brummie

Perplexing is the word. I still can't really believe it. Lerner's been a great chairman in terms of spending money, but he knows absolutely zero about football, and whatever he knew, he seems to be in the process of forgetting.

To be quite honest, in many senses, he's a bog standard manager from the same pot you get the likes of Pardew, Hughton, and many others, so it really becomes about how he gels with the club. I didn't sign up for all that "he used to manage the shit, so we hate him" nonsense at all. I don't care if he was their manager. I care that his record there was so mediocre, though. What i will say is that - certainly on our forums - discontent has been growing with his negativity, and since Monday it has gone into overdrive. The words "embarassing" and "humilaiting" have been used a lot, and I think they're appropriate in that case. In 35 years watching us, I have seen lots of really, really poor performances, worse than Monday, but I can't think of very many where we went out so shamefully negative from the start. There are actually quite a few Villa fans prepared to give him a decent chance. He's a likeable, affable bloke, who often talks sense. The absolute worst thing he could do, though, is start to play the sort of football that made even Birmingham fans want him out. Monday night was a real slap in the face, the first warning that that is actually what he really intends to do. He might have got away with it at Blues, but he'll get murdered if he tries it with us.

Coventry will fuck him up no doubt. I went to Spurs on Monday and it was the most depressing moment following Villa for a good ten years, no doubt about it. Next day I went to watch the youth team play Ajax in the NextGen series, they won 3-0, Gardner scored a hat trick, and the kids were brilliant. It made me feel like maybe things might get better.

We've sent Gary Gardner to Coventry on loan. I have absolutely no idea why, he should be in our first team, not theirs. He;s the best youth product I've ever seen at our place. In fact, I reckon he's a future England captain, he's that good.

Stoke really are a pox on English football. Last time we played them at our place they were time wasting from 30 mins onwards (their goalkeeper booked for it in the first half), and the most cynical, horrible bunch of arseholes I've ever had the misfortune to see. If they went down, I doubt there'd be many neutrals who would mourn their passing. Horrible.

I've never been convinced of Agbonlahor, but this season he has come on leaps and bounds, and today was absolutely unplayable.

I shudder to think of 5,500 of those utter mongs defiling the beautiful city of Bruges tonight.

It's why I admire Gus Poyet calling them out recently. The fact we employ pundits just because they played professionally doesn't suffice when they refuse to even do the most basic of research. As an Aston Villa supporter, i can tell you that O'Neill has not got the first fucking idea of any footballer playing outside the United Kingdom. Football doesn't exist overseas for him.

Our American owners seem unimpressed. http://www.avfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10265~2485202,00.html

Excellent bit of non celebration from him today, too. He's a good lad, Milner, I wish him the very best.

Well, why don't you stop talking about it and rebuild Anfield / build a new stadium and increase your revenue that way (or even, you know, qualify for the CL again) rather than looking for a quick fix in grasping as much money as you can from overseas and as a by product fucking up the majority of the premier league in the process? You might have increased your revenue in the last two years, but you clearly haven't done it enough if you have to resort to this kind of thing. It makes a small amount of sick come up in my throat when I hear people go on about things being done "the Liverpool way". Having read that article, it is going to make me vomit my head off my shoulders in future. Fucking hypocrites, you really are becoming as utterly classless as Chelsea.

The ultimate expression of self interest and fuck everyone else. Liverpool are clearly faced with Man City settling into their top four, money-syphoning position, and no way to even begin to compete financially. They can't afford to build a new ground, they don't want to share one with Everton, they can't increase their revenue beyond the Sky deal increasing in value, and they're watching the likes of Man City easily overtake them, and Tottenham catch up with them. Say what you like about the dynasty that Man United built, but they earn so much now because they did it by incrementally improving their ground and providing the on-pitch success to do so. Liverpool don't want to build a bigger ground because it costs money (why can't Henry put his hand in his pocket?), and can't get the on-field success to do the same, so they want to do this, take the short cut and fuck the cost. Corny thought it is to say it, Bill Shankly truly would be turning in his grave to see this kind of self-serving, low rent behaviour. Some of the quotes in that article were the most blatant, obvious examples of the financial arrogance which is currently ruining football. How anyone can think that even beginning to approach the Spanish league model is a good thing is beyond me. My initial thought was that this is the thin end of the wedge, but it isn't, that was the formation of the premier league. If this happens, in a few years time, we'll hear "why should we share the Sky money with the likes of Blackburn or Bolton?", you can bet your house on it. It has always been a big factor, but the game now is entirely about money. The likes of John Henry aren't getting involved in the PL because they have grand philanthropic notions, they're doing it because they think there's scope to do this type of individual deal rather than sharing the wealth the way they have to in US pro sports. I'm just surprised he's managed to let the cat out of the bag so soon. If the likes of Bolton and Blackburn (and, let's have no illusions about this, Newcastle, Villa, Everton et al too) aren't good enough for them, then they should fuck off an play in a European league. They can't have it both ways. Good luck having the Monday morning banter about the match with all those PSV, Benfica and Roma fans, though.

You'd lose your £20 million striker though. Obviously, without Bent in it. Gareth Barry's going right up the front, mind.

I wouldn't take Carroll. He's not good enough. There, I said it. Mind you, this should be viewed in light of the fact I care about England so little, I'd happily stick the squad in a bus and have it driven over a cliff.

Buy mercenary, cold hearted, self obsessed cash addicts = get lumbered with mercenary, cold hearted, self obsessed cash addicts. I for one will shed zero tears.

To be honest, I'd rather watch my own teeth being pulled out of my screaming mouth, one by one, than watch Man City in the Champions League.

There's a rational, logical answer to this. If you support a non CL club, then really you should be wishing nothing but ill on the English clubs in the CL, as the money that a prolonged run in it brings in just goes to polarise the league even more - it widens the gap between the haves and have nots. Obviously, ITV and Sky don't seem to understand this, and seem to think we all want them to do well, as they're in some way representing "us". The Champions League means nothing to me, nothing whatsoever. Oh, and Man City, well every football fan who cares about the future of the game should loathe them and what they're doing to the sport. They'll be the death of the game yet. So, on the whole, in answer to your question, that's a no.

City being cruelly punished by the 1982 European Cup runners-up.

Gareth Barry? I've been saying he ain't all that since about two years before we sold him, but would the world listen? Would it sheeeeeiiiite.

What I loved is this. This summer: "We've done really well, we've done plenty of business, and done it all really quickly" *repeat in 100 new threads every day* After four or five games when - in an amazing turning on its head of the usual state of affairs - 10 new signings don't magically gel immediately - "Bruce has got to go" *repeat in 100 new threads every day*

If you're stood, at ground level, where managers stand, I honestly don't see how you can possibly see something that is happening practically on the goal line. I've always wondered that. I've occasionally sat in the lower tier, first few rows, and you can see shit all from there, so it must be even harder for managers.

Listen to Warnock. What a tit end. he might be right, but Christ almightly, shut the fuck up you dozy cunt.

it's alright, Beren, neither do I. Unfortunately, I've given them 600 quid to watch an entire season of it. :(

Ah well. We were as abject as I have ever seen in the first half, then pretty good for 25 minutes, then decided we'd take 1-0. A season of uninspiring toil awaits. Incidentally, I'd just like to take this opportunity to say that Alan Hutton is fucking terrible. It's watching a fan who has got on the pitch and joined in or something.

Warnock is going to go into meltdown later.