Summer 2022 Transfer Thread

[Richard E]

That’s going to diminish the war chest.

[richtheholtender]

My opinion of the owners has really changed over the last 15 months, previous posts have shown this. It's hope now rather than belief with me and I really want to be wrong but I just can't see it. I have mentioned previously about net spend across the last few windows in comparisons to clubs were trying to catch but even parking that, the money we have spent have been on signings for 29/30 year old were committing to with no sell on value. Its like were not having a go with net spent but the big signings we are making have to work because there's no sell on. Unless they've spent it with the insurance against say a ramsey doing a grealish etc. Under smith and the owners I felt there was a plan, I dont see it anymore, it's like they sold Joe and don't know the next steps. I keep seeing this "if the right player isn't available we don't waste the money" and while I take than on board, what happens around us is the bigger clubs go out and make these players available. We don't do this. It's just my view but when the people at the top are coming out talking about Europe and making us one of the biggest clubs in the world, the way we are doing it I hope they're right rather than believing they're right.

[richtheholtender]

We also see alot of "FFP talk" why are we literally the only club worried about this? Yet given the chucky and Joe sales, we should be the one club completely compliant with it?

[Richard E]

FFP talk online maybe, I can’t say I’ve seen it emanating from the club to any great extent.

[Clampy]

The owners not only saved our arse as a club (when we were struggling to pay a tax bill) , they've put in a stupid amount of money,  on and off the pitch. I find it incredible that people are questioning them because we don't spend silly amounts of money every year.  They've not got a bottomless pit. If the likes of Forest want to spend up to £40m on Morgan Gibbs-White,  then let them. I'd rather we spend it wisely and not just buy for the sake of it. The squad depth wise (bar one of two position,  namely right back) is the best its been in a while. The owners have my total respect.

[Broadlee]

My opinion of the owners has really changed over the last 15 months, previous posts have shown this. It's hope now rather than belief with me and I really want to be wrong but I just can't see it. I have mentioned previously about net spend across the last few windows in comparisons to clubs were trying to catch but even parking that, the money we have spent have been on signings for 29/30 year old were committing to with no sell on value. Its like were not having a go with net spent but the big signings we are making have to work because there's no sell on. Unless they've spent it with the insurance against say a ramsey doing a grealish etc. Under smith and the owners I felt there was a plan, I dont see it anymore, it's like they sold Joe and don't know the next steps. I keep seeing this "if the right player isn't available we don't waste the money" and while I take than on board, what happens around us is the bigger clubs go out and make these players available. We don't do this. It's just my view but when the people at the top are coming out talking about Europe and making us one of the biggest clubs in the world, the way we are doing it I hope they're right rather than believing they're right.

For me IF the club is serious about joining the BIG boys then where are the Two real statement signings?  I have heard our recruitment team and scouting are v good and the owners are seriously minted so why have we not been looking at £40m plus players that make people sit up and see the ambition of the club rather than scratching around lesser players. pay the money and the elite will come. I really would like to see real statement signings where every one will go "wow" Think of the players that big Ron bought in before Doug pulled the plug, same for John Gregory and we are now supposed to be seriously rich - but they are shopping in ASDA and not John Lewis's league if they don't trust the recruitment or the manager then ? If they are serious about being big then lets see the action. I have been watching this team I love since '64 just when i think we've arrived like '74, '82, 94 etc we disappear again. - really frustrating but I KNOW my Club is better than or at least equal to the top 6 so for those with the Ambition and Drive take a leaf out of their book, get us there amongst them and show the world we exist. Do it now - you have the money - don't you? you have the same desire Don't you. Up the Mighty Villa

[andyh]

I really don’t know why there has to be an obsession with bringing in another centre half
That is not where our problems lie.

Cover for injuries and suspensions. We’ve already lost one for the season.

How many do we need?
We have 4 when Hause returns, Kamara can play CH as well.

[astonvilla82]

We spent loads of money on so called players to take us to the next level and that failed miserably,

[john e]

The owners not only saved our arse as a club (when we were struggling to pay a tax bill) , they've put in a stupid amount of money,  on and off the pitch. I find it incredible that people are questioning them because we don't spend silly amounts of money every year.  They've not got a bottomless pit. If the likes of Forest want to spend up to £40m on Morgan Gibbs-White,  then let them. I'd rather we spend it wisely and not just buy for the sake of it. The squad depth wise (bar one of two position,  namely right back) is the best its been in a while. The owners have my total respect.

They probably are a bottomless pit
But agree with the sentiment of your post

[richtheholtender]

My opinion of the owners has really changed over the last 15 months, previous posts have shown this. It's hope now rather than belief with me and I really want to be wrong but I just can't see it. I have mentioned previously about net spend across the last few windows in comparisons to clubs were trying to catch but even parking that, the money we have spent have been on signings for 29/30 year old were committing to with no sell on value. Its like were not having a go with net spent but the big signings we are making have to work because there's no sell on. Unless they've spent it with the insurance against say a ramsey doing a grealish etc. Under smith and the owners I felt there was a plan, I dont see it anymore, it's like they sold Joe and don't know the next steps. I keep seeing this "if the right player isn't available we don't waste the money" and while I take than on board, what happens around us is the bigger clubs go out and make these players available. We don't do this. It's just my view but when the people at the top are coming out talking about Europe and making us one of the biggest clubs in the world, the way we are doing it I hope they're right rather than believing they're right.

