Well I am getting angry tonight.
Not because of the game or result but the reaction. Let me state this clear and simple.
I DO NOT WANT LAMBERT OUT
There you are. Long time readers of my posts will know I wanted Martinez before Mcleish and OGS before Lambert but they turned us down and now we can see why.
When Lambert and his supporters go on about ‘projects’ they forget how huge a club Villa is. We are not a small club like Norwich and Swansea (with respects to those clubs). We as fans demand off the club (or we used to) a greater level of ambition and desire to be with the best.
If the ‘project’ included younger players I buy into that BUT not cheap signings but top quality ones, say like Nick Powell, Zaha (he will come good IMHO) etc. Maybe go for cheaper ones for experience alongside them.
However some claim Lambert by spending £40M (the real figure pre bonuses is about £25M IMHO) should have created a better team. However given what I said before he could not. The reason ?
LERNER
Today shocked no one because the club is slowly losing/lost it’s ambition. This stems from the top and has percolated down to the manager, the players and the fans. Under Ellis I always said his greatest achievement was managing the exceptions of enough fans to keep the pressure off him.
The same applies to Lerner.
After MON through carefully placed leaks in the press, through fans sites and groups, he made it clear what happened was all MON’s fault.
I believe this to be rubbish because the owner of the club is ALWAYS responsible for what goes on and off the field. However enough believed this, enough fans were willing to believe in Lerner to think he was almost blameless.
So we come to today and Lambert is getting the blame, that is the easy option for fans. It always has been. Ellis in trouble, some protests, sod it sack Gregory and brought in Taylor and guess what ?
Protests stopped dead …
So sack Lambert and lets go around the cycle again and Lerner sits in Ohio and collects the extra TV cash for himself.
C’est La Vie
PS. Where are the protests ?
It’s disappointing to still read all these posts focusing on Lambert. When will you wake up? Lerner is the problem the criticism of Lambert takes away the emphasis from Lerner. You are all playing into Lerners hands. These posts and the out campaign need to focus on one man. One common cause, one common factor which is destroying our club LERNER. If you want things to improve all efforts/posts should be about removing Lerner. Lerner out
why did lambert take the job who of his 17 signings in 18 months would we sell on and make money to be linked with houlihan makes me sick lambert and staff are a joke but the biggest joke is pour old villa fans 4 cup defeats in a row and every one of them embarrassing we need a total rebuild for4 time in 5 years but o no family silver is all gone didnt like mon last 18 months but would give my right arm for it too return only place we are going is out of pl lerner get his money back then aresnal pool everton wba next four we couldnt beat palace or league 3 side need a new man in charge with 4 experienced players and take delph westwood wqieman luna and hide them somewhere
He has to take his fair portion of the blame, the brand of football is sooooo poor. Every game this year has been Wimbledon style long ball and give the opersition as much of the ball as the want. He chooses the playing style and training set up to implement that style, he chooses to play people out of position, he signed the contract to say he could do it on the budget provided. He cleared out all the senior players and got his young guns in. There is no enjoyment watching at villa park, I drive 250 miles every week to watch a team that can’t pass, be creative, enjoy there football and lambert has to take a fair price of the blame!
Do you not think he was appointed because he would clear out the older and more experienced players. It is why I never wanted him because the stories was like at Norwich he could not manage the experienced players like Holt.
Now he was perfect for Lerner, got a double your money wage increase and would blackball the players Lerner wanted out. Who is to blame then ?
Lambert, no? He is the one who said himself that there isn’t a wage limit and that we just won’t see players on 60k wages anymore. So if there isn’t a wage limit, which he, Lambert, said himself, then is it Lerner’s fault that Lambert… Who said himself once again that there is no wage limit, wants players that don’t want high wages?
I must be missing something here, why is Lerner to blame? He bought a business to make money, just like any other business people do, when he headhunts for the best manager to run his business working within the business plan, Lambert offers himself saying he can compete in this world. Well he can’t, Lambert picks the team, manages the play, coaches the players. So the finger has to be pointed in one direction Lambert…….
Lerner loves fans like you who are so narrow in the thinking.
Ian I’m not narrow minded, and I’m not a Lerner lover, I do think he’s ruining our club and it’s history, but he knows nothing about what goes on the pitch, that Lamberts role and he’s shite at it. Today I watched a team of footballers play Sunday morning football, do not be fooled that is Lamberts call not Lerners
VTID. How naïve are you?
Are you seriously telling me you agree with LERNERS managerial appointments, selling of assets and lack of investment?
A man who loans money to the club and pays himself interest on the loan, a man who keeps the sky money and refuses to invest. We cant even compete with Cardiff or Hull.
