Aston Villa Group End of Year Accounts - year end May 31st 2022

[Toronto Villa]

The manager talks about mentality. What he means is the ability have the toughness to withstand and overcome disappointments while having the fortitude to press how advantages. Being smart and even cynical when needed. We have Emi’s shithousery which addresses some of it but look across the rest of the side. We are lacking players who are capable of being what the manager wants in key outfield positions. That will change this summer.

Had to check to see if you or I was on the wrong thread. I think it’s you TV.

Haha I was adding to the conversation a couple of pages back about bringing in certain types of player to improve us thus improving our overall performance as a club. I realize that it has fuck all to do with the topic itself in reality.

[rob_bridge]

Didn’t someone say we’re fourth since we very belatedly got rid of the incompetent scouse fraud?

If you remember Percy there was a lot on here telling us that we had made a seismic jump since Dean left after Gerrard's first 6. All sorts of conclusions were drawn to prove that Smithy was useless and Steven is the new Brian Clough.
So no doubt me and you and the rational one's will wait another 12 games before raising our hopes.

You did, and you were right.

He's already had 12 league games. Not enough to draw any long term conclusions, but certainly enough to see us be beyond the "new manager bounce". 

We've won 7, lost 4 and drawn 1.  Three of the losses were away to Liverpool and Man City and home to Arsenal (a game we were leading twice) - and we also beat Man Utd and Spurs.  If these games had been the first 12 games of the season, we'd be in the top four, having already played FIVE of the six teams with realistic hopes of being in the top four themselves.  And we've done all that without suddenly becoming a sparklingly entertaining side. Lots of good periods in games, some very good performances, and some pretty drab and forgettable ones too - as you'd expect from a side transitioning to a new style of play.

But if you can't let yourself get a LITTLE bit excited by Emery's start after that, when can you?

My Blues supporting mates and Cov supporting cousins are worried that he is the real deal - like when we got BFR and MON (yeah I know snakeoil). However they have been a useful barometer in the past

[rob_bridge]

The gist of the podcast is that without our current owners we would be now where near the premier league - and we could be another Portsmouth

there's a few clubs like that I imagine

Sheffield Wednesday Sunderland Derby

[algy]

Realistically who out of Man City, Man Utd, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arse, Tottingham and Newcastle will we finish ahead of over 38 matches? One of them having a bad season like Chelsea possibly Newcastle yes but that's 6th at best.

I think Spurs are catchable. Their recruitment has been pretty poor in recent times. Once Harry leaves/winds-down, they'll be in trouble.

Do Newcastle really belong on that list? They’ve won 1 game in the league this year. I think they over achieved earlier in the season but it’s started to catch up with them.

Yeah, when they were going through that terrific run of form earlier and folk were saying how great they were, I had visions of them experiencing something similar to the John Gregory/Yorke departure season.  It's just ... the thing that seems to put sides like Tottenham, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manc Utd* apart is they're just machines - even if they have a bit of a rubbish start, they end up just grinding out win after win as the season progresses and the other sides begin to tire.  Looking at the table, I think the sides currently 6th-9th (Newcastle, Fulham, Brighton, Brentford) will all end up tailing off.  Fully expect the final table to end up being some combination of Arsenal, Manc City, Manc Utd, and Liverpool.  Spuds in 5th, Chelsea 6th.

In my mind, our chance this season is trying to finish as 'best of the rest', in 7th.  We ought to give Chelsea a good run for their money - I don't think 6th is completely off the table as they're still stuttering, but I'm still expecting them to come good at some point soon-ish.

A place in Europe is our key in to this.  We need a large enough squad with enough quality in it that we maintain momentum even when a few players are injured, out of form, etc.  To me, we need European football if we're ever going to be able to challenge the Scab 6 - and realistically there's only one berth ... maybe 2 if Chelsea continue to make a hash of things ... available to do that.  It's the only show in town, we have to be in it.


* I leave off Manc City because they just seem to not really have rough patches at all for the past ... decade?

[paul_e]

Realistically who out of Man City, Man Utd, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arse, Tottingham and Newcastle will we finish ahead of over 38 matches? One of them having a bad season like Chelsea possibly Newcastle yes but that's 6th at best.

I think Spurs are catchable. Their recruitment has been pretty poor in recent times. Once Harry leaves/winds-down, they'll be in trouble.

Do Newcastle really belong on that list? They’ve won 1 game in the league this year. I think they over achieved earlier in the season but it’s started to catch up with them.

Yeah, when they were going through that terrific run of form earlier and folk were saying how great they were, I had visions of them experiencing something similar to the John Gregory/Yorke departure season.  It's just ... the thing that seems to put sides like Tottenham, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manc Utd* apart is they're just machines - even if they have a bit of a rubbish start, they end up just grinding out win after win as the season progresses and the other sides begin to tire.  Looking at the table, I think the sides currently 6th-9th (Newcastle, Fulham, Brighton, Brentford) will all end up tailing off.  Fully expect the final table to end up being some combination of Arsenal, Manc City, Manc Utd, and Liverpool.  Spuds in 5th, Chelsea 6th.

In my mind, our chance this season is trying to finish as 'best of the rest', in 7th.  We ought to give Chelsea a good run for their money - I don't think 6th is completely off the table as they're still stuttering, but I'm still expecting them to come good at some point soon-ish.

A place in Europe is our key in to this.  We need a large enough squad with enough quality in it that we maintain momentum even when a few players are injured, out of form, etc.  To me, we need European football if we're ever going to be able to challenge the Scab 6 - and realistically there's only one berth ... maybe 2 if Chelsea continue to make a hash of things ... available to do that.  It's the only show in town, we have to be in it.


* I leave off Manc City because they just seem to not really have rough patches at all for the past ... decade?

I'm not so sure. The problem with buying the number of players they have is that it then takes time to integrate those players into the squad. Add to that a manager who spent a few years producing a team at Brighton that looked good but didn't score enough goals and I can see them struggling to put any major runs of form together before the summer. I do expect 2-3 of the sides above us to have a bad patch though, Brentford in particular given they're likely to lose Toney for the rest of the season at some point soon.

[Percy McCarthy]

Sorry if I missed it, did anyone post the Swiss Ramble summary?

https://swissramble.substack.com/p/aston-villa-finances-202122