Aston Villa Thread

Parks Lives wrote:Its bollocks.

Its the one position they shouldn't be strengthening.

Davis is ace.

and if davis gets injured? we've got djemba-djemba (done nothing in premiership), lee hendrie (lots of effort, occasional stunning goal but generally pretty poor) and gardner (unproven). and that's it. plus davis, good as he is, is only 21 - adding an experienced player like petrov, who o'neill obviously knows well, seems a very sensible move.

not saying it's the most important area of the team to strengthen, but i think petrov will be a good signing.

Whats your views on Agbonlahor Debaser?

So you will drop Davis or play 5 in midfield to accommodate both?

Hi Tweedledum,

Yeah, I live in Scotland. Agathe is a limited player in many important respects, but I’ve always enjoyed watching him run up and down the right-hand side. He failed to remain consistent, though, even before O’Neill left Celtic; and after Strachan became manager, he rarely – if ever – featured.

Thanks

Obispo wrote:It amazes me how many people think that someone O'Neill has turned dross into European contenders. He gets so much praise for 2 wins and a draw, but O'Leary is thought of as a failure, despite getting them to 6th in his first season - missing out on europe only thanks to Boro's carling cup win - and he only bought Gavin McCann and Sorenson for about £3.5 million.

The only difference is that O'Neill wil get backing from the board at the end of the season.

agree o'leary did well first season, but you can't put the last 2 seasons of mediocrity down to lack of money. have you noticed the number of villa players who've recently implied they would've been leaving this summer if o'leary stayed - i've counted moore, barry, angel, baros, mellberg - this was clearly not a motivated, happy team. plus, last summer at least, he did spend 10m+. and ended up finishing 16th.

Always said O'Leary was a poor manager.

People wont have it on here, fuck knows why.

Tweedledum wrote:Whats your views on Agbonlahor Debaser?

exciting prospect. had a great scoring record for reserves and such, and he seems to be adapting well to playing wide. him and moore as pacy links between midfield & lone forward angel is working well. i'll be interested to see what happens with baros when he comes back. can't see him working as well in the role angel is playing

Parks Lives wrote:So you will drop Davis or play 5 in midfield to accommodate both?

its a difficult question, so to avoid answering it i will say it makes a welcome change for villa to have a choice of quality players in any particular position

seriously though i don't see why they can't both be accomadated. possibly a 3-5-2/5-3-2:

------cahill-mellberg-ridgewell----
hughes------------------------barry
------petrov--mccann--davis-------
--------------angel baros-----------

obviously that's missing moore/agbonlahor, but this gives us options

Or you could go 4-3-3 with

Hughes-Mellberg-Ridgewell-Barry

------Petrov--McCann--Davis-----

---Agbonlahor---Angel---Moore---


Besides, if he's looking for a good cup run (what odds Aston Villa win the league cup this season?) then he's got some games to play with, and no one expects to play every single game.

saintgoingmarching wrote:Or you could go 4-3-3 with

Hughes-Mellberg-Ridgewell-Barry

------Petrov--McCann--Davis-----

---Agbonlahor---Angel---Moore---


Besides, if he's looking for a good cup run (what odds Aston Villa win the league cup this season?) then he's got some games to play with, and no one expects to play every single game.

exactly. that's another good option there. i really don't think o'neill is signing petrov to just replace davis, it's all about improving the squad

Well, Petrov and Davis are both attacking central midfielders, but they both cover plenty of ground and aren't afraid of a tackle. Moore and Agbonlahor are enthusiastic runners and will help the midfield press the opposition for the ball, as O'Neill likes his teams to do.

The point is that Villa have a small squad, though they've got a reasonable amount of talent. The right player here, the right player there, a few more options and they could have a very good season.

Hanson on o'neill/Villa

Aston Villa are a club that has hit the jackpot - and I don't mean by attracting the financial firepower of new majority shareholder Randy Lerner.

I mean by tempting Martin O'Neill to end his managerial exile and return to football after taking time out to care for his wife Geraldine while she was ill.

Martin has got the magic touch, and while he will be the first to calm euphoria surrounding Villa's current third place after three Premiership games, he has had just the start he wanted.

It is to the detriment of other clubs that they could not tempt Martin back, because when you are talking about the top three or four managers in this country, he is right in there.

With all due respect to Villa, given their recent past and position in the Premiership, I suspect they could hardly believe their luck when they were able to get him.

I have got all the time in the world for Martin.

He has got a priceless ability to walk into a room, whether it is a dressing room, a crowd or a BBC studio, to liven the place up - to make people happy and feel better about themselves.

Martin also has a bit of a reputation as some sort of eccentric, someone who is a little bit all over the place - you can forget that.

When it comes to football he is a very smart man. He knows his stuff and knows what is required for success. You only have to look at his previous clubs to see that.

Villa got off to a good start at Arsenal and have built on that with wins against Reading and Newcastle.

The good days aren't back yet and Martin will be keen to point out that it could all look different after three more games, but you can build the platform for a top six place in the Premiership with a sound start.


Keane's appointment is a gamble for him and Sunderland - but a gamble well worth taking


I've been getting a bit of stick for suggesting Villa could finish in the top six after Martin's appointment - some of that was light-hearted to put a bit of pressure on Martin, but there is no reason why they can't achieve that.

You have the established top four in the Premiership, then after that it is much of a muchness.

If Martin can add one or two more players, then who is to say they cannot cement a top six place?

But one thing is certain, Villa have a real chance of achieving things under one of the shrewdest managerial operators in the game.