Lerner stopped investing/supporting the club after MON left.
Ask yourself where is the general?
ultimately Lerner employs the managers, has total control of finances, is therefore responsible for the limited budget and the poor standard of players.
Do you honestly believe Lerner is not making money?
LERNER OUT
Ted no,
Quite business minded actually, as I have already said Lerner is not my choice of owners for our beloved club, and yes he is taking money from us…..but that’s why he purchased the club, to make more money for himself, if he loses his return he will walk away. We will then have to find someone to invest or be a Portsmouth !!!
VTID, it depends on what the plan is, imo.
In any business, you have two options;
1) Invest, aim to improve (with some sort of vision) and maybe reap the benefits or
2) Strip back, save money and just tick over, making as much money as you can before it goes tits up and you have to sell or split the company in some way, with incoming investment.
I’m not exactly sure what Lerner’s plans are, but I’m convinced they don’t come in the first bracket.
As for MON, I never swallowed that shit.
You don’t win an “unfair dismissal” case (or get paid out before it goes to court) in a system that’s massively stacked in the employer’s favour, unless there is something wrong, big time.
Still, that’s gone.
I have never liked Lerner from day one. Tried to hoodwink us into thinking what a great custodian he was by rebuilding the Holte and supporting Acorns. Whilst I commend that, at the end of the day we are a Football Club, a very distinguished one at that. Fair play Randy, you had a go once with MON. When this went tits up, you lost all interest in the club. Now is the time to move on! After all, you are only the temporary custodian of this great club. This club belongs to the fans, and always will! We will not put up with a club that no longer has any ambition other than to crawl over the relegation line year after year.
We are embarrassed by the dire football churned out week after week. I have been a loyal supporter for nigh on 52 years and yes I have suffered many poor results. This I can take. What I cant take is the atrochious football that cant even compete with a League 1 team.
At the very least Lerner, tell us the truth…just a simple YES or NO……..are you still interested in taking this club forward or do we have to endure a relegation battle year after year. If you NO longer have ambition, have the balls and decency to say so. It hurts to watch this gret club dying ……..so fuck off Lerner, the Villa is OURS!
But he did give us some nice little flags to wave at the Bradford game Langford. That must be worth something 🙂
Im sorry but 99% of me disagrees with you here…….
After MON left the wage bill was so high it was impossible to carry on at that level, am I right? This is totally Lerner and aulkners fault for allowing it to happen to that extreme!!
Since then the cler plan/message to managers was to try and stay competitive whilst reducing the wage bill, which saw the likes of Yound, Downing, Milner, Carew and others leave for decent fees with little allowance back in to reinveste.. Slight blame to Lerner
you could also blame Lerner for being a little naïve in appointing Houllier and definitely blame him for the appointment of fan favourite Mccleish… but I think that’s where the Lerner blame ends!!!!
We appoint Lambert ( remember all the fans saying Lamberts claret and Blue army) etc…..
Lambert walks in and straight away goes about change ” we need to reduce the wage bill” “no more big signings like under MON” are rough quotes from Lambert..
now I totally understand we needed to lower the wage bill but what I didn’t agree with is how he has gone about it!!!!!
HUTTON, DUNNE, COLLINS, NZOGBIA, WARNOCK, GIVEN, BENT, CUELLAR, IRELAND… ALL SENT TO TRAIN WITH THE YOUTH OR RESERVE TEAMS……
WHY???????????????????????
YES they were big earners, but surely you want them earning there money playing for the club?
Lambert in my opinion has recked the carear of Bent who was an England international not so long ago.
How many of the above names would walk into our first team now???? at least half I would say.. bearing in mind most of them were the team finishing 6th not so long ago.
Today the team that took to the field was Lamberts team…. luna, lowton, helenius, benteke, tonev, bacuna, al ahemedi,… ill ask again, how many are better than the lot above?
today we played against a team from league 1, last home game we played against a team just up from the championship, last year we were neaten in both cups by teams from lower divisions……IM no expert on transfers and clubs chairmen but please tell me… which one of the mentioned clubs have gone out and spent more than our chairmen has allowed Lambert to spend?
In my honest opionion.. yes, we needed all the mentioned players off our wage bill.. but im sure as hell positive I would of played them until they were away from our club.
It is my opinion that Lambert can not control a top professional, someone who has been at the top.. and that is why we will never see a defour or a kyotake at the villa whilst he is here.. and its my belief, its the reaon why the players were frozen out by Lambert.
Randy Lerner has faults of course… but he has given Lambert more than eough money to beat a league 1 side who being frank, probably has to sell its best players to survive.
VILLA4ME are you a comedian? Your post is contradictory and confusing.
