jasthevillan Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 From my experience when someone says 'Honestly' they are generally lying. I think with Randy and MO'N it is very much a case of if someone comes along that you want then lets see what we can do. Not like the days with Ellis giving a certain budget, that cost us so many good players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paddy Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 while Navas is a quality player i've heard that he gets badly homesick which is never good. Yeah massively, having read 4-4-2 this month it says he can hardly even travel to away games in his own country as he gets really bad panic attacks, can't see him moving to Europe any time soon, or if he does, will take him a long time to settle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gavin@villatalk Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 think we'll see alot of 'less-known' players coming to VP during Jan even though i would love to see playrs like SWP and Bent come to villa, I just think there will be way too much competition for these players Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocafella Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 3. Gareth Bale I think Gareth Bale is 16 or 17 years old. No way is he good enough for our team at the moment..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KSV Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 hes 17.. but whats age got to do with it... What age did our very own Gareth Barry make his debut? in a similar position also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David-Copenhagen Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 There's no point in discussing the value of a player like Gabby because, for a start, he's not for sale. Secondly, no one really knows whether he's actually going to develop into a good all round striker or whether pace will always be his only asset. I was thinking the same myself, who cares what he is worth - we are not a selling club anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David-Copenhagen Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 This I find worrying: O'Neill told icbirmingham: "I honestly don't know how much money I've got, but we're going to try to strengthen the squad." Don't know when it was dated but it doesn't sound very professional to me. How can MON plan to bring in players without knowing his budget??? Almost sounds like the DOL/Ellis farces ffs. Transfers are not easy - you cant just pick and choose. I think it is a matter of looking at a deal and evaluating whether or not it is good biz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David-Copenhagen Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 Unless their takeover happens quickly Scotland will not be buying anyone... they are skint! Or if they sell players. Parker for Villa please - and please don't sell Titus!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahamaad Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 Unless their takeover happens quickly Scotland will not be buying anyone... they are skint! Or if they sell players. Parker for Villa please - and please don't sell Titus!! Don't think they could even give him away! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jez Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 Villa victory the spur for O'Neill by John Percy December 25, 2006 LONDON (AFP) - Martin O'Neill's honeymoon period is well and truly over at Aston Villa and new owner Randy Lerner must be acutely aware that his millions are sorely needed as the January transfer window looms. Despite an excellent start to his reign at Villa Park, that saw his side pick up points at Chelsea and Arsenal, O'Neill has now seen his squad go seven games without a win after Saturday's 3-0 defeat at home to Manchester United. Constant complaints about the paucity of the Villa squad were made by previous manager David O'Leary but O'Neill is now beginning to understand the problems encountered by his predecessor. Lerner, who also owns NFL giants the Cleveland Browns, is understood to have set aside 15 million pounds for O'Neill to spend in the New Year, with Spurs strikers Jermain Defoe and Robbie Keane believed to be his two main targets. There has been speculation that Lerner will prove to be the football equivalent of Scrooge but O'Neill is convinced the American will be anything but a miser when it comes to spending on new players. "It is nonsense to suggest he has not fulfilled his promise - there has not been the opportunity to do it," said O'Neill whose side, for all their recent form, are still in 10th place. "When he arrived here before the August window closed he did spend. I am satisfied the chairman will have the club at heart," the former Northern Ireland international added. Asked about his transfer targets, O'Neill said: "I would prefer someone who has maybe played, or who is playing, Premiership football. "But it does not mean that I would be so tunnel-visioned as to be making other things unavailable just because of that. "I think in this day and age there have been a number of foreign players who have come in here and done well