For me IF the club is serious about joining the BIG boys then where are the Two real statement signings?  I have heard our recruitment team and scouting are v good and the owners are seriously minted so why have we not been looking at £40m plus players that make people sit up and see the ambition of the club rather than scratching around lesser players. pay the money and the elite will come. I really would like to see real statement signings where every one will go "wow" Think of the players that big Ron bought in before Doug pulled the plug, same for John Gregory and we are now supposed to be seriously rich - but they are shopping in ASDA and not John Lewis's league if they don't trust the recruitment or the manager then ? If they are serious about being big then lets see the action. I have been watching this team I love since '64 just when i think we've arrived like '74, '82, 94 etc we disappear again. - really frustrating but I KNOW my Club is better than or at least equal to the top 6 so for those with the Ambition and Drive take a leaf out of their book, get us there amongst them and show the world we exist. Do it now - you have the money - don't you? you have the same desire Don't you. Up the Mighty Villa

These are my thoughts entirely. They're coming across as talking a good game. What they've done so far as good as it is was the easy part. I know they saved the club due to Xia not getting the money of out China but let's have it right, that team got to the play off final the year before, it wasn't like the owners came In and chucked £30 Mill at it and got us promoted, they just went that one step further, a big step though it was. My issue is and always has been the actions v what they are saying what they want to achieve. Take this current issue with the centre half, In my opinion for us to get in to Europe, we would have needed to improve both centre back positions. Carlos is one, so him being injured is irrelevant and we shouldn't be questioning whether we should or shouldn't be bringing in another big signing at centre .... we absolutely should. Replace Carlos now with a quality centre back and on his return, they could be a partnership that will help us improve our league position. We're going to need one anyway. They're are very clever men, who market their business well, that's obvious with how money they swim I'm and I can see why people are seduced by them but I see nothing different now to how we acted under doug and the middle part of Lerner who were both slated at times.

[ChicagoLion]

I find this criticism of the owners baffling.
Maybe a few need to have a look at how much money they have put in and are committed to put into the ground improvement.
Maybe right now the players we need and have identified are not available and rather than make do they are focused on players that can take us to the next level.

[pauliewalnuts]

I think the owners have been excellent, they've poured a fortune into the club, there is no doubting the money they've spent so far. They clearly have ambitions to improve the club at all levels, including the stadium.

There have been a couple of missteps, though. I think they missed an opportunity to appoint a top level manager when they had the chance - not having a needless pop at SG, who deserves time to show what he can do, but he's not a proven manager in a top league. I suspect that was largely done out of Purslow making an emotional decision.

The other one, and this is being somewhat harsh I think but in terms of the message sent out re what we want to achieve, there's a really fine line between being bullish and optimistic in saying where we want to go, and setting unrealistic expectations. This is a Purslow thing, really - I like the bloke, I think he knows how to run a football club, but listening to him talk I frequently wonder if he's effectively writing cheques he can't cash.

[Beard82]

were now a very run club - and are doing a lot right.

This bit is always going to be hard - as there are many other clubs trying to do the same.  Whilst the money is important, and clearly we can invest on more players - its more about how we do it and build the club.

I dont think this summer has gone to plan, either because we havent been able to attract the players, or because we havent been able to shift them.

For me, our biggest issue is on the playing side - we have a good squad but for most of the last 18 months look less than the sum of the parts, and dont know our best team. 

I think there was a clear plan with Grealish etc.  I think there is a clear plan with SG too, but I think it was a much bigger change than they were all expecting and the jury is still out on whether we are going forward or backwards.

[Beard82]

I think the owners have been excellent, they've poured a fortune into the club, there is no doubting the money they've spent so far. They clearly have ambitions to improve the club at all levels, including the stadium.

There have been a couple of missteps, though. I think they missed an opportunity to appoint a top level manager when they had the chance - not having a needless pop at SG, who deserves time to show what he can do, but he's not a proven manager in a top league. I suspect that was largely done out of Purslow making an emotional decision.

The other one, and this is being somewhat harsh I think but in terms of the message sent out re what we want to achieve, there's a really fine line between being bullish and optimistic in saying where we want to go, and setting unrealistic expectations. This is a Purslow thing, really - I like the bloke, I think he knows how to run a football club, but listening to him talk I frequently wonder if he's effectively writing cheques he can't cash.

I think this is fair - I think we have overdone the PR, and its at risk of sounding hollow. 

Its like all this game day experience, but not being able to by a pint on match day, sometimes we seem to ignore the basic underpinning requirements. 

[Clampy]

It's a little sad in a way that we're discussing the owners a couple of hours away from a game.