Submitted by: Naughtius Maximus
There is often a clamour for the head of our chairman Randolph Learner I can’t say I’m in the pro learner camp but I’m certainly not in the anti-leaner camp and I’ll try and give my reasons why.
Learner took over villa in 2006 and since has invested in transfers alone over 100 million pounds i.e. gross profit/deficit puts him at over -£100 million in transfers. Learner and Villa lie 5th in the overall spends table of the last 5 years averaging 17.2 mil per season
http://www.transferleague.co.uk/league-tables/transfer-league-table-last-five-seasons.html
Just this year Learner waived 100 million owed to him by villa in interest.
He gave MON his full support during his reign spending a whopping 50 mil in 08/09 season when we failed yet again to make the CL finishing 6th for the 3rd season in succession and since that time Man city have broken in to the coveted CL four positions by buying their way in with 100’s of millions of pounds in an endless supply that only Chelsea and abramovic can hope to compete with so the goal posts have moved slightly since Learner embarked on his project at Villa.
There is only so long a club can go on loosing multi millions per season unless you’re owned by a billionaire to whom money means nothing.
The way I see it is that he has tried the spend, spend way and due to clubs like city and Chelsea player prices and wages have become ridiculous, average players are commanding ridiculous fees and wages and that is what we ended up with under the MON money era, a squad of average to decent players who just weren’t quite good enough but left us with a massive wage bill, a bill that can only be sustained by CL football.
So Learner has tried a new method and this is what we have now, trying to build a team based on what is known as the ‘Dortmund’ and ‘Ajax’ model, getting young players in a building a squad.
Now I’m not saying this will be a success, it’s as big a gamble as going the spend spend route and should the Lambert project fail (and I believe we will know by the end of this season whether Lambert stays or goes) then I do believe Learner will sell up if a buyer can be found.
‘Hallelujah!’ I hear people cry but remember for ever Arab oil billionaire and Russian football mad money bags there is a Carson Jung, just look across the road to Small Heath if you want to see how a club has been taken the piss out of, totally mismanaged and struggling to make any kind of attempt at a return to the prem and when you’ve finished looking there take another look not so far away to see what has happened to Wolves and Coventry to see he harsh realities of owners that don’t give a shit about the clubs they own. Because for me I can’t see how some people think Learner is happy to see Villa fail, that he is some monster gloating each time we lose a game at the very least he is a business man, of course he wants villa to be a success, he is also a business man who is so fond of football and in particular Aston Villa that he has bought the club and lost 100’s of millions of pounds trying to make it a success.
All I’m saying is I don’t buy the ‘learner don’t give a shit’ mantra, he’s tried one method and now he’s trying another and as I’ve said I feel if this way fails he will sell up but aside from being bought out by billionaires looking for a new play toy any new owner is a massive gamble, sometimes it is better the devil you know.
in the last three seasons how many games has he bothered to come. We had the excuses but the bloke has got fed up with his toy like he did with the Browns.
The plans are now lower the wage as much as possible, take the TV money, pay of the debt and try and sell. The benefit for Lerner is for about 2 years we will never know … There is NO justification AT ALL for the wages to now be so low with the extra Sky money so I only conclude the extra money is going out of the club.
The problem is that we could go down and if not who wants mid table crap with average players.
I was speaking to a former poster on here, just like me he has given up on the club (more for me the lack of ambition tied in with Prem league shite) and watching non league.
I now go to Boldmere, full of Villa fans following villa on the radio, watching players playing football for the fun of it and actually seeing some home wins !!
It does not mean I am not a Villa fan, far from it but everyone has their point when enough is enough and when last winter when in massive trouble we got the likes of Sylla and Dawkins I am still shocked we survived.
Well we can thank just one person for that – Benteke.
This season we could easily finish as high as 8th as finish 17th but that is nothing we do but all to do with the average shite the PL is league and especially away from the top 4/5 clubs. Across the league and given the prices I am shocked to see so many clubs still retain an healthy attendance when most of us have low expectations for the season.