because they are very good footballers." Villa still have doubts over the fitness of midfielder Gavin McCann, who is still struggling with a hamstring injury, but Luke Moore could return from a shoulder injury. Skipper Gareth Barry will spearhead Villas attempts to land their first win in London for almost three years. "We've done well at Arsenal and Chelsea and hopefully we can go one better at Spurs but it won't be easy," Barry said. "I don't know what our problem in the capital is, I don't think it's psychological. But we know we need to get back to winning ways." Tottenham manager Martin Jol will be desperate to enhance his European hopes by bouncing back from the seventh-placed north Londoners' dismal 3-1 defeat away to Newcastle. Defoe is a doubt with a knee injury but Jol will keep faith with goalkeeper Paul Robinson despite his error last time out. "Paul will hold his hands up that the third goal was his fault when he didn't catch the ball," said Jol. "But he is a fine goalkeeper who has done well for us this season," the Spurs boss added of the England No 1. "We could have scored more goals at Newcastle. That's the difference between our home and away form, but we are not far off. We are still in a good position." Clicky Villa transfer questions answered Dec 24 2006 Our man at Villa BILL HOWELL on which players Martin O'Neill could be looking to buy with Randy Lerner's millions. Q. Are Villa going to be active? A. You can put your life on it. Martin O'Neill has been waiting for this moment ever since he failed to snap up James Milner in August. Newcastle pulled the plug on that one at the very last minute but don't expect that move to be necessarily re-ignited. Villa have covered a whole lot of bases on wide-right players in the intervening four months. January has not been a good time for Villa to do any business in recent years. Q. What is the budget? A. The national press have speculated anything between £10million and a whopping £25million, but something in the region of £13million-£15million would seem to be a reasonable estimation, although there is no hard-and-fast sum that the new board and manager have to stick to. And Martin O'Neill is thought to be ready to keep quite a lot of that back for the summer if he can't get the men he really wants. Wilfred Bouma Q. What areas are they looking to strengthen? A. If Martin O'Neill could bring in all the players he wanted then half-a-dozen would be about right, but realistically he is probably looking at two or three additions. Both full-back positions are being looked at. Olof Mellberg and Gareth Barry currently fill the right-back and left-back slots at a time when Aaron Hughes and Wilfred Bouma are fully fit, which may indicate where they stand in the manager's thoughts. There are of course two more full-backs at the club, but long-term fitness concerns still hang over Mark Delaney, who has six months remaining on his contract, and Jlloyd Samuel has so far played only one match for O'Neill, so is therefore an unknown quantity and is also out of contract at the end of the season. A wide-right midfielder, of course, remains a key addition as too much reliance is being placed on out-of-position Gabby Agbonlahor, and it seems inconceivable that somebody won't be brought in imminently. But over and above everything is the need for a top quality proven striker to take the club forward because Chris Sutton has such a limited shelf-life at 33 while Milan Baros's form has been patchy at best and Juan Pablo Angel has 18 months on his contract. Q. Likely targets? A. Robbie Keane is believed to have topped the list for some time and is believed to be ready to welcome an approach from Villa, having seen his first-team chances limited at Tottenham this season. A £7million fee should clinch it, but the problem - and unfortunately it is a pretty big one - is not Keane's current knee injury as he would walk any medical. No, the fact that Tottenham are still involved in European competition makes any deal complicated. Nicklas Bendtner Name a top-flight striker and Villa will have discussed him - Darren Bent, for sure; Craig Bellamy, unlikely to be leaving Liverpool; but they are exactly the quality O'Neill is after. The Championship has also come under close scrutiny with Preston's David Nugent, Birmingham's Nicklas Bendtner and Albion's Diomansy Kamara - who could also fill a wide midfield birth - being eyed. Zoltan Gera has a known pedigree and is favoured by some backroom staff at a time when Milner's availability might now be affected by Newcastle's long injury list coupled with his fine recent form. Jason Koumas has also shone. Full-backs watched have included Colchester's Greg Halford and, apparently, Manchester United's Phil Bardsley. Turning to centre-backs, there isn't a Premiership club around not showing a liking for Albion's Curtis Davies, but hold your horses - a move is unlikely until at least the summer, and then only if Albion decide to sell. Q. Any out-goings? A. If O'Neill wants to boost his pocket money only one player can help him achieve that - Milan Baros. And Baros is known to fancy a move to Spain should someone come calling with a firm offer in the region of £5million-£6million. Milan