Rafa offered chance to go, cue the endless MON links but remember what Randy said
The Times are reporting that the Liverpool board are offering Rafa £3m to leave
of of course a quick link by MON’s mate Henry Winter on Twitter
End-game for Rafa Benitez at Liverpool. Had to happen. Club moving against him. He’ll always have Istanbul. Martin O’Neill & Roy Hodgson will be linked with Liverpool. Good managers, warmer men than Rafa Benitez. LFC dressing room needs warmth
I guess over the next few hours we will hear a lot of these links and some Villa supporters will delight in this but remember what Randy said, the guy does not lie
Let me say again, Martin O’Neill will be the manager next season. He has definitely agreed and I wasn’t worried that might change. In fact, I would say our working relationship is as close as ever – if not closer.’
And for these reasons below as well
1) MON not finished job at Villa Park
2) MON stated he would be staying in the summer
3) MON was at the meeting with Milner yesterday and would he try and persuade Milner to stay knowing he was going to go
4) Why would he go there if their best two players are almost certain to leave ?
5) Swap Randy for those two idiots, Liverpool have in charge ?
6) The whole club is built on Rafa and his ethos, from the doctor’s, physion, youth team coaches and every single player with a massive squad MON dislikes
7) We have plans for the stadium and building now, they have well, the dreams.
8 ) The way Liverpool acted over the Barry attempted deal
For MON it would make no sense at all, at his age trying to reconfigure the whole club with no money, owners who could sell up to anyone at any time and a squad in serious decline. People may argue that is how he joined Villa but he knew the owner then and his plans, not now.
So for those dreamers wishing MON to go, the small majority he is is STAYING.
More manager links to Villa – Billic/Hodgson – utter nonsense
You know what I am getting fed up with all the nonsense around MON and possibly leaving. The past weeks he could not have been more clear that he is planning for next season and talking very positive for the future.
Well we have this nonsense from the Daily Mirror that Slaven Billic has give up on the West Ham job as a bigger PL club wants him and it is us and we are favourites to land him.
In the piece we have this killer quote
O’Neill’s position at Villa Park hangs in the balance amid rumours of his uneasy relationship with owner Randy Lerner.
It shows how the press work (I found out with the MON quit story !!) that we have a rumour story based on other rumours. The Story even manages to work in the Mark Hughes rumour and today’s Sky Sports rumour about Steve McClaren might be interested and even works in David Moyes.
Makes you shake your head in disbelief
MON is STAYING
EDIT: Now the Daily Star have got in on the action with a link to Roy Hodgson, Villa fans just ignore !!
Martin will stay, the General ‘We don’t want to lose our Manager’
After today’s game does anyone doubt that these comments indicate anything other than MON staying ?
‘I think that you should have the desire to come back again, that is the great thing about sport.
‘Those players at Manchester United have won many championships and yet they are always ready to go the next season.
‘So we have to try and go again. Obviously, we will have to get stronger which is easier said than done, but that is what we need.
‘The chairman is coming over for the last game. I will sit down with him and discuss all aspects. But in the last conversation I had with him, he was immensely proud of the team.’
No sign of a rift there but obvious discussions with Randy that need to be had as we look to improve further season upon season. We suspect that a few squad players need to make way on the wage bill and generate some transfer income and all we need for most of us is two special players.
Add to this the General’s comments from the Villatalk thread
I do find it very interesting that you have caught on to the fact that some small number of Villa Fans do not appreciate what MON has done for the Club. If we just look at this year: 1) Youth team in the championship, 2) Reserves in the championship, 3) Won the Peace Cup, 4) two trips to Wembley, 5) fighting for a spot in Europe, 6) beat some very strong teams, etc. etc. Some people just don’t seem to always appreciate what they have until they lose it. We don’t want to lose our Manager.
Could it be more clearer ?
MON is the ONE for Villa, he has brought us forward year by year on a long term plan and not instant wanton success. Some of the fan base may want that instant success but the club is being developed in all ways ad making improvements and we have to give them the time to do this.
We were close this season, so very close if not for one or two results, I am optimistic for net season like MON and whilst every fan is entitled to their view, the fact is MON has improved us season by season and few other managers can say that over 4 seasons.
