I’ve been having a think about the above question and I think we’re going to struggle come the winter window.
To my mind, we have two ways of looking at things.
1) We spend some serious money on some quality players, with the aim being to fight our way out of trouble.
Or
2) We resign ourselves to relegation and buy players to suit.
I’ve previously called for a massive investment come January and in massive, I mean way over the £25-30 million that even I’d touted a few weeks back.
Let’s face it, it should have been spent in the summer on top of the Delph and Benteke money, as we all felt the squad in general wasn’t good enough. At least we would have had a chance of getting some quality in, what with a new broom and all that.
But of course it was never going to happen, as Lerner won’t invest because he wants out and is only trying to recoup money.
So why will anything be different in January?
Well, perhaps it’s now beginning to dawn on Lerner on what he stands to lose if we get relegated and he will have a last ditch attempt at survival by splashing the cash?
We also have to factor in the problem where if we’re cut adrift even more than we already are in the table, the only way we’re going to get quality players in, is if we pay them way over the top money.
I know some of you have said they won’t come, but I believe they would. After all, it’s only a job isn’t it, where a four year contract on higher money is better than less money, regardless of where you are playing?
No, it just doesn’t make sense, given Lerner’s history of spending over the last 4 years or so.
Hence I think we’re going to go for option 2), where we’ll be working on an even tighter budget, with the aim of pocketing as much parachute money as possible.
It seems an absurd situation as a fan, but from a businessman’s point of view it makes sense.
Heck, I think I’ll go further and say Lerner might even take the club off the market, as although we’d be playing in the championship, it is never a good thing to sell an asset at a loss.
It’s a risky game, because Lerner would face even more of the fans ire, if we were to openly accept relegation.
Indeed the fans might actually start to do what should have been done ages ago and protest, but I doubt Lerner would care. He probably knows that we’d still get 20,000 plus turn up at games.
Surely one in the eye for him though, will be looking at us having extended Gabby’s contract.
£3 million a year plus for a fading player?
Still, Gabby might actually come good in the championship, but surely Lerner must be thinking “who the hell approved that deal?” The one good thought there is that it was probably him, which just shows how good his judgement is.
Lerner of course, might splash out a token few bob on someone like Austin to appease the easily pleased of us (as much as he says he doesn’t want to play at a relegation candidate), but I think we’re looking at a very bleak winter window overall.
Things go from bad to worse if I’m right 🙁
We’re FUCKed there’s no to ways about it,LERNER spending money????I nearly choked on my malt.if relegation hits his pockets well it’s not all bad.bring on the saints LOL
Having watched the second home game under Remi I thought we played well apart from the comical defensive errors. On a good day with a bit of luck on our side we would have come away with 3 points. On a positive note we created a lot of chances and would definitely
Be resigned to relegation had we not created nothing against a very poor Watford side. Of all the home games I watched there is not a lot between the teams we have played, we just have not been able to get a win and that has resulted in being bottom.
I still think mentally the players just need a good result to put some confidence in the team.
I keep saying we have a lot of games to play and if we beat the teams around us we will survive. Come January will leaner put his hand in his pocket and spend. A right back, and someone who can score goals.
I would just like to finish by saying the fans were awesome Saturday and I’m sure everyone is behind the team and still believes we can do it. We’re not down yet even though it does not look good. Let’s see where were are in Jan after the Sunderland game.
Badger, you know Villa is to the league a jinks, who in their right mind would even contemplate coming to us under the leadership of our board and ownership, nobody with sense unless money draws, the way I see it only players on their final years or players not getting playing time. The only thing that will spark interest would be local games, dark days are coming in our history all to the thanks ot a Yank thats played silly games in business to our club, We have to get rid of Lerner and quickly to get back our club.
Karl, surely that’s the point. We played a bang average, newly promoted team and we lost. Watford carved us open three or four times the first half and should’ve had more than one goal. We’re down and any talk of protests is a nonsense. Who will we be protesting to? Lerner who is thousands of miles away and never speaks to the fans? Garde who inherited six years of mismanagement or the players who simply aren’t good enough? Spend what? Who’s going to come to a team who would have to defy every record the PL has in order to stay up. We’ve won one all season and need three just to get out the bottom – assuming Sunderland don’t win in the meantime. It’s a bloody chore going down there now. I used to count down the days til the villa game and my kids would be kitted up the minute they woke up. They’re villa mad but even they’re asking if we have to keep going.
I just dont know who will come in. The only players that might risk the move and we can afford the wages if we go down are from the Championship. Even then would Charlie Austin actually come?
We might have to rely on the players we have in the squad, even if that means bringing back players off loan. Maybe its time for players like Gardner and Grealish to step up and drag us out of this mess.
There is a lot of game left in league so not press panic button yet but come January if we don’t sign simular play like……..
Think theses singings would help
Jose Enrique-Liverpool or tripper-Spurs
Nemanja vidic-inter Milan can’t get a game there
Nigel de Jong-Ac Milan only played 5 games
Try get Robbie Keane or drogba for a few months to get few goals
Charlie Austin 8million
That’s a good spine then get the players we already have to support the spine aewye adama Sinclair bacuna zogbia kozak Young jack if he pull his finger out of his arse.
Trippier would be great on loan, dont know if they would let him go though. I like Enrique but hasnt he put on a lot of weight?!!
Vidic could be another Lescott. Great 5 years ago, but may be a liability now.
I would love us to sign Austin, but I dont know if its gonna happen.
Personally, I think we will end up picking up a couple of top championship players whose team wont come up this year and we could afford their wages if we go down.
I’ll be surprised if we buy Championship players, we rarely ever do, especially not under Garde will we. I think he’ll have more of a say on who we get in than Sherwood did, who only wanted ridiculously expensive, awful Spurs players.
Enrique’s a decent LB but he’s gotten big since his injury.
Vidic has been awful since moving to Inter.
De Jong of two seasons ago, absolutely. But now? No thanks. He’s only gotten worse at Milan.
Austin would be a good start, but we’ll need much better than the players you mentioned.
Unfortunately, none of those players will want to sign for a Championship side!
to be honest i would bring some of the kids in. cant be any worse than whats on show.
all the players we could of had in the summer aint coming so austin and townsend are off the radar.
i would scout for some tall strong players that might not be the most skillfull but would suit the championship.
the likes of clark and sanchez can rot in the reserves as i believe they are the most mistake prone and anti football players we have
Don’t see why trippier would get a loan til end of season to get some game time and experience
Jose looked good when I seen him a month ago but got a lot of good talent in front of him so hard to get back in at Liverpool
Vidic lot better player than lescott vidic never had pace so he never relied on that he had positional sense and leadership and that what are current back 4 don’t have mich got pace so him and vidic would make a good pairing..
And Nigel de Jong same offer you world class cover in front of a back 4 leaving the ball players to go forward and get the goals and win the games!!
And Austin and ayew to be the finisher in the box!!!
If Santa brings me that for Christmas I’ll be one happy villa fan!!! 🙂
but they wont come.
last summer yes.
so we have to get what will suit the fact of being relegated. so hard tall and to be honest nasty bastards who will handle championship football
Andrew in football mate you know money talks so u can get most of these old experience plays for a price!!! That’s what we lack experience & leadership on the field of play!!
yes but because of our position and how we are seen in the medias eye they wont just come.
but if they did come it would cost us in the long run. players who would want out at the earliest point but nobody wants them costing us x amount of thousands a week.
so lets face the music and get prepared for what we will need to get back
Exactly Andrew, only has been and money makers would come,
Andrew it will cost us a lot more money us going down then getting and paying them players to keep us up!!
I refuse to give up hope on my beloved villa and have hope randy and remi will pull us out of theses bad times!
Those players aren’t good enough to keep us up is what I was getting at. We have to get so much better.
I just dont see us being able to get players from Europe if it looks odds on that we will go down. As a foreign player, you would take one look at the table and say no thanks!
The reason I think Championship players would work is they have nothing to lose. If Villa do get relegated, they have a better chance of being promoted than they do with their current club…and will be earning more money.
I mean it makes sense, but getting mediocre Championship players is a sign of giving up. As well as Garde doesn’t know them, we can still attract European based players. Hull brought in N’Doye in January and then got relegated, obviously just one example but it can happen.
Dont get me wrong, I’m not saying this a great option, but it might be the only one we have in these circumstances. However, I don’t think players like Afobe or Keane from Burnley would be bad additions to our squad anyway.
It’s a tough question Badger given that Lerner is hardly likely to pay out big wages with relegation on the horizon. Expect more young players with potential would be my guess.
What worries me is who we’ll lose, if not in January then in the summer as Lerner looks to cut costs. There are a few where we’d all agree to pay their taxi fare to go but it’s more likely to be our better players that want to go.
My biggest fear is that Garde leaves at the end of the season; I dread to even think who he would be replaced by! All in all worrying times
It makes me laff everybody’s player wishlist I know it makes good discussion but as we should know LERNERs a tight arse so your all dreaming so really what’s the point.
All we’re left with is dreams……or is that nightmares!
But nightmares aren’t real. This is!!!!
Correct Giddy, as I’ve said who just who would be daft enough to come to us, only fake won’t to be in England and ending their time finished players. We don’t have that club that’s looking to progress in Aston Villa.
The only way anyone will come to us is if we pick up between six and nine points before Christmas. Anything else is pure fantasy.
I can’t see us getting 6-9 points before May, let alone Christmas !
Precisely. 🙁
Karl’s comment is true about most games this season, Everton was a rout but most have not been. The problem has been it is much easier to score, even with a bad shot missing the target when struck, at the Villa end than at the other end. Our defence lacks leadership and competence, the goalkeeper is a joke.
I wish I did not have to read another squeak about Charlie Austin. He won’t pass an insurance medical anywhere – which is why other clubs haven’t signed him and he is still at the club which can roll over his cover.
More to the point – it isn’t our attack that is the biggest failure it is the defence. Our attack is nearly always facing a defence sitting on a lead who do not have to leave gaps. When the scores are level or we hold a lead so the opponents have to attack our forwards look better.
If we are going to spend money hopefully Garde does try the young Spanish keeper we have already or insists he buys another keeper, and the next priority is a couple of Scandinavian stoppers so Richards can be shunted to RB maybe Clark to LB if we do not buy.
Clark left back?
Yea, left back in the changing room!