Baros That might sound a lot for a player who has flattered to deceive after a long period on the sidelines after the World Cup. But Hamburg were dead keen on him in the summer, although they would pay only £5million. Back then Villa could not sell before the end of August for less than £8million as they would then have had to give Liverpool £3million up front as he was less than 12 months into his move as in Premier League rules. That problem has now been removed. Samuel and Lee Hendrie would both fetch reasonable fees, say £500,000 now, while Bouma - a £3.5million signing - won't put up with too many days on the bench before he decides to seek a move. Q. Who would be the manager's dream signings? A. Robbie Keane and then a sprinkling of Premiership talent in the shape of Jermain Defoe, James Milner, Geremi, Sylvin Distin, Wayne Bridge, Luis Boa Morte and Shaun Wright-Phillips. Q. Realistically? A. The flame flickers for Keane while a move for Gera and Halford or Bardsley would still leave a few million in the pot for the summer. Clicky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocafella Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 Without those goals Taylor wouldn't have been so hot right now. And a defender isn't there to score goals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncy_chris Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 Keane would be an awesome signing for £7mil. How reliable is this guy Bill Howell? I would be extremely happy with that plus two or three others. Never really seen much of that Halford guy, or Dio Kamara either. Are they any good? Its very pleasing to see lots of recognisable names suggested on these forums coming up. But most notably is the lack of Alan Smith. Someone on here was convinced he'd be signing a few weeks back, and it was met with more than a little distaste. Hopefully January will be pretty exciting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasthevillan Posted December 25, 2006 Share Posted December 25, 2006 Bill Howell is as reliable as Najwan Ghrayib was a good left back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutByEaster? Posted December 26, 2006 Moderator Share Posted December 26, 2006 Good to see that Bill has taken to interviewing himself in order to get to the truth of matters at Villa Park. Struggling for access Billy ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasthevillan Posted December 26, 2006 Share Posted December 26, 2006 I was standing outside the car park with a client from America after the Charlton game waiting to see the players so that he could take their picture and standing next to me was Bill Howell, how I laughed inside, to think that some people pay 40p for the Meaning Evil every day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shipscat2005 Posted December 26, 2006 Share Posted December 26, 2006 have to say for all his little misdemeanours,messr howell is nomally as reliable as they come with regard to events at villa park,and appears to have a decent feed into the inner thinkings,reference his knowledge of drearys exit,m o n incoming well prior to the nationals.if i were a gambler i'd hazard a fgues he won't be a great deal away from what happens in january Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyW Posted December 26, 2006 Share Posted December 26, 2006 Spurs fan here Can I just say - there's no way in hell we'd sell Robbie Keane. He's the most popular player at the club by far! If we sold him there would be outrage He's also clearly Martin Jol's favoured striker as he always uses him in the big games (Chelsea, Arsenal, Man U etc). I could see us selling Defoe at the right price - but not until we've replaced him with someone of a similar calibre. We made the mistake of selling Kanoute before we had a replacement - ended up with bloody Rasiak in a last minute panic buy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kkr Posted December 26, 2006 Share Posted December 26, 2006 Spurs fan here Can I just say - there's no way in hell we'd sell Robbie Keane. He's the most popular player at the club by far! If we sold him there would be outrage He's also clearly Martin Jol's favoured striker as he always uses him in the big games (Chelsea, Arsenal, Man U etc). I could see us selling Defoe at the right price - but not until we've replaced him with someone of a similar calibre. We made the mistake of selling Kanoute before we had a replacement - ended up with bloody Rasiak in a last minute panic buy We shall have them both off you ta! Thats what were comingdown for today to get them to sign a deal and for 3 points!!! :winkold: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippy178 Posted December 26, 2006 Share Posted December 26, 2006 Saw today that Davids might be allowed to move on, anybody think he's worth a crack? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyW Posted December 26, 2006 Share Posted December 26, 2006 Saw today that Davids might be allowed to move on, anybody think he's worth a crack? Think he wants to go back to Holland - Ajax were interested at one stage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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