MON – Manager of the Month – hope that shuts the moaners up
After the disaster that was the Chelsea game, the month of April was very good with 13 points from 5 games and continuing our fantastic away performance. This has shown real bottle from the team and manager and total lack of faith and bottle in both by our own supporters.
Now the deserved Carling Manager of the Month award for April has gone to MON and that I believe is now his third award whilst at Villa.
Even now some short sighted supporters are denigrating this award by claiming it is against weaker teams but this season should have shown us all that no game can be taken for granted.
The News of the World will not let it lie about MON
I am sure you all remember the fuss two weeks when the rumour of MON resigning was turned into a far bigger story than it really was. Well we thought it had died off but tonight the NOTW has resurrected it in this article.
The article written by Aidan Magee which is headlined
O’NEILL EXPECTED TO WALK OUT ON VILLA
is just basically a rehash of all the stories over the past two weeks
Internet rumours
Cutbacks
Mark Hughes lined up to replace him
and does not even claim to have the ubiqtous insider claiming all kinds of things on MON’s behaly. Yet teh reporter along with his sub editor is basically making a big deal of MON leaving even though they provide no evidence of this to back up the article.
Who knows what will happen in the summer but I tell you one thing neither MON nor Randy will ever leak to a NOTW reporter or any other reporter what may happen, so like with all rumours and stories please take this with a large dose of salt !
MON wanted to be loved, the Villa fans showed they do, he will stay
After MON’s interview on Thursday it was clear he wanted to be loved not only by Randy but more importantly the fans. Anyone watching or listening to the game today would have noticed the huge support for MON from the start to the end, I was very proud to listen to it.
So it did the trick guys, well done
“Today was an important day because we showed the people we have character and you have to occasionally put things into perspective. I was overwhelmed by the support of the fans. It was really terrific and I am eternally grateful. I will sit down at end of season and assess the season and look to see how we go forward, if that’s the case. I would like to continue in this job as manager of the football club because I enjoy it and I think there are things to do for the club.”
Now lets take the positivity of today’s game forward into the vital semi final next week and for the rest of the season.
Response to Martin O’Neill
It does seem the rumour from VT I posted on Monday led to the stories that Talksport and the Daily Mirror peddled on Tuesday.
I will accept some liabiltiy for the senationalist headline but boy I never thought it would lead to that maelstrom. In today’s pre match press conference this issue dominated for 90 mins and as reported on the OS MON is bemused at what happened
O’Neill said it was a “surreal” experience to see spurious messageboard gossip “grow arms and legs” and develop into a story picked up by the national media.
The fan site post suggested O’Neill had relinquished his post after an internal bust-up over transfer funds for next season.
The Villa boss insisted he was thoroughly enjoying working at Villa and even revealed the chairman had taken time out of his schedule to call him to ask if there was anything he could do to ward off untrue speculation.
He said: “I wasn’t aware of it until my press officer told me that these things had come from a story on a blog. Someone started them by saying ‘I don’t know how true this is’ yet surprisingly the media come in and don’t check the story through.
“I felt it was hardly worthy of dismissal because if you’re dismissing something it means there might be something there in the first place.
Now I know MON does not look on the internet but the club does so to make it clear I meant no malicious intent from the story, I just believe it was right to publish one of the rumours doing the rounds, blogs do that as a talking point. I made it clear it was a ‘friend of a friend story and not be took as serious but shows that there is some unrest.
Anyone reading my posts can see how much I support MON and in no way do I want him to leave Villa, that does not make him perfect of course but for me simply there is no one better. However I would like to apologise to Martin and the club for the hassle this week that this story caused, by irresponsible journalists picking up on it without checks an in the future. I will be more careful on how I post rumours which you find on all message boards.
MON to stay or go, can be read either way
MON has had his press conference today and as reported on the Guardian site you could read into his comments whichever way you believe.
“I will assess everything at the end of the season. I will sit down with the chairman and see where we are going. There will be a number of determining factors – the supporters, the chairman – who will have a big part in proceedings, and I will also play a part because it is my life. I will assess everything at the end of the season. I am contracted on a yearly basis and would hope to continue.”
