Pre-season 2024/25 - Borussia Dortmund

[Dogtanian]

New fixtures added;

https://www.avfc.co.uk/news/2024/june/05/villa-confirm-pre-season-fixtures/

Athletic Club Bilbao (August 7th, Bescott) and FC Spartak Trnava (July 20th, away).

Quite annoying that it's at home, given I'll be in Bilbao on August 7th.

Does your arrival in places often spark a mass exodus? 

[Percy McCarthy]

Soldier Field. Superb

Any one want any tips for Chicago, should be a fun few days.

It’s a place I lived also CL. A brilliant city.

Is it your kind of town?

It’s a fabulous place. Architecture is beautiful. A proper US city. Everything feels very big. People are great. Yes there is crime and that takes the headlines. But like any place you generally have to go find it or be in a bad spot at the wrong time. And maybe not to the same extend but that is also true of every American city. You could make that case just about most major UK cities also. I still have friends there and love to visit when I can.

How easy is it to find the crime exactly? Would I be able to rub shoulders with the Outfit lads on Grand Avenue?

Working on a plot for a new book, Percy?😜

Sadly, no. Although some of the mafia stories I’ve heard would no doubt be plagiarised if I was.

[dcdavecollett]

Perce, I'm currently reading 'I Heard You Paint Houses' by Charles Brandt which deals with Mafia involvement with the Teamsters union in 70s/80s America. Have you read it?

The book was the basis for the Scorsese film 'The Irishman'.

[Percy McCarthy]

Perce, I'm currently reading 'I Heard You Paint Houses' by Charles Brandt which deals with Mafia involvement with the Teamsters union in 70s/80s America. Have you read it?

The book was the basis for the Scorsese film 'The Irishman'.

I haven’t mate, but The Irishman was total fantasy. Miles off the truth. Frank did fuck all that he claimed to do. I was also quite offended by the lack of credit given to The Partnership (the Tocco-Zerilli crime family//Detroit mafia). They were so efficient it beggars belief.

One solitary rat and zero murders ever solved, unsurprisingly tasked with the Hoffa hit - and we know how unsolved that is! Yet they’re hardly mentioned in the film.

I’m sure I’d enjoy the book if I could get past being annoyed by the fact that Frank Sheeran didn’t kill Hoffa, or Crazy Joe Gallo (probably the coolest gangster ever, who Dylan wrote a song about, that does a better job of telling Joe’s story than Scorsese did).

I’m probably a bit more precious about this stuff than a) I should be and b) normal people.

[ChicagoLion]

We had a function in a bar in the Viagra Triangle, we had to vacate the space by 9pm.
We still had a few guests when some very interesting people started drifting into our area, you would have thought it was a Gangster themed fancy dress party until you realised this was the real thing, I decided to go and apologise to who was obviously the main dude.
With my best English accent I walked up, offered my hand and said Excuse me Sir  , I am really sorry that my guests are still here but I am moving them on to the bar.
He held on to my hand put his huge mit on my shoulder stared into my eyes and in a very deep Chicago accent said, “don’t you worrying about this, your friends welcome here”
The women made up and looked like molls, there was a guy in spats, all had huge black coats, there was greased back hair lots of hats , waist coats , double breasted jackets, some of the women accompanying the guys were glammed up and 30 +years younger than  their dates.

It is reputed that many of the restaurants bars on the Gold Coast have been in the same ownership for a very long time.

[Chap]

Perce, I'm currently reading 'I Heard You Paint Houses' by Charles Brandt which deals with Mafia involvement with the Teamsters union in 70s/80s America. Have you read it?

The book was the basis for the Scorsese film 'The Irishman'.

I haven’t mate, but The Irishman was total fantasy. Miles off the truth. Frank did fuck all that he claimed to do. I was also quite offended by the lack of credit given to The Partnership (the Tocco-Zerilli crime family//Detroit mafia). They were so efficient it beggars belief.

One solitary rat and zero murders ever solved, unsurprisingly tasked with the Hoffa hit - and we know how unsolved that is! Yet they’re hardly mentioned in the film.

