The departure of Delph was not just the departure of a quality player, but Aston Villa also lost their captain. Delph was made captain under Tim Sherwood after Ron Vlaar lost the armband. Vlaar is also most likely not going to be playing in a Villa shirt so Sherwood will have to appoint a new captain. Some of the candidates that Villa fans have thrown around are Ciaran Clark, Agbonlahor and Westwood. For me there can only really be one candidate and it has to be Clark.
I feel as though Clark has grown into a very good, mature player who often organises the backline and will most likely be Villa’s starting centre-back alongside Richards or Okore/Baker. Clark has also been at the club for a very long time (since 2009) and hasn’t played for any other club. Agbonlahor might have experience as a captain but I don’t think that Agbonlahor is nearly as good as he used to be and giving him the captain’s arm band will mean he’d play a large part next season. Westwood might be a little too young as well and I’m not sure he’ll start every game, especially after the signing of Gueye and the resurgence of Gardner.
Against Swindon, Micah Richards was made captain by Sherwood and while I think Richards will be decent for us. I don’t think it’s right to give an arriving player the captain’s armband. I just feel as though Clark can bring the Villa player’s together better and is a more motivational character in the dressing room.
Clark was brilliant for us last season when he was fit .Fought for every ball and got stuck into the opposition. Only problem was, he give away silly free kicks and got to many yellow cards, but that’s down to the ref. Clark is a fighter and we need someone like him to be captain. He gets my vote. As for Gabby he needs to start doing his job and score goals.
Richards probably
I could definitely see Richards keeping the armband, but I agree Clark is a great shout and has proven to improve season by season. Nevertheless Richards has more experience and in many ways fits into the sweeping changes Sherwood hopes to instill in the club. Hell, Richards even acts a bit like Sherwood, always smiling and such.
clark as captain and richards as vice captain or even the other way round . i think either can do a better job than Gabby.
Richards of Clark….I’m convinced that it will be one of those 2. Gabby = no chance, if he doesnt up his game I can see Sherwood benching him on a regular basis. Gabby seems to think that he is irreplaceable just because he’s a Villa fan!
Agree Langford – thought it was interesting Richards being made captain the other evening. Off topic – see we’re being linked with Bolasie at Palace – had an impressive second half to the season and suspect would cost a lot less than Townsend
Also off topic (sorry Adam – can’t help be fascinated by transfer speculation), I see that Austin’s odds (on Skybet) to join Villa have lengthened slightly to 15/8 from 6/4.
I heard the palace chairman say they’ve been knocked back as he thinks he’s going to a club in a stronger position than palace. I’m afraid and ashamed to say, that’s not us at the moment.
Is it just me or is the silence deafening from Mr Sherwood and Mr Wilkins at the moment…..
What do you expect them to say?
I’ll tell you what they should say! ‘We have just received £40 mil from the sale of our best players, I can assure our fans that we will be reinvesting all that cash’…….the fact that they WONT spend all of it is why they are sikent!
FFS… As fans we ARE entitled to know the quality of what we are paying to see….NO different to any other walk of life really!
Saddened is 100% correct, the silence is deafening…..the club is a laughing stock. We have just lost 2 quality players with whom we could and should have built a competitive team around. Its difficult for quality players to stay at a club that as no drive and ambition and does not recognise the concept of ‘forward planning’. We are NO further forward as a club than we were 4 years ago……FFS, how long does it take the club to acknowledge that we are currently a shambles and do something positive about it!
Captains should never play in the front line, and if the Captain is not one of the back four then that back four needs a separate leader. Clark is the obvious choice, he was up to bossing Vlaar about last year.
Alan Pardew would have a fit if he read Hitchens’ idea that Bolasie, who he priced at 40 to 60 Million, might cost less than Townsend. Allowing for hype Bolasie is probably worth at least 20M. He is not a good fit for Villa though, he is a head-down “I am not passing I’m shooting” type who thinks of himself as the main man.
But on the showing of one half season? – just shows you what I know LOL. But seriously isn’t the whole player pricing become ‘fantasy land’ stuff and I don’t care what anyone says – it’s not sustainable. Football is in gif a mighty crash sometime in the next few years and the clubs with strong and sensible business plans will be the ones to survive. Don’t forget you heard it here first -:)
‘in for’ – and why doesn’t my smiley face work!
Probably because you got it the wrong way round Hitch! it’s : – ), without the spaces, obviously 🙂
Thanks Badger 🙂
Ashley Young anyone might not be getting a new contract at Utd after all!!
A leaked rumour for the sake of selling season tickets Oohah !
Lol
Clark or Richards – either could do the job although I think Richards’ experience would probably give him the advantage.
Agbonlahor might be lucky to get more than a few games between long spells on the bench, and no way would he be my choice for captain – as OLL says front-line players are usually not prime material for organising a team, and Agbonlahor tends to have too many games when he seems to get lost up-front as it is.
It is on the official site, so I hope TS reads the match report of the USA loss to Jamaica before he blows all his pocket money on forwards and has nothing left for a new KEEPER.
Kermit was at it again! Beaten by a header from a throw in and handling outside his area then covering the wrong side of goal at the resulting free kick. One goal counts the same, at either end, but Keepers are much cheaper than forwards so don’t put up with a stiff, Tim.