I think he is asking to be loved in this quote, he wants Randy and the fans to say that with words and actions from Randy. Is he asking for one final backing from the owner to complete the team ?
PLEASE STAY
I gladly offer that up now.
Obviously others have read into these comments that he could be leaving so MON is leaving all options open in my view.
O’Neill said: “I have been here four years, and four years ago the club was in a pretty depressed state. I still have the energy and vitality of someone who is 15 years younger and that zest has kept me going. In terms of the Champions League, we are going to still give it a go as long as it is possible and I expect a positive response from the players after what happened at Chelsea.”
Agree with all that but the big question is what happens if he does not get a positive response, the players really have MON’ future in their hands, that have to stand up and be counted.
I will state this again, I fully support MON 100%, If I was at the Reebok on Saturday I would be shouting myself hoarse for him and I hope whilst I am watching/listening to the game back home we hear that from all the fans.
In my view, simply there is no better manager for the job.
The start of the MON rumour ?
What a very interesting day in how the internet has changed the way news stories and rumours not only break but merge together.
It is still not clear on what Talksport based their original tweets on
Reports are reaching #talkSPORT that Martin O’Neill has left #astonvilla
about 7 hours ago via TweetDeck
Some interesting news emerging from #astonvilla
about 8 hours ago via TweetDeck
But at the same time the Mirror story (now replaced but still there) emerged detailing possible issues between Randy and Martin over funds and future direction of the squad but during all this I remembered a story that appeared in the Sunday People a few weeks ago.
On the 21st Feb the People printed this story . If you read it it is exactly the same details that appeared in the Mirror story.
Indeed Lerner’s budget demands are so severe that O’Neill could even be forced to sell some of his first-team regulars – or at least a handful of fringe players – if he wants a transfer kitty.
So either the Mirror heard/read the same rumour that Talksport did and put the two together to try and make a convincing piece or they had both been tipped off at the same time.
We will never know, but it only took Villa through a ‘source’ 20 minutes to deny the Talksport story so they obviously saw very quickly the potential damage of the story and was a very good response from a very good PR department we now have.
Is it the end of the story, I don’t think so.
Villa deny MON quit rumours
Thank god !
Yes the Daily Mirror have changed their story and the Mirror are now reporting Villa have denied these rumours
I hope Talksport have not picked up on internet rumours and peddling them as gospel, my post on here was quite clear it was on a rumour from one person on one fans forum.
Talksport on Twitter reporting MON has LEFT Villa
Nothing more, not sure they have picked up on yesterday’s rumour or is this substantial ?
Daily Mirror also just reporting it but as rumours, is this the same as yesterday’s post on here from Villatalk ?
Has MON handed in his Notice ? – UPDATE
Ok this is just a friend of a friend story on VT by a ‘b_allcott”.
Now don’t shoot the messenger this blog is about representing stories and others see and if information is out there then it should be beyond a number of people on a forum. However I was told something last week about MON and it was not good news for his future and I have been told that in the background that this is being spoken off as happening in the Summer.
I HOPE this is NOT TRUE.
but I don’t know how true this is, but has come from a source inside the Villa who gave me details about the Emile Heskey Details. Check my message history.
Apparently MO’N handed his notice in on friday, a friend of mine was told this before the Chelsea game so not some reactionary BS that they have come up with. He will be seeing out the season and then on his way. (My guess to Liverpool or back to celtic)
Unsure whether this was accepted or not from the board or what will happen, suprised that no Hack has got hold of it if true, but i thought i would share what little knowledge i have been told.
If i have any updates i will post on here.
I would add that the above poster’s history is that he got the Heskey transfer before anyone else
UPDATE – “b_allcott” who posted this has just said
Latest update I have is that his notice has still been handed in, Mark Hughes is the likely successor due to Villa paying for his flight to the States.
UPDATE 11:30 – Jonathan Fear on Vital has dimissed the rumour above
Are Villa fans too ungrateful and impatient
Or should that be how demanding are we ?
24 hours after the game ad after reading the forums with the usual negative views out in full flow I have to totally agree with MON when he said
“Maybe they are not happy with a Carling Cup final appearance and FA Cup semi-final appearance and still battling for the Champions League with nine games left.
