Aston Villa News Archives

Saying goodbye to the football season is very much like giving birth to a ginger child: after nine months of optimism, hope and anguish, you’re left with a genuine feeling of disappointment.

The final day is often emotional. Who could forget Arsenal pipping Liverpool to the title in 1989? Well sadly, my old man. In fact, if you see a small befuddled pensioner roaming the streets, you’ll be better off avoiding football trivia altogether; senility is no picnic.

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Today’s transfer roundup starts with transfer-related news, but not a big rumor. Instead, I give two thumbs-up to Real Madrid’s Wesley Sneijder for looking out for his brother’s best interests, as he stepped in to prevent Real from making an offer to former club Ajax for his brother Rodney, a promising youth team player.

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Guess who’s back? That’s right, me and the transfer roundup.

The season’s winding down and the rumors are heating up, so you’ll be seeing me in this space regularly.

Anyway, on to the good stuff!

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All Premier League highlights from Saturday’s matches:

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The move to Liverpool will tick several boxes for the Aston Villa captain: he gets to make more money (in a short career that’s always a consideration), he gets to play Champions League football and he gets to dream about the Premier League title as opposed to Champions League qualification. It’s a lifestyle upgrade, and although it won’t matter as much (I’m sure Barry has friends at Villa too) Steven Gerrard is being touted as another reason for Barry to leave Villa for Pool.

And then there is his candidacy for a midfield berth with the England national team. He is not my favourite footballer mainly because he has pushed Michael Carrick down the pecking order but the man’s game is more complete than Carrick’s and his versatility and ability to influence a game gives him an edge.

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Tubby Brazilian Ronaldo may be one of the greatest players to ever grace a football pitch, but he’s definitely a poor role model. The AC Milan man let himself down when he invited three members of the late-night entertainment industry back to a motel. It wasn’t just the fact that they turned out to be ladyboys; he shamefully offered to pay them for doing nothing. If I pay a builder to construct a conservatory, and he brings along a few superfluous tools, I’d expect him to keep his head down and finish the job.

This sorry tale was not the only case of mistaken identity this week; Rio Ferdinand kicked a female Chelsea steward after mistaking her for a wall. It sounds like a tall story, but I once kicked the wife by accident; I thought she was her mother.

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According to Forbes.com Manchester United have been valued at $1.8 billion, ahead of the club traditionally known as the richest club in football (Real Madrid, $1.285 billion) and their chief domestic rivals Arsenal ($1.2 billion), Liverpool ($1.05 billion) and Chelsea ($764 million).

Have fun sorting the lists according to different criteria. Here are some highlights:

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Looking through the Soccerlens mailbag this week we came across a letter from a Premier League player who is facing a difficult dilemma. As always, Soccerlens can help.

Dear Soccerlens,

I am faced with an impossible decision at a crucial stage in my career. I don’t know what to do for the best and I am told that you are the people to come to for advice. I certainly enjoy reading Graham Fisher’s stuff, I really don’t think he gets paid enough.

I am twenty-seven years old and am a one club man. I skipper my team and everyone here likes me. I have played at centre-half, left back, left midfield and am now one of the best central midfield players in the country. I must be because I’ve got eighteen England caps to prove it. So put that in your pipe in smoke it.

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Sunday 27 April 2008, Premier League highlights:

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It’s that time of the season when the player of the season awards start being handed out. It’s also the time of the season when us fans argue about who has been the best player in each of the positions. It is unlikely that any two fans would select an identical ‘team of the year’ but for the purposes of debate and ‘friendly’ discussion I thought I’d have a go at putting my ideas on paper.

I have selected a squad of twenty-two from which I will select my final Premier League eleven. I just know that the players I select will be hugely proud to be recognised by me, a man who all the top players listen to. Mmm.

I’m going for a good old fashioned 4-4-2. Not because it is the only way to play but because it makes it easier to put down on paper!
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Saturday’s Premier League game highlights:

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Like last season, Ronaldo is a strong favourite for winning the Professional Footballers’ Association players’ player of the year and the PFA young player of the year awards.

Here’s the full list of nominations:

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Soccerlens welcomes odds man Gerry McDonnell for another round of playing offside, general debauchery and betting scams…although there is no evidence to suggest that Gerry McDonnell was involved in a scam, or in fact a scam actually took place, or that he’s actually paying for exclusive access to Lindsay Lohan.

I do enjoy a moral dilemma. An intellectual friend asked if I would kill a chicken to save a chicken’s life. I honestly replied that I’d happily slaughter a chicken if I missed breakfast.

He went on to ask if I would ever use inside information to profit from gambling. I once again answered in all honesty that I have never been involved in such a practice; but then again, I don’t know Harry Redknapp.

There is still uproar amongst the betting community whenever the controversial ‘next Portsmouth manager’ market is discussed. I must point out that there is no evidence to suggest that Harry Redknapp was involved in a scam, or in fact that a scam actually took place. I will just say that the 11/4 for a Newcastle win over Portsmouth should be investigated further.

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All the goals from 5-6 April 08 English Premier League games:

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The inimitable (we’re running out of adjectives) betting expert Gerry McDonnell gives his take on this weekend’s FA Cup action, Premier League action and all the other action he loves watching on the telly.

The adult film industry has many knockers, but I remain a fully-fledged supporter. My only possible critique would be that the storylines occasionally lack realism. I can’t begin to tell you how disappointed I was with my job as a photocopier repair man.

My wife is a fierce critic of the genre as she incorrectly believes that the art form demeans women. Personally, I think it’s a positive when a hobby becomes an occupation; I would love to get paid for sending nude photographs of myself to Cheryl Tweedy. I’ll have to finance my pastime by backing Portsmouth at 10/11 to beat West Brom in their FA Cup semi-final.

My favourite sub-genre of the adult entertainment industry is the one when two ladies take a spiritual road to self-discovery. There are things I’d rather not see though, and watching Barnsley play Cardiff is the equivalent of watching Lisa Riley tinker with Jade Goody. Cardiff will probably win their semi at 11/8, but I’d rather watch something a little more uplifting.

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An interesting debate has sprung up over at the AVFC Blog on whether the real Randy Lerner is what the PR has led us to believe (a genuine fan who will spend millions to turn Aston Villa into a top four side) or whether he’s another businessman who saw the riches the Premier League could offer and picked Aston Villa as a good piece of real state.

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Here’s an interesting threesome - or something like that.

Carson wants his future settled, and he’s said several times already this season that he’d rather be playing at Aston Villa than sitting on the bench at Liverpool. Liverpool have so far been reluctant to let Carson go, and it’s rumoured that if Benitez cannot convince Carson to stay at Anfield, he would then ask for around 10m (recent rumours put it at 9m).

So far, this matter seemed to be something to be decided in the summer - but the latest transfer rumours suggest that Aston Villa will not match Liverpool’s valuation and if Carson was to return from Aston Villa to Liverpool, a host of other clubs (Arsenal?) would be interested, with Tottenham being the obvious choice given their much-talked about goalkeeping troubles.

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Gerry McDonnell returns with his weekly betting column on the English Premier League.

Marriage is like a chicken vindaloo, it’s something you have to try at least once, even though you know you’ll later regret it.

I experienced my seven-year itch quite early, it was on the honeymoon. Fortunately, my wandering eye didn’t lead to an act of betrayal, although I put that down to the fact that the barmaid was almost certainly a button-flicker.

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Gerry McDonnell returns with his weekly betting column on the English Premier League.

Even though I was brought up as a Catholic, I have never followed a spiritual path. I blame an over-zealous Priest for my descent into heresy; he was constantly on my back when I was young.

If my memory serves me correctly, Easter is a time to reflect upon the resurrection of Christ. It’s believed that after three days, He rose again. I don’t want to diminish the significance, but I’d fancy Pele to beat that. The Geordies believe that King Keegan is the one true Messiah; it would be sacrilegious not to back Newcastle at 10/11 against Fulham.

Jesus may have forgiven Robbie Keane for his petulant reaction to being substituted last weekend, but Juande Ramos was apoplectic. I have a lot of sympathy for Keane in this case; it’s an emotional time when you’re being pulled off. I’ll happily play with the even money for a Tottenham win over Portsmouth.

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Gerry McDonnell returns with his weekly betting column on the English Premier League.

There’s life in the old dog…unfortunately

Like Wayne Rooney, I’m a lover of the old. I’m never happier than when some wrinkled old seaside-bungalow hogger is regaling me with tales of a bygone age.

If my old man is to be believed, and he’s not, football was completely different in the old days. Goals were celebrated by a handshake, an assault on a goalkeeper was practically encouraged and heading the ball led to a short stay in hospital, which was basically a shed with a sponge.

I’m unsure of the best way of handling the elderly when they reach such a constant state of dull reflection, but only a fool should rule out euthanasia. It looks like Avram Grant will soon be put out of his misery; Sunderland can lend a helping hand at 7/1.

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Well, that was a surprise. No, not Real Madrid losing at home to Roma (bye bye Schuster, hello Jose?), although Roma must be commended for their excellent efforts (for full coverage, read Chris’s live blog / report).

No, the surprise was seeing Liverpool fans searching on Google for information on the 2nd leg game against Inter (easily outstripping the search efforts of Chelsea fans, so there’s one debate settled about which club has more fans) - apparently a large contingent of Reds thought that Liverpool were playing this Wednesday. What, Hicks and Gillett are too busy dragging the club through mud to send you guys a memo?

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Steven Taylor, the much-hyped (and promising) Newcastle United defender:

“The longer I hear nothing from the club the more I fear they want to sell me. If there is no offer on the table by the summer then I will have no choice but to look at my options.”

So, assuming that Newcastle United get relegated / Taylor is not offered a new contract / Taylor is sold, where will he go?

Let’s find out:

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I won’t mention anything about what happened to Arsenal’s Eduardo over the weekend, since it’s been talked about plenty already, but I send my get well wishes towards him, and hope he’s back scoring goals (but not against Manchester United) again as soon as possible.

It was a pretty important weekend of football in the Premier League, with the race for the title and for European places getting ever tighter as we edge towards the home stretch.

At the other end, the relegation battle is ongoing, and though it’s almost a given that Derby will be playing Championship football next term, several other sides are fighting to not join the Rams in the second level.

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It’s not been a good 10 days for the Premier League, for Richard Scudamore or for their grand plan to take the league to the world. Flak has come in from all comers, from the media hacks working for the reactionary red-tops, all the way up to the top of the tree, where Sepp Blatter has joined Michel Platini and Mohammed Bin Hassan in dismissing the concept of Premiership matches being played abroad in the bid for lucrative sponsorship deals to make the rich richer.

Chief Executive Richard Scudamore is a wanted man for putting forward the proposal, with the press having a field day in pointing out the disregard for the common fan in order to please the masses abroad and the corporate bodies willing to splash the cash to get their product involved. All things told, the masses have voted and the idea, as John Madjeski put it earlier, is “in tatters”. It’s a black mark the head honchos within the committee will have to work damn hard at to remove any time soon.

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In today’s football videos roundup we look a some of today’s and yesterday’s Premier League matches.

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Martin O’Neill was delighted with his teams second half performance. “We were brilliant after the break,” he said after saying his side had been ‘tentative’ in the first half.

Newcastle fell apart, and there seemed to be absolutely no spirit within the team. They play Manchester United, Blackburn and