I did wonder if you were Faulkner.
Read what you have just posted. Is clearly shows Lerners change of approach and Lerners clear direction to remove high earning payers from the wage bill. Lerner has responsibility for releasing funds to replace players who leave.direction to take the team.
Lerner gives the manager the
How can a manager with minimum funds by prem standard players?
Lerners plan appears clear make as much money as possible at the clubs expense.
Our clubs lost if there are still Lerner supporters out there.
um Ted, im not denying theres been a change in direction from Lerner, im sure I stated that about the wage bill etc….
How can you possibly blame Lerner for the tosh that Lambert has bought? us v sheffied utd.. forget clubs, chairmen etc.. there was 22 players on that pitch today and there 11 won!!! that 11 was mainly bought by LAMBERT!!!!!!!!
villa4me.
seriously, Lambert was tasked with moving on the big earners.
He was told to bring in cheaper players on non prem wages.
Lamberts tactics are awful, BUT Lerner gave him a budget and only allowed him to purchase players on cheap wages.
Lambert gambled on a number of unknown players. majority are league one standard.
He gambled and lost, time for him to go. He had the incentive of wages and possibly bonuses. He has not succeeded so needs to go.
However Lambert is working to LERNERS plan. Lerner only cares about making money, as long as Villa finish fourth from bottom he appears happy.
Again I ask where is the general?
Another two questions, Why has Lerner not been to matches? Why has he remained away?
LERNER OUT
Ted, Obviously I cant answer those questions. blaming the chairman is easy, and barring about 2% of the league (Chelsea, man city) I guess in your theory the rest of the clubs can? I mean the Norwich fans could ask why delia is not paying 60k+ on wages, or why they cant afford Lukakus wages.. the facts are, if the money aint there it cant be spent..
But I really do believe that lerner has given Lambert money, 7m for Kozak wasn’t it? he was never gonna play if Benteke and playing well?
Lambert has used the money given to him from Lerner.. im guessing its probably about 25M over the past 18 months??? and with that money, he has bought the players that took to the field today…. now, SHEFFIELD UNITED don’t have tv money like us, and probably don’t get half our revenue or a supposed sugar daddy chairman… so what happened?
By the way, im not anti lambert either, I truly believe he has made mistakes but its the not playing the likes of gary gardner that bothers me
Ted,
Villa4me has this exactly right, imo.
Whilst I had a feeling for what was going on, things just came at us too quickly and the way I saw things was exactly as has been described.
The difference between me and you is that I never thought Lerner would be so cynical in the way things have happened and I never thought Lambert would play the game.
Surely any manager worth his salt would say whoa, slow down a bit!!?
I’ve hinted at this in previous articles, where I’ve said we’re going too far, too fast.
And it’s why I believe N’zog has played his last game for the Villa, as I’ve also said a few times.
It’s all immaterial to me, but I do know this present combination of owner/manager is doomed to failure.
Yes the Villa fans did chant for Lambert, however we did not interview Lambert neither did we check on scouting reports of players he was signing.
I believe we will go around in circles until Lerner has gone or even worse. If Lambert stays then we are going straight to league one with a one season stop in the championship Lambert is an awful manager who does not solve problems he ignores them and picks himself up and goes again. Fans need to stop feeling bad or worrying about what other fans think of us. We are a great club with a great history and a great set of fans are are passionate about the Villa
Don’t get me wrong Lerner has to look in the mirror, but lambert has implemented a style of play that is so hard for the fans to watch, it crushes your spirit. He has to be watching a different game, hoof hoof hoof, football is a game played with passion and we lack passion. I had high hopes when he came in but am so disappointed, we are going backwards not forwards. Fans see passion and the get involved, get behind it and it lifts the players, you can’t get behind long ball football
What a shambles and still yet the LEMMINGS come out defending their man he as killed this club with his LOONY ideas he makes even Billy Mc NIeill look a bloddy genius he and his loonies must be sacked first thing on monday morning.
if we havent a left back in res or underage levels better than luna it is time to close it down what have westwood weimann got to do to be dropped what is it 2 goals all season for wieman even bannan can hit a corner since hes left looney lamberts coaching if we had lost today with group res players it would have been bad but virtually 1 team bar goalie lambert is a joke not lerner putting out team and if lambert is doing his dirty work he going to be out of work for a long time if you go back in villas history houllier only done 9 months macleish 1 yearfor payoff mon spent plenty but took back plenty in form of 3 6places cup final how much has lerner spent since taking over and what was squad value like then to now
More bullshit from ianrobo, Lamberk the scapegoat., people want him out because he is shit at everything, tactics, signings, motivation of players, and that is before we even move on to the dour mumbling interviews and the non existent personality.
