Friday 30 January 2015

Scott Sinclair finally lands on loan deal

Sinclair's bird
Aston Villa have signed Manchester City winger Scott Sinclair on a season-long loan deal - with a view to a permanent transfer.

The former Chelsea and Swansea City player, 25, failed miserably to break into Manuel Pellegrini's side
and flopped on loan at the Albion lats term/

"It's taken a few weeks but I'm happy to be here, to be in the building and to be signing for the club and ready to play some football.

"It's nice to be able to get settled somewhere and be a part of something going forward.

"I spoke to the manager, Paul Lambert, and he gave me his views on what he wants from me here at Villa. I am still hungry to play football, that's what I told him, and I'm looking forwarding to getting started, hopefully playing every week and enjoying my football.

"I believe I have my best years ahead of me. This is a new challenge, a new chapter in my life, and hopefully I can settle in as quickly as possible, have a good start and go from there."

Thursday 29 January 2015

Scott Sinclair. Look's like it's happening...

Sinclair's bit of stuff

Manchester City flop Scott Sinclair is today expected to wrap up a move to Aston Villa.
The wide man, who has failed to break into City's talent laden first XI since his £7million move from Swansea City in the summer of 2012, is understood to have passed a medical and there are now just formalities to complete before he signs.

Sinclair has made a total of 19 appearances for the Blues since his move, three of them starts, and this season has played just 25 minutes in four substitute appearances. He also failed to make any impact on loan at West Brom and will be seen as drinking in the last chance saloon at Villa
The two clubs are rumoured to have agreed a deal, of around £2million, for Sinclair to make the deal permanent in the summer.

Wednesday 28 January 2015

Match Preview; Arsenal v Villa

Who are we playing?
Arsenal on Sunday 1st February at 1.30pm

Where are we playing?
Emirates Stadium, London

Can I go?
Ludicrously Small Allocation: 2,000 Tickets Sold Out

Easy to get to?
Always found the train to be the best bet and even if you drive down, you're best parking on the outskirts and getting a tube in. If you jump off at Highbury & Islington, there's plenty of pubs and it's not too far a hike to the ground.

Can I watch it on telly?
We are on the telly if you have the correct sports package, but you'll get more atmosphere if you watch it down the boozer.

Lofty
Big game?
Huge.

Encouraging signs of life from new signing Carles Gil and a much needed boost from the cup tie with Bournemouth have eased the pressure somewhat on Lambert.

His team is expected to get mullered in the next two games, but that won't stop the boo boys if we slide alarmingly down the table.

Lambert's Villa face a resurgent Arsenal who surprised many with a performance of pure professionalism at the Eithiad and they'll be buzzing to keep the momentum going in this one.

If we do lose, at least if we get on the scoresheet, it'll help ease the tension a bit.
Dara off Mock the Week

Do Arsenal have any famous fans?
Hundreds of them. Bunch of glory hunting celebrities the lot of them. There's Alex off The Last Leg, Dara off of Mock the Week and Lofty who used to be in EastEnders about thirty years ago.

We've got heir to the throne the Duke of Cambridge.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?
We'd expect the odd change or two from the cup game. Delph and Westwood will be keen to get back into the starting line up, but at whose expense? (don't all shout Cleverley at once.)

Gabby too may wish to get in if fit but we'd rather struggle on without him.

Who's playing for them?
Some foreigners. Some English lads.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:
Mellberg makes history
  • Arsenal  have beaten us 78 times while we have 66 wins. There have been 46 draws
  • Arsenal last beat us at their place in February 2013, Santi Cazorla netting both their goals. Andi Weimann scored ours.
  • Olof Mellberg spoiled Arsenal's party when the Emirates staged it's first ever Premier League match in 2006, scoring the first league goal there. We drew 1-1
  • The Villa faithful were on the South Bank at Highbury in May 1981 when it was confirmed that we'd won the league, despite losing 2-0 on the day.


Prediction
Going for a shock 2-2 draw.

Sunday 18 January 2015

Match Preview: FA Cup Fourth Round: Aston Villa v Bournemouth

Who are we playing?
Bournemouth on Sunday 25th January at 3pm

Where are we playing?
Villa Park

Can I go?
Tickets are dirt cheap and plentiful

Easy to get to?
Should be an absolute doddle, though the trains can be shite on Sundays

Can I watch it on telly?
The game is live on Setanta Ireland, so pubs and house of people with Irish Sky Boxes will have the game. Streams available.

Andy Lochhead scores against the Cherries in front of 48,110
Big game?
We last won the FA Cup in 1957 and we've precious little chance of winning it under Paul Lambert's hapless leadership.

The lack of goals is still a major issue and we had to wait until the early leavers were already heading to their bus stops before we managed the winner against Blackpool in a turgid affair which will have done little to attract punters to this one.

Since then we've had an absolute debacle of a performance against Leicester and while Villa flattered to deceive in a lively twenty minute spell against Liverpool, we still failed to score and deservedly lost the match to boot.

Goals and wins may come eventually but it could all be too little, too late by then.

The attempt by some other Villa websites to galvanise fans into some sort of action may have been deemed to be a failure but it managed to draw the attention of the national media to our sad plight. Protest of the more organic kind may cut the mustard more with Aston Villa's current custodians and a poor home attendance on Sunday will speak volumes.

Frankly though, it's got to be better to be there than getting depressed tuning in to a second rate radio commentary.

Middlemiss
Do the Cherries have any famous fans? 
Really struggling with this one.

There is of course Matt Tong who used to be drummer and backing vocalist for Bloc Party (shrugs). Even more bizarrely dyed-in-the-wool Geordie and TV presenter Jayne Middlemiss claims to support the south coast club. Jayne is a former topless model who can cook, so the ideal woman in the eyes of some...

We've got fiddle playing scruffbox Nigel Kennedy.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?
Gawd knows. We reckon this is a great chance to give exciting new boy Carles Gil a proper run out.

The defence is likely to be unchanged purely through lack of fit players to bring in.

We'd be hugely tempted to give Jack and Callum a run out or at least have them on the bench, but it seems the two young lads aren't enjoying life under our Paul.






Yann Kermorgant
Who's playing for them?
Bournemouth came from a goal down to knock Championship rivals Rotherham out in the last round.

The Cherries made eight changes, but it did not matter as they ran out 5-1 winners with Yann Kermorgant scoring twice as Shaