge it so we can all move forwards.

[aj2k77]

He’s quite vocal on social media and seems to have quickly sussed out the fact we have a group of fans who really aren’t helping.

I saw that and he’s dead right. The total frustration of some of our supporters has been simmering under the surface since relegation, it hasn’t gone away, not sure what it’s going to take to purge it so we can all move forwards.

Some decent football and results?

[sirlordbaltimore]

He’s quite vocal on social media and seems to have quickly sussed out the fact we have a group of fans who really aren’t helping.

I saw that and he’s dead right. The total frustration of some of our supporters has been simmering under the surface since relegation, it hasn’t gone away, not sure what it’s going to take to purge it so we can all move forwards.

Acceptance that we are what we currently are and that pretending we aren't isn't helping anyone.

It's this old 'we're Aston Villa' mindset that not only drives other people outside the club barmy but me and others i go with also.

It's absolutely irrelevant and if people keep trying to compare what is now with what once was they'll never get over the fact we're currently shit and get behind the current team/manager/board and support us back to where we all want (but not deserve) to be etc etc

They've got to get in the now and stop living in the past. Time has moved on.

[paul_e]

Sorry, can't agree with that. It's not about people living in the past, it's about looking at everything, except the squad, at the club and KNOWING that this is a top half of the premier league club. we should never forget that, we should never get over it. We got relegated because we made a lot of bad decisions, in fact we're closing in on a decade since we first started on this path when we let MON buy a new back 4 for the 2nd year running but think Downing was the only extra attacking player we needed. We won't get back to where we want to be by thinking we're shit and deserve to be here, we'll get back there by having a plan on what we want to do and sticking to it. Part of that plan will be that we've got facilities and a reputation that is vastly above most teams in this league which gives us plenty of advantages so long as we know how to use them.


Living in the past is thinking that someone like Bruce of Fat Sam or Warnock could come in and 'do a job' and then we'd replace them once we're promoted. We've seen teams do things the right way, get promoted and stay up for a while, the issue is the likes of Swansea, Southampton, Bournemouth, etc are small clubs who are fine until things go wrong and then they just haven't got the structure to ride things out. All of them know that though, which is why they've put money into their grounds and training facilities whilst things were going well in the hope that getting back (or holding on and rebuilding) will become easier.


Smith is a nod to the future, he may not be the right choice but if he isn't he'll be the wrong choice for the right reasons and hopefully the club will be, even if the results haven't come, better setup for the next guy. Sherwood, RDM and Bruce each left a clusterfuck in their wake, I doubt Smith will do the same.

[tomd2103]

Sorry, can't agree with that. It's not about people living in the past, it's about looking at everything, except the squad, at the club and KNOWING that this is a top half of the premier league club. we should never forget that, we should never get over it. We got relegated because we made a lot of bad decisions, in fact we're closing in on a decade since we first started on this path when we let MON buy a new back 4 for the 2nd year running but think Downing was the only extra attacking player we needed. We won't get back to where we want to be by thinking we're shit and deserve to be here, we'll get back there by having a plan on what we want to do and sticking to it. Part of that plan will be that we've got facilities and a reputation that is vastly above most teams in this league which gives us plenty of advantages so long as we know how to use them.


Living in the past is thinking that someone like Bruce of Fat Sam or Warnock could come in and 'do a job' and then we'd replace them once we're promoted. We've seen teams do things the right way, get promoted and stay up for a while, the issue is the likes of Swansea, Southampton, Bournemouth, etc are small clubs who are fine until things go wrong and then they just haven't got the structure to ride things out. All of them know that though, which is why they've put money into their grounds and training facilities whilst things were going well in the hope that getting back (or holding on and rebuilding) will become easier.


Smith is a nod to the future, he may not be the right choice but if he isn't he'll be the wrong choice for the right reasons and hopefully the club will be, even if the results haven't come, better setup for the next guy. Sherwood, RDM and Bruce each left a clusterfuck in their wake, I doubt Smith will do the same.

Totally agree Paul and I don't want us to ever just accept our lot as a Championship club.  The money we spent over the past few seasons should have seen us assemble a squad too strong for this league, but it was spent badly in a lot of cases. 

They had a bit of an advantage with the Mendes link (right or wrong), but Wolves spent the same kind or less money and bought a number of players who were probably a bit too good for the league and got the best out of those that were inherited.  We have not even come close to doing that. 

[Drummond]

We need to accept it right now though. Because that's the reality.

[sirlordbaltimore]

I rest my case.

[paul_e]

You can rest it if you like but if think that what me and tom have posted somehow provs your point then you might need to take another look.

[sirlordbaltimore]

You can rest it if you like but if think that what me and tom have posted somehow provs your point then you might need to take another look.

It doesn't matter if we have billionaire owners, 40 thousand people turning up or that we once won the European Cup

It's about the now. If people are forever going to sit and moan about the good old days or compare what we have now to what we once had it just breeds negativity to my mind. They'll never be happy with even a slight bit of progression as it will never be enough.

We aren't something special and we don't deserve to be anywhere but where we are. We accept that, and we do something about it.

[PeterWithesShin]

Anyone that thinks being Aston Villa doesn't still make a difference to the rest of the league should be asking themselves which other clubs in this league would have got Appleyard (twice), Edens and Sawiris and so on. The vast majority of players and managers in this league wouldn't hesitate to leave their current clubs to join us, and it wouldn't be just for the cash for a lot of them.

Apart from a few that sill seem to think we should be spending tens of millions every transfer window everyone knows where we are. We're a mid-table second division side. I'll be fucked if i'll ever accept we're a second division club though and there's a massive difference between the two things.

We are Aston Villa, we are something fucking special.

[Ads]

We aren't something special? What a load of bollocks.

[dave shelley]

We are the most special football club in the world, bar none.

[brian green]

Playing results come and go.  Quality is timeless.  Even at times like now when we are playing very, very badly I feel sorry for people who are not Villa supporters and I am especially sorry for my nephew who claims to have become a  Citeh fan.  He will get battered at my funeral.

[paul_e]

You can rest it if you like but if think that what me and tom have posted somehow provs your point then you might need to take another look.

It doesn't matter if we have billionaire owners, 40 thousand people turning up or that we once won the European Cup

It's about the now. If people are forever going to sit and moan about the good old days or compare what we have now to what we once had it just breeds negativity to my mind. They'll never be happy with even a slight bit of progression as it will never be enough.

We aren't something special and we don't deserve to be anywhere but where we are. We accept that, and we do something about it.

I said nothing about winning anything but 40k tickets every week and billionaire owners does matter, we have better commercial revenue and people who are used to handling massive assets. Every signing talks about the facilities being amazing because they are, and it matters.

We're in the championship, everyone knows that and personally I'm not that interested in comparison to previous squads, but that doesn't mean we forget who we are. Aston Villa is a big 'brand' in the sport, why the fuck would anyone not want to acknowledge that?

We aren't special but, unlike 80 odd teams in the English leagues we could be, that's what you're trying to make people forget and it won't happen,  and nor should it.