Yes, I have issues with Lerner, big issues in the way the club in being ran and the lack of communication, but Lambert has spent money and he has bought utter shit. For example, he started out with Hutton and Lichaj, now he has spent money on Lowton, Bacuna, Bennett and Luna, all complete and utter shit and not better than the players he started with.
And please do stop assuming Martinez rejected Villa, he didn’t, he turned down a chance of an interview through loyalty in the same way OGS turned down due to not wanting to move his family at the time. So we can attract a manager in right circumstances, we just need to find a non-british one and move on.
i agree with this article to a point.
People need to realise the restrictions are in the wages not as much in the cost of players.
However if we are going to play hoofball then we need big bullying players in the middle of the park, for the type of football we are playing KEA, Sylla and Westwood do not suit they are to light weight. In the centre of defence we need big defenders who are not frightened of a challenge Baker fits this mould but clark is more of a midfielder for me, with a bit of work Clark would do well in that position.
These are all Lamberts players playing the way he wants them too play, we are shocking too watch the players look out of sorts and the tactics beggar belief.
Guzan saves ball
waits until opposition is in own half not a moment sooner in the event we might score on the counter
hoofs it to benteke who at this point as half the premier league defence surrounding him
benteke heads it
up n under anyones ball
Opposition wins it
we get passed to death by Brazil no sorry Crystal Palace
we win it back in there half
they give away a free kick outside there penalty area
we dont shoot or attack we pass it back to guzan
they score an easy goal
repeat for 90 minutes
these are basically our tactics and have been all season and for one half a game last season. Add into that Delph (no where near good enough for England amatuers) gets a yellow. Gabby bless his cotton socks doing 100m sprints for 90 minutes, i like Gabby i did not used to but he is Villa through and through and his attitude in the past couple of seasons has been spot on
We are shit and i have to collectively blame Lerner, Faulkner and Lambert this is there collective project and its an absolute fucking disgrace any of them have anything to do with Villa along with any fan who backs them. Even worse are the fans who call you fickle because you are pissed off at watching shit football. No Villa fans are not fickle we just dont like big time charlies or managers who cant manage
Lerner OUt Lambert Out Faulkner OUT
I do not see the hoofball …
In fact all I see is sideways passing along the centre line, then some attempt to try and create but nothing there and without Gabby no pace. Note when Gabby is on form and fit we seem to do better, at least away.
Hoofball has happened a lot this season, if it worked i would not be annoyed about it, but it never works. The Swansea fans were shouting hoof everytime we had the ball.
Gabby is a shining light in the team Delph runs out of position beats his man then turns him and passes into trouble. KEA does not have a forward button.
Throw ins nobody is up for the ball, our left side is beyond a joke saying all that you cant fault the effort!
yes don’t understand anyone saying Delph should be in the England side but watched from the upper holte today for the first time in ages and what I noticed was the total lack of running and options from the front people and wingers to give options.
Every game its the same lack of creative energy.
Wish all of them would fuck off, sick of it, we are Aston villa ffs. Fuck off LERNER.
Fact is, they all have to take a chunk of the blame – Lerner, Faulkner, Lambert and his staff and the players.
Whose idea was it to reduce the wage bill, to get the high earners off the books and replace with average toot? My guess is Lerner and that ultimately is where the problem started…..
Lambert took the job on and is possibly doing exactly what Lerner wanted, keep us up on limited funds.
Lamberts unfortunately bought in worse than below par in Bennett, Bowery, Luna, Westwood, Tonev amongst others while not utilizing what he has by the display of shocking tactics…..He must take blame for all that
Faulkner for simply saying yes to everything everyone says!!!!!
Therefore, they are all culpable and they can all go for all I care – BUT, I’d like to see what Lambert could do (at another club) with some proper money to spend
On a plus note, #HELENIUS SCORED….!!!!!!!!!
Totally agree Helenius – was just typing a similar reply when I read yours. It’s not one person’s fault – it’s too big a mess.
Changing the owner is a long process – we don’t have time. Changing the playing staff, ditto.
We need new leadership and a manager who can A) spend a few quid wisely this month and B) teach the players how to pass.
For anyone still blaming Lerner for being tight, remember he gave PL £7M to spend on deadline day – every fan would have said lets get in a leader, or a creative midfielder. PL spent it all on Kozak – (CB, Gabby, Weimann, Bowery and Helenius already on the books) – which other fan would thought we needed another giant centre forward with no prem experience? He could have had Barry and Huddlestone….
It was Lambert’s team today and we couldn’t do a League 1 team. Time’s up sorry.