I’m sure I’d enjoy the book if I could get past being annoyed by the fact that Frank Sheeran didn’t kill Hoffa, or Crazy Joe Gallo (probably the coolest gangster ever, who Dylan wrote a song about, that does a better job of telling Joe’s story than Scorsese did).

I’m probably a bit more precious about this stuff than a) I should be and b) normal people.

Blimey, we better not upset you on match threads else we may get the horse head treatment!

[Dogtanian]

Imagine waking up with Bosko Balaban’s severed head.

[Percy McCarthy]

Perce, I'm currently reading 'I Heard You Paint Houses' by Charles Brandt which deals with Mafia involvement with the Teamsters union in 70s/80s America. Have you read it?

The book was the basis for the Scorsese film 'The Irishman'.

I haven’t mate, but The Irishman was total fantasy. Miles off the truth. Frank did fuck all that he claimed to do. I was also quite offended by the lack of credit given to The Partnership (the Tocco-Zerilli crime family//Detroit mafia). They were so efficient it beggars belief.

One solitary rat and zero murders ever solved, unsurprisingly tasked with the Hoffa hit - and we know how unsolved that is! Yet they’re hardly mentioned in the film.

I’m sure I’d enjoy the book if I could get past being annoyed by the fact that Frank Sheeran didn’t kill Hoffa, or Crazy Joe Gallo (probably the coolest gangster ever, who Dylan wrote a song about, that does a better job of telling Joe’s story than Scorsese did).

I’m probably a bit more precious about this stuff than a) I should be and b) normal people.

Blimey, we better not upset you on match threads else we may get the horse head treatment!

I’ll give you a pass for quoting my post and bringing it to my attention. I’d been up 28 hours when I posted it and for most of yesterday I was racking my brain trying to think what topic it could have been in.

Pre-season… of course, it’s so obvious now!

[VillaTim]

I'd love to go Chicago if we play there , looks an amazing City.

[Percy McCarthy]

Perce, I'm currently reading 'I Heard You Paint Houses' by Charles Brandt which deals with Mafia involvement with the Teamsters union in 70s/80s America. Have you read it?

The book was the basis for the Scorsese film 'The Irishman'.

I haven’t mate, but The Irishman was total fantasy. Miles off the truth. Frank did fuck all that he claimed to do. I was also quite offended by the lack of credit given to The Partnership (the Tocco-Zerilli crime family//Detroit mafia). They were so efficient it beggars belief.

One solitary rat and zero murders ever solved, unsurprisingly tasked with the Hoffa hit - and we know how unsolved that is! Yet they’re hardly mentioned in the film.

I’m sure I’d enjoy the book if I could get past being annoyed by the fact that Frank Sheeran didn’t kill Hoffa, or Crazy Joe Gallo (probably the coolest gangster ever, who Dylan wrote a song about, that does a better job of telling Joe’s story than Scorsese did).

I’m probably a bit more precious about this stuff than a) I should be and b) normal people.

Blimey, we better not upset you on match threads else we may get the horse head treatment!

I’ll give you a pass for quoting my post and bringing it to my attention. I’d been up 28 hours when I posted it and for most of yesterday I was racking my brain trying to think what topic it could have been in.

Pre-season… of course, it’s so obvious now!

Oh, and just one more thing… for now. Bill Buffalino is portrayed in The Irishman. In real life he was a powerful Teamsters official, a top of the range defence lawyer, and a made member of the Mafia. A pretty impressive bloke I’d say. Who do they get to play him in The Irishman? Ray Fucking Romano.

[ChicagoLion]

I'd love to go Chicago if we play there , looks an amazing City.

we are playing there, Soldier Fields ,it is an amazing City.

[VillaTim]

I'd love to go Chicago if we play there , looks an amazing City.

we are playing there, Soldier Fields ,it is an amazing City.

I'm going to try and make that even if its a 2/3 day flying visit.

[eamonn]

Imagine waking up with Bosko Balaban’s severed head.

Hey, he was cute.

[Dogtanian]

Walsall friendly tickets £17 a go;

https://www.avfc.co.uk/news/2024/june/17/Walsall-ticket-details/

[astonvilla82]

Is that a big increase on last year game?