Agree Ian Lerner has run the club into the ground IMO. He’s kept us up long enough to get his £90m from sky whilst spending the minimum amount he could get away with to keep us up. Now he’s got his money he probably won’t care if we went down unless he’s thinking if selling. If course that raises the issue that if and a huge if at this stage he did sell then what. Who would take us over. Maybe a business consortium I’d have thought I certainly can’t see any rich Arabs taking us over unless we are really lucky. Unless we start spending serious amounts if money this great club of ours will never challenge for major honours again. That is now a fact sad but true in afraid it’s called the sky effect.
but I have the massive problem with simply say spending loads of cash.
Look at Chelsea, got all these younger players, spent a lot and just hoovering up talent and now they have what, 18 players on loan ??
the problem is not so much the quality of who is brought but squad size and depth that the other clubs can carry. The risks they can take and then use the rest of clubs like test beds to test layers (see Kyle Walker).
The time is close where the case for a top wage limit is brought in for the whole squad of say max £100M a year. If other countries don;t do it, sod it (though Germany have a form of it)but of course the authorities over here would never do it.
that’d be a great idea robbo but yeah they’d never go for it coz it would upset the sky four teams too much and they’d probably find a way round it with bonuses, sponsors ect, there’d be a loop hole found. I do agree its gotten to the point where outside of the big spenders no one can compete and its not just the prem, the Spanish league has been a 2 horse race for years.
that’s why we are going down the route we are I think, trying to compete as the best of the rest but without breaking the club, the only way we’ll ever see us compete is if we can get CL football and that aint gonna happen with the current situation, its a vicious circle.
its not only us, its ever team outside of those 4, spurs being the exception this season but most of their spends has been bank rolled by the bale money and should they fail in reaching the CL this season they may find themselves with a very uncomfortable stick or twist scenario next season coz they’re gonna need the money to pay them there wages.
Spurs generate enough without CL to do that …
believe me if spurs don’t make CL this season it will be massive for them.
I’d like to see spurs break the monopoly. It’s annoying because with what wev spent under Lerner is where we should be now. We were ahead of spurs not long ago now they are miles ahead if us. Levy for Lerner anyone!?
Agreed.. hate Spurs but they have done it the right way..
Thats why i am hoping that next summer 4 players will come in for 40M.. if not i will be joining you and TJ over on the dark side..
You mean the same club bankrolled by multi billionnaire tax evader Joe Lewis ?
Dont suck up to the Spurs myth eh ?
Ok they’ve spent a lot of money too but at least it’s paying off for them now they are top if they win today. Like Everton they are better as a team now bale has gone IMO. When we sold young etc we used youth players or lower level players to replace him and other quality players that left.
good debate on this topic, nice one guys 🙂
OOh ahh the major problem was everyone inc us fans was blinded by M Oneil.. when he first came i was so excited and thought what a coup for the club.. unfortunately for us we we became the club that exposed his myth and obv since then he has gone down hill..
You look at a player like Modric.. Spurs paid 16M for him and sold him for 35M.. can ANYONE honestly say that Oneil would have brought him even if Modric was begging to come to us.. NO CHANCE..
And that was the problem.. he only brought from a limited british market.. over priced and lacking in play makers..
no instead we brought Milner for £12M and sold for £28M
Young for £9M and sold for £15M (if not end of contract add another £10M to that)
Downing £12M and sold for £20M
Would have took Milner over Modric any day, any week, any hour
Ianrobbo.. not sh!t sherlock.. and that was the best from a limited market.. what about the rest of the rubbish he brought.. Heskey Harewood Zat Knight lol..
face it.. he didn’t have a scouting system and couldn’t by from abroad.. hence why is imagination in full backs was Beye Young Warnock and Shorey.. the guy was a clown and anyone who actually believes he left us in a good state is fecking deluded..
Yes you might want Milner instead of Modric but you missed the whole point of the article.. which was that class like Modric he could never find..
So true the 2 best players under mon was Barry who was already here and Milner who even dol tried to sign so a no brainer. Young was good initially but a one trick pony just cuts in with right foot and under hits or over hits his crosses. I’m amazed utd bought him and even more amazed they paid £20m for him. Yet again teach them a lesson for selling us Djemba djemba
Exactly and the big question of course was why did he bring in mercaneries and put them on long term contracts?
he dne the same with sunderland, only MON could go into the jan transfer window needing a striker and settle for danny graham who couldn’t get into his own side despite being the only out n out striker, god knows how much he paid and th econtract details re wages.