Yes at times as I posted yesterday it was very frustrating and no one feels that more than myself. I am desperate for Delfouneso to start and desperate for him to come on as sub however I am not paid £3m a
year like MON to make these decisions and by his subs yesterday he made the right ones to get a draw.
The season still has an hell of a long way to go and by jeering when we do not see a sub we want when we are chasing and dominating the game is very disrespectful to the great work MON has done with the club and team in his 4 years here.
I make no excuse for saying I am a firm 100% fan of MON, no manager get things right but I remember the desperate straits that the club was in the summer of 2006. I have never been one to want quick fixes and I prepared to wait and be patient, in my humble view, we all should be.
I mean look at this figures (thanks to post on H&V)
Since 01/01/10
Liverpool 10 5 3 2 12 5 +7 18
Tottenham 10 5 3 2 13 7 +6 18
Man City 9 4 3 2 15 9 +6 15
Villa 9 3 6 0 12 6 +6 15
Not exactly doom and gloom is it ?
The lesson of Man U’s dominance is clear, a clear belief and reliance and judgement on manager who did not win anything for 4-5 years but built the club up from top to bottom to build for long lasting success.
Besides what is success, 4th or semi-final and finals of cups ?
MON kicks bums
Great article and comments from Lubo Moravcik, the former Celtic midfielder in the Scottish Herald and he has picked out perfectly what MON is like and why we like him.
Some choice quotes which we can all recognise as being the MON ‘style’
“With Martin we sometimes did not play the best football but we could score goals and people were happy. They want to see goals, they want to see action. They want to see us win,” he said.
“I remember many games when we just scored goals from corners and free-kicks,” he said of the O’Neill era.
“I watched the first half of Aston Villa v Reading in the FA Cup ,” he said of the tie where O’Neill’s side went in at the interval two goals down. “I said to my friend: ‘I do not want to be in the dressing room. I know what will happen. Martin is not happy. I saw his face’.”
He added: “Martin was clear with me.” Moravcik spoke of his manager’s orders about the midfielder not doing what he wanted. He said: ‘If you do that, I kick you up the bum’.
Martin O’Neil – Quality
Imagine for one second and the penalty incident after 4 minutes at Wembley had happened in Villa’s penalty box.
Can you think what Alex Ferguson may have said
Well MON has said the following and this is class, no rantnng, no raving and a much better man than I would have been after the game.
This is what puts him apart from other managers and why people respect him so much.
“It’s a goalscoring opportunity. The player is fouled in the penalty area. It’s straightforward from an otherwise fine referee who’s got it wrong. It’s really as simple as that.
“In a couple of days time it’s forgotten – we’re losing finalists in a really fine game of football. But it’s a major point in the game.
“I spoke to Phil but what Phil and I said will just stay with me.
“It’s a different game [if the red card had been brandished]. You’re talking about Wembley. You’re talking about all the things that go with Wembley in a cup final.
“I wouldn’t have liked to have played against Manchester United with 10 men for 83 minutes in the match – I really wouldn’t – particularly when the resulting penalty goes in against you.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s in the first second of the game or the 89th minute. The decision is straightforward. It is so straightforward it’s incredible.”
Milner in Summer talks over new contract
There was a story a couple of weeks we were going to offer James Milner a new contract to ward off interest.
In todays pre match press conference (Sky Sports)MON has confirmed that there will be talks in the summer
O’Neill told the Express and Star: “I would say we wouldn’t be looking at people until summertime, but that doesn’t mean that James Milner hasn’t been fantastic for this football club.
“I’ve already spoken to him and we are leaving everything, we’re not going to sit down now.
“The season is far too busy and summertime is the perfect time to talk and I think all parties agree on that too.”
This is fantastic news and I doubt James Milner will be difficult to negotiate with and he deserves every penny. The true professional footballer, teetotal, fantastic attitude and of course player.
I love him and I did predict he would be a major star as far back as June but in reality when he first came to us on loan in DOL’s disastrous first season
MON, no tactics or does he just trust his players
Just read a very interesting piece in the Daily Mail with the following quote
One former Villa player, an international, said that there is no great method to O’Neill’s coaching.