Villa were lucky enough to be able to get an established name to head up a new era.

Sunderland and Middlesbrough have gone down a different route by letting untried young men with no managerial experience take their jobs in the shape of Roy Keane and Gareth Southgate.

I do not know Roy Keane, but I do know he is not stupid and he will call on all the experience he has gained to try and make a success of things at The Stadium of Light.

He is not used to failure and will do everything in his power to ensure his name is never associated with it.

The pressures will be different. Sunderland will want Keane to restore them to where they feel they should be, while Southgate has to build on the success and stability Middlesbrough have enjoyed, reaching the Uefa Cup final last season.

Keane will have to accept, which is difficult, that Sunderland's players are not as talented as he was. He cannot demand they should be as good as him, but he will be demanding they be as committed as him.

He may bring someone in who knows the players, and he will also be smart enough to know he needs to keep the dressing room together.

Southgate has a different balancing act to achieve because he will have mates in Middlesbrough's dressing room having gone from being a key player to being the manager, and it is very difficult to drop a mate.

I was at Liverpool when Kenny Dalglish, a very good friend of mine, went from being a player (a truly great one as well) to being a player-manager.

It was very clear from the start who was manager, all of us understood that.

He made me captain, and as well as me knowing he was now the manager, he also understood I was a player.

Kenny knew I wouldn't be coming to him with titbits and gossip from the dressing room and I knew he wouldn't ask. This would have been footballing suicide.

Gareth will be learning all these things and I wish him every success.

So, three managers with three very different tasks. It will be intriguing to see how their seasons unfold.

Villa are meant to be chasing Saviola according to his agent. Would be a very surprising move.

http://home.skysports.com/list.aspx?hlid=413025&CPID=23&clid=7&lid=&title=Agent:+Villa+chasing+Saviola+deal

Good move, but IMO they are more desperate for a target man - the closest they have at present at Angel and I'd hardly call him a target man

Do you think Saviola would go to Villa? I just can't see it, I'm sure he has had offers from other places that he would find much more appealing.

Debatable, he will probably want some sort of European competition.

But he probably also recognises Villa's good start and O'Neills credentials so its not impossible

nice come on martin

great manager

i'd be surprised, but obviously pleased, if he came. not the obvious sort of player that we need, but if a player of that quality would come to villa we'll definitely take him.

saviola/angel would've been a truly lethal partnership on championship managers of yesteryear!

jesus just noticed we're being even more fancifully linked with tevez. about 2 months ago the only player we were getting linked with was danny mills. crazy times

Jesus noticed?

Must be true then

EVERYONE is getting linked with tevez at the momentt. Even rennes in France have been linked

Villa have just signed Stilian Petrov from Celtic on a four year contract. Think the fee is about £6.5m

Depending on whether O’Neill reverts to his favoured 3-5-2/5-3-2 formation, or adheres to the one he has used so far with Villa, signing Maloney from Celtic could be a prudent purchase.

Maloney on the left and Agbonlahor on the right would make for very fast attacking football down both wings for Villa. Maloney cuts inside very effectively, is skilful, direct, an excellent free-kick taker, can finish from distance, a hard worker, and a good athlete. McGeady is another excellent young player O’Neill will know about who can also play on the left. Although he is technically better than Maloney in many ways, he lacks the same level of athleticism that is required in the Premiership.

I’m not sure which would be more successful in the Premiership: two defensively minded wing-backs on either side of the pitch or two fast, skilful wingers on either side; I know which one would probably be more exciting, though – but excitement isn’t necessarily the purpose O’Neill has in mind when he purchases players.

looks like milner signing is back on. he'd be good for us, we need someone who can play on the right. if him and agathe sign, gives good options

what do you think of your chances against the hammers?

It'll be a good game, I think it will be a draw

Maloney and McGeady are both very good players the bulk.

I have the feeling that in the long term, Mcgeady will be the better player than Maloney - he seems to potentially have it all - reminds me a lot of Schweinsteiger

@ debaser

Would be a great signing - Roeder is clueless with his players - Milner has been one of their better players this season - would be a major coup if you got him.

luisgarciahedrinkssangria wrote:what do you think of your chances against the hammers?

It'll be a good game, I think it will be a draw

have to be happy with a draw there. not easy, especially if certain argentinian internationals are making their debuts.

Tweedledum wrote:Maloney and McGeady are both very good players the bulk.

I have the feeling that in the long term, Mcgeady will be the better player than Maloney - he seems to potentially have it all - reminds me a lot of Schweinsteiger

@ debaser

Would be a great signing - Roeder is clueless with his players - Milner has been one of their better players this season - would be a major coup if you got him.

Hi Tweedledum,

I agree absolutely, McGeady is going to be a technically better player than Maloney; I just think he lacks the necessary athleticism to make a consistent contribution for a good team in the Premiership – and I think it’s inherent, unfortunately.

I also think Maloney has a better temperament than McGeady; but that may be attributable to his seniority and greater age.

McGeady once commented that Riise was the most difficult opponent he’d faced, due to his strength, presence, ability and speed. McGeady can create space for himself exceptionally well; he just doesn’t have the acceleration to get away from players. He has to become much more direct too.

I wouldn’t consider him for the Premiership due to his stunted physical abilities; he may thrive in other leagues, though.

Thanks

whats that young right winger from Rangers called?

Hi borocooper,

Are you thinking of Chris Burke? He has blonde hair and played well against Villarreal last year.

Yeah thats the one, he was looking good last year. Is he playing well this year??