MikeMcKenna

Yep!

Are you sure? Nothing, absolutely nothing would surprise me. I am not a betting man but at 12-1 McClaren could be a good bet but he would be ABSOLUTELY **** for Villa. He had a stint at Derby of 2/3 years in the Championship before Newcastle and as I said nothing would surprise me about this club's appointments.

This season Sherwood got 4 points from a possible 30, which was relatively even worse and more unprecedented - doesn't make Garde much better but based on both their piss poor records it is fair to assume that the quality of the playing staff was the main problem. This has been coming for years and Garde was basically the final mug who inherited Lerner's 'project' that resulted in the club signing loads of **** players and little or no quality over 5/6 years.

I have no doubt that he was sacked. 'Mutual Consent' is simply code for 'we settled on a mutually agreeable termination and payout' He had a contract and they will have had to pay out all or part of it.

I would lay money on the fact that it is already a done deal. My greatest fear is that it is Pearson! I hope it is Moyes but he no longer really inspires me either.

Bear with me. Say for arguments sake you personally had been brought in to make 'decisions' on who stays/goes (excluding players) what would they have been?

No point arguing over whether Garde could have made it with backing but the fact remains that Lerner is a clearing in the woods!

Is the protest still on Mark?

Mark to be be precise I actually said "appear" to have made some positive moves". I reserve judgement on whether Bernstein, Brian Little et al will be allowed or are actually able to rebuild the footballing side - I remain cynical. With the announcement of Garde's departure like everyone else I wait with baited breath for the next manager to arrive on the chopping block.

Yet another person poisoned by our useless f**kwit of an owner.

Why you think we will have similar revenues to this year? I understand that we will get 66m for this season, but based on the 2014/15 accounts, I am assuming we will make another loss even with this for 2015/16, I am not certain of my numbers but my understanding is that for 2016/17 we will get; Season 1 - around 39m, Season 2 - 31m and Season 3 - 14m Our sponsorship, commercial and match day revenues will all fall in 2016/17 and I wouldn't be surprised if, including the parachute payment, our total revenues are only around 75m. If I am correct revenues will be 35-40m lower than 2015/16. Of course if someone can show me differently, I will stand corrected.

I seriously doubt RL will invest further and believe that the reason, Hollis, King and lately Bernstein are choosing their words carefully and being cautious is that the 'reconstruction' has to funded through cuts to costs and player sales. Even with the 1st season parachute payment our revenues are going to plummet next season and Lerner is imo not going to pump in more money. As Bernstein has said the 'football board' will have a 'strong voice' but the ultimate authority still lies with the full board inclusive of Hollis, Krulak and inevitably Lerner despite distancing himself. The club appear to have made some positive moves but it is far to early to assume they will cure the rot. I know many fans are desperate to start believing again, but personally I will never trust Lerner or Krulak - clearings in the woods!

Ostriches and some Villa fans burying head in sand on Pearson?

Keep going lads! The new additions will still have fiddle to Lerner's tune. That he has invested and lost a fortune is ultimately down to him. If he remains as owner we will probably end up in Division 1. I sincerely believe the club would not have reacted as quickly as they have, had it not been for the protests, but the biggest change needed is #LERNEROUT

While the 'debate is interesting' I also think it is now frankly pointless or maybe people are trying to still score points? I personally don't give a damn about who was right or wrong about Garde, Sherwood any of the other previous managers. The reality of the here and now is that we need a manager who will turn us round, get us back to the Premier League and keep us there. I know who I do NOT want and stick by my dislike and opposition to the likes of Pearson or Bruce. If you think that is 'out of hand' fine but that's my personal opinion and I don't want either anywhere near AVFC and will not be persuaded otherwise. Hopefully the powers that be will not go down either route but if they do they lose two season ticket holders for next season.

I partly agree but don't think any of these factors can be discounted at all. They all accumulate to make the clubs running costs much higher than can be afforded given our turnover/profitability. We are a club that has gone from one extreme to another. During MONs time we had one of the smallest squads, who were on average paid quite highly, now we have one of the largest squads who are on average paid a lot less individually with a number of exceptions. Since that time also our non playing staff numbers and costs have risen significantly even allowing for Fox's massive salary So we have A commercial/admin staff that increased in numbers/cost to deliver stagnant (in reality falling) revenues from attendance/sponsorship and commercial. B a larger and more expensive playing/coaching staff have delivered poorer performance. One of the biggest issues imo is quantity over quality. During the 2008-2015 period other clubs who earn significantly less from non TV revenues have done a lot better financially and in terms of team performance. We really are a total shambles. Unfortunately now that we are going down to the championship the savings needed are huge. As much as I feel sorry for the non playing staff, the cuts off the pitch will continue. The West Ham comparison shows that despite being in London their operating costs are a lot less than ours which highlights the problems we have.

I have been trying to understand our accounts v similar clubs as in isolation it is very difficult to fathom why our profitability is so poor when others make money, do better with less etc. According to 2014/15 accounts for us v West Ham same period, a simple illustration of some huge differences in the way the respective clubs are run: AVFC staff numbers FT 535 PT 1084, Total: 1619 WHU staff numbers FT 257 PT 334, Total: 591 All numbers include players... Top Director £1.2m v £646K Quite staggering that we have more than double the number of full time staff and three times as many Part Timers. There may be some valid reasons for part of difference but the variation is huge. Yet WHU attendances are on a par and they had £5 m higher turnover than us. They are currently more stable/successful than us. Doesn't make sense

Where have I questioned your 'intelligence'? I have stated that I do not want him based on his known and supposed reputation. If you think differently that is your choice and opinion. End of.

Absolute rubbish. Garde is going and it is pointless discussing his merits or otherwise but the 'destruction' and damage was caused long before he ever arrived

I accept that there isn't directly any evidence but I was told that when he was challenged about his son's racist behaviour in Thailand he could not see the problem. Whether that is true or not, shortly after he was fired. Ultimately is it was 'the straw that broke the camels back'

If we sign either Bruce or Pearson I will be disgusted and find it impossible to support a team led by either of them. Villa have made so many **** ups in the last six years, that the last thing we need is ****** Bruce or Pearson who will immediately divide the fans! We need a fresh start, not old spudface or a psycho! There is no point in backing Garde anymore. He has been a dead man walking for weeks. But FFS, Villa don't screw it up again by hiring another manager that will be hated as much as McLeish or another whose reputation imho is far from positive. I just hope that all the paper talk is just lazy journalism.

TRO frankly I can't be arsed. It is all in the public domain and a little online research will reveal the nature of the man.

Absolutely correct. That some fans never mind the club think this tosser should be anywhere near our club horrifies me. We may be down but let's have some ****** dignity.

The nature of a man is key for me. I cannot divorce Pearson's character just because he has a record of working with lower league clubs under constraints. I can totally ignore his 'recent work'. If he becomes manager of AVFC I will have major difficulties. We should imho be above employing such a rocket polisher

Sadly this shows how far we have fallen that fans will accept a bully and a racist as our manager