‘I didn’t do any pattern play under him,’ said the forward, who had better remain anonymous in case the Irishman carries out reprisals. ‘We didn’t really do much by way of work on set-pieces either, although people will find that difficult to believe.
‘The fitness work was pretty standard. Most of our play was off the cuff. However, Martin knows what he wants: centre halves, defend; full backs, stop crosses and defend; midfielders, help out at either end of the pitch and create goals; and strikers, score them.
‘As long as you are prepared to give him what he wants, then Martin O’Neill will stand by you morning, noon and night.’
We can only guess who the player might be as the only international forward to leave under MON is Baros and he hardly played under him, maybe we know why.
I have had debates with a couple of people who have said this as well and frankly tactics are over rated as MON has admitted that. For me what counts in a team is a certain amount of desire and passion and a willingness to work. There have been times in games where I have wondered what MON is doing but he trusts the players to have the intelligence and the ability to work it out themselves.
Maybe this is a failing, maybe as some games have show you need tactical nous but if you fully trust your players, it is clear which players soon fall out of favour with MON, then the results we have seen is continual progression and now a final.
Few other managers in the PL have the power that MON has at Villa Park and he knows he will live or die by his methods and as long as they work who caress what embittered former ‘internationals’ may think.
MON denies any Boyd link, HURRAH
Great news from today’s press conference
O’Neill said: “I don’t know if players are at football games but the other part I can definitely comment on. I was quite surprised to see the story that he is signing for us.
“Of course, I know the player very well indeed. He was in Scotland when I was in charge of Celtic – but there isn’t any truth in it.”
I must say that gets a big cheer from me and allows the Blues a clear run at best an average player, at worse a total waste in the PL
However today it appears that Habib Beye and Craig Gardner are very close to leaving Villa Park when this happens will this leave space for another signing ?
MON, Deal or no Deal, the economic reality
It has rumoured for a while that Martin O’Neil spent all his years transfer budget in the winter window and today in the Blackburn pre match conference he confirmed as much as reported on Sky Sports.
When asked if he was looking to sign a striker, O’Neill told Sky Sports: “We are not looking at players at this minute because we have to sell. Do I have to sell to buy? We wouldn’t be the only club in that position.”
This for me is the economic reality of the situation. MON has always said he would not risk the clubs financial future and this means clearly that the wage bill would be kept in check. The damage you saw at Portsmouth, West Ham and a few other PL clubs can be directly related to wages spiralling out of control.
So if the likes of Gardner and Shorey are sold this then frees up the wage bill for one player to come in and those two would be £40k a week in wages we would have to play with. I do not think the comment relates to actual transfer fees but about keeping the wage bill to 75% of the income which is the recommended limit for football clubs.
What we should take as a positive from his comments is that it indicates if a couple leave we could see a player arrive in and maybe one that brings the quality and class we all know we need and certainly after Sunday. We are at the stage of our development with the squad players we have and the youngsters coming through that we no longer need 5/6 players in each window but just one or two who are not classed as squaddies but first team and PL quality.
So I am totally relaxed about the comments, they show the reality of the situation where only Man City and Blues seem to have significant amounts of money and the rest of us in the league as Redknapp said are in a position where we have to be careful.
Yes shout for the fantasy names but ask yourself how much are prepared to risk the financial security of the club because so far Randy Lerner has backed MON all the way and a final tomorrow night will be a decent return so far.
Be brave Martin
I like the FA cup, in fact I love it.
However on Saturday we will face I believe a reserve Blackburn side who of course like us wait for the Carling Cup semi but they obviously have far fewer resources.
So now is the time for MON to be brave and play the kids and younger players. Give them exposure to a 28,000 or so Villa Park in a competition we should be targeting. I have backed MON all the way but for Saturday he has to play the following team because we have to see if the kids have got what it takes to progress. Besides we also face an awful amount of games and some of the senior players need a few days off.
Therefore please Martin play the following team (because you have said you would make changes)
Guzan
Beye Collins CLARK LOWRY
ALBRIGHTON Reo-Coker Sidwell DELPH
Carew DELFOUNESO
The players in capitals are the ones we should be excited by for the future and the senior players left are those whose match time recently has been restricted.