Whereas he’d apparently been having a blinder before this (not in the slightest bit interested, tbh, but it’s what I’ve spotted).
My opinion says no goalie is perfect, but I do accept Guzan does have his faults.
I just don’t think he’s as bad as you make out.
I clearly remember Alan Hanson putting Richards down as a future England captain. Even coming from a Scot that’s saying something.
On the transfer front, cool yr damned jets!!! DOES ANYONE REALLY THINK WE’RE GOING TO ADVERTISE HOW MUCH WE HAVE TO SPEND!!! Chill out and if funds are not forthcoming come transfer window closuling date, then we can collectively blow off!!!
P.s. it’s my birthday today. Where are my cards from you lot??????
Happy Birthday BUMBUM…hope thats cheered you up and BTW everybody knows how much we have so that doesnt make any difference!
Have a good one….the card is in the post! 🙂
So is the captain’s armband!
Fuck me are you yaya toure in disguise 🙂
Lol!!!!!
Happy Birthday Bum Bum – hope Villa provide a nice present and surprise today
Whoops – a day out!
Good question Adam.
Hmm, Clark’s a decent shout and I personally prefer a defender to be Cap and it’s even better if he’s a long-termer.
But it’s going to be Richards, even though he’s the newcomer, imo.
I think Sherwood has seen enough in the man and has already decided, myself.
Indeed, I reckon it’s why Richards was brought in. He’s been there and done it.
Whatever, it can’t and won’t be Gabby, imo.
As has been suggested, he ought to be in danger of being relegated to “impact” player off the bench if he doesn’t start scoring.
And my guess is he probably will be.
thing is badger he wont Ive never seen him come on from the bench and terrorise a tired defense he’s usually got his arse in his hands
I don’t disagree, Billy’s.
In which case he needs to go.
But that isn’t going to happen because of his contract, which was frankly outrageous, imo.
Can we all wish BUM BUM a happy birthday or he might put in a transfer request and go elsewhere 🙂
Think it might be Richards. I’m hoping he’s going to be the type of player who will tell the rest of the team when they’re falling down. It shouldn’t all come from the manager that’s why Man Ure were so unbeatable when they had Keane as captain.
Richards has the experience and hopefully the respect of the rest of the players. Can definitely see Clark becoming captain in a year or two though.
UTV
Is it true Jordan Ayew is flying in for a medical after an offer was accepted and is a replacement for Benteke?
If so, what’s happening with the other £35m? Oh ye, Lerner’s retirement fund.
Where have you seen that Helenius?
I did read about half hour ago on some French sports site and all be it my French isn’t the best but I’m pretty sure it said we have had an offer of 10 million euros plus further bonuses accepted for Jordan ayew of lorient.
Of course if this is true it doesn’t mean he will be the only one coming in. I still think Sherwood will want two new strikers and another mid.
The best rumour. Jordan Ayew
https://youtu.be/2lMVFzzoyGw
Next*
More news on Jordan Ayew. It appears he will be flying in for a medical shortly as been reported. £7m was accepted. There is rumour he posted on Facebook he will be an Aston Villa player and has since removed it.
Adebayor is apparently also close to signing according to max Jacobs. A loan deal with end of season buy option seems to be the deal coming through.
end of season buy option why the fuck would we need that when his contract runs out at the end of the season. that is definitely a daniel levy deal.
no wonder i hate spurs more than any other club in the world and its a big fecking world.
Surely if that is true we would just say we didn’t want him, then when he becomes a free agent just sign him anyway if we wanted him?
Wilkins is more negative than me and that’s saying something. Loosely translated this means we will only spend very little trying to replace benteke. There’s a surprise http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/ray-wilkins-admits-aston-villa-9717509?
If the rumours are true I bet that Jordan Ayew and Adebayor would be it to replace Benteke. Would we really need more strikers though? With Kozak and the kids too?
I just hope Sherwood is allowed to and has plans to buy another mid and or RB still.
Ayew sounds crap why are we not going for Austin instead
Benteke sold for £32.5m and we will replace with a cheap, untried foreign player and a loan deal……..Sorry to be negative, but if this happens we will be scrapping relegation yet again !
Luckily for us that’s not fact yet and none of this is. Yes these two rumours appear strong and likely but with lots of time left in the transfer window who knows who else is coming in?
Saddened – do you remember when Benteke was a cheap, untried foreign player replacing our saviour Darren Bent???
This morning’s rumours Cambiasso and Gestede (sp!) from Blackburn – but then it is The a Sun! FWIW I think Cambassionwould be a good shout on a one year contract and it’s likely he had something lined up having turned down Leicester. Gestede – haven’t a clue
The clock is ticking just over a fortnight til ko,last minute buys looking good now.geeez
Apparently Gestede has a similar type of game to Benteke and scored 22 goals for Blackburn last term!
just a few observations and thoughts think captain has to be either clarke, or richards. i reckon all these newspaper hacks have googled players worth £6-12 mil and that’s who we are being linked to, if adebayor was a serious option think the deal would of been done long ago, if you look at who is stopping and what we have bought if you look at the games so far i can see us playing a lot more of a mobile game and we may not buy an out and out number 9,this might be well of the mark and TS hasn’t a clue who to replace benteke with, but i think he is more astute than anybody gives him credit for