No he could not have had Barry or Huddlestone (chriost the arse licking over him is way OTT) because of one reason
WAGES
It is reported that Kozak is only on £10k a week, Barry is only 6 times that at Everton.
“It is reported” – is it? where? Not sure where any players salaries are reported accurately.
£10K a week for an international striker from Serie A…? Really?
Even if your reports are correct you could have had Kozak for £7M on £10K a week or Barry on loan for zip and £60K a week for a year and Randy could have kept £4.5M in his pocket.
Belcs, I’ll bet all 4 newcomers are on less wages than Lichaj.
And it shows.
Although I see promise in Bacuna being used anywhere, apart from RB.
It’s this current owner/manager combo that is killing us.
You can take the second part out of that combo, by getting a decent manager in.
But who would come to us, with a championship budget?
As for Martinez and OGS not turning us down, well, before I even got to the interview, I’d want to know a very rough outline of what was required/offered.
I believe that was probably along the lines of “you’d be expected to achieve at the highest level, while massively cutting costs”.
In which case I wouldn’t even bother looking any further than that.
I do it all the time in my very lowly trade, as I rate that sort of thing as a joke.
Not sure they would be on lower wages than lichaj, more or less the same tbh.
Young managers would be willing, we just need to look outside the UK, try south america or eastern europe, think outside the box, there are good young managers out there that would jump at the chance of managing villa and if we do our research properly it wouldn’t be hard to find someone better than lamberk
Five home wins in 18 months of management at any club is an absolute fucking disgrace
I believe it’s 7 PL wins in 18 months! Still shocking though……
villa4me.
seriously, Lambert was tasked with moving on the big earners.
He was told to bring in cheaper players on non prem wages.
Lamberts tactics are awful, BUT Lerner gave him a budget and only allowed him to purchase players on cheap wages.
Lambert gambled on a number of unknown players. majority are league one standard.
He gambled and lost, time for him to go. He had the incentive of wages and possibly bonuses. He has not succeeded so needs to go.
However Lambert is working to LERNERS plan. Lerner only cares about making money, as long as Villa finish fourth from bottom he appears happy.
Again I ask where is the general?
Another two questions, Why has Lerner not been to matches? Why has he remained away?
LERNER OUT
Now we all know how the Cleveland Browns fans felt when they described their ground as the “factory of sadness”. Lerner is just replicating the unambitious mediocrity and utter shitness he created over there at Villa. We’ll never achieve anything under him, although Lambert is also terrible. Change needed at every level, and until that happens this embarrassing farce will continue. Glad I didn’t even waste £10 today, I don’t even want to attend another a game this season even though I have a ST. The sheer depression and boredom of watching the long ball this team serves up is too much, the players are not the future, they have peaked IMO and they are all shit.
AVFC is a business and like any other business it has an owner or owners. So to think working class people can force a multi millionaire to just leave aint happening. The only immediate changes can be is staff and players. So to put it simple change management and return bodymoore heath from a picnic park to a training ground. Even league 1 and 2 teams play better football than us which proves it aint that hard then hope in the long run an oil baron buys lerner out
We have had a minimum of £90m this year in funds from Sky we can afford big players without big owners
I have said this for 12 months now and the wage bill as it stands now is less than £60M and remember soon the likes of Ireland, etc will go.
What is the problem again ?
Not that simple. We still have debts and the day to day running of club plus wages you have to have extra funds when needed. Plus people forget its not one lump sum of say £90m its paid in installments
you still get it this season and we have other income as well ….
No, we haven’t had £90 mill from Sky at all, as far as I know.
It may well be the case next season and I totally agree with your points in that Lerner must be taking a profit, but let’s keep things straight, eh?
Look lerners 5 year plan failed so (AVFC business) will run with least amount of money put in and recieve as much as it can until an offer you cant refuse comes in to buy the club. No matter what me or you want that is it
Its a sorry state of affairs. But it does ring true
What annoye’s me is where is the evidence of all the wage cutting, salary expectations etc, no one gives any links as to what Lerner has told Lambert he can spend on purchases and salaries. Nor do I see any evidence of what his plans are for the future………so how can any of you know what the plans are.
We know what Lambert has said to the media so these are facts, and his tactics are shite and his purchases have not shown any promise with the exception of a few
VTID, you can only read between the lines, as we don’t even get the price we’ve paid for players anymore.
Remember the recent article where Lambert said to the media we never paid anywhere near the figures that were bandied about for even cheap players?
You don’t need to look for evidence mate.
We’re doing it on the dirt cheap, simple.
And it will bite us on the arse.
Anyway, MDN8, your submission will be up tomorrow morning mate.