We have nothing to fear by playing this team, nothing.
The Test of MON
From the start of the season MON has been under some pressure from the fans. This was down to the disastrous end of last season that we had and a large amount of blame that MON must take for it. However even after Wigan we had a different squad and a different team but a small vociferous minority of fans seem set against MON, I just do not get them.
MON is a unique manager he has his little ways which may not be seen as modern but surely rescuing us from the depths of O’Leary’s time to guide us to 10th,6th,6th shows that they do work. Also in modern times it appears the fans are less patient, require quick results and now require so called entertaining football.
For MON and for myself all that matters is the result, we do sometimes get them ‘lucky’, sometimes we will great and sometimes we have routine wins but they are wins. The position after 6 games is good, it is where
I thought we should be with the points and we can push on. There is no doubt that the next two home games, Man City and Chelsea will define the early part of the season and in 9 days time we will know exactly where we stand.
The key question to be answered over these games is whether MON will play the correct players in the correct formation. Despite what NRC did he HAS to play and Carew HAS to be dropped for a string of under par performances which have shown no enthusiasm for the job in hand. These will be the tests the forthcoming games.
I have total faith and belief in MON so should all the fans.
This week and anger
I have hated this week. Ok the result on Saturday needs no further debate but the reaction I have seen from some people on the forums, Villatalk, Vital and H&V is disgusting.
Any old rumour is being peddled as truth and used to smear MON with, we even have people on vital Villa saying it would be positive for us to lose at Liverpool and I can never accept that at all. In fact for those people I have nothing less than total contempt for them.
Now MON has come out and said we are giving Luke young compassionate leave after his brothers awful tradgey and has anyone apologised for peddling a bust up as fact and a reason to batter MON with.
My good friend B6Bloke on VT summed it up
“The new breed of Villa fan is vicious and in my opinion even if Fergie were at Villa he would be ousted out by the fans if he did not pamper to their needs of: 1. Playing who they want him to play 2.Telling them his transfer targets 3:Try and discipline one of their favourite players 4. Making subs when they make it known who they want on with a song. and 5. Win the EPL within an unrealistic time. In fact for any manager to have the fans off his back he would not be able to have the manager title because there are those who feel they can do a better job because they did it on FIFA 09“
It does seem to me the new football fan is impatient and reckless in what they want and demand from a club. No one can deny it is a rocky time but like with Randy I have utter and 100% faith in MON pulling this round.
MON’s comments and Sneijder – wishful thinking ?
MON has given the following quote to the OS
“We will have to replace them. That’s my job. Some players within the football club are able to step up and do that and there may be one or two from outside.
“The type of player we are looking to bring to the football club at the moment will make us hopefully, in the not-too-distant future, a better footballing side
Would have to agree with them and for us to prosper we have to keep the ball better and have a ball player in the middle. Who can this player be ?
Well I really think Sneijder fits the bill perfectly as a natural ball player and his agent Soren Lerby made these recent comments
“For some time there has been talk of a move for Sneijder to Inter but the reality is that anyone who wants to buy him must simply satisfy the demands of the club,” he explained.
“Sneijder definitely wants a club that can guarantee his constant use.
“The possibility he remains in Madrid is still quite high.”
and you would have to say Sneijder is going some if he thinks he will get regular games at Real and I think the door is ajar a bit more now, but is that just mere wishful thinking ?
Who is next ? Tuncay, Wheater or Kilgallon
MON and John Robertson were clearly seen at the Riverside for tonights Boro vs Sheffield Utd game
No doubt in tomorrow’s press we will be linked with the three players below, all of them make sense
Tuncay – versitile along the front line, some good quality and for me a certainty to join including some ITK I recieved this morning.
Wheater – been linked all summer, the typical MON central defender but the sticking point has been the reluctance of Wheater it seems to leave but we may offer £10m and that will get Boro really thinking.
Matthew Kilgallon – Sheffield United Centre Back who is LEFT footed, heavily linked by Neil Warnock who brought him from Leeds and of course a mate of Milner’s.
So I expect at least new faces in the next 4 days, Centre back is a must and you have why both MON and JR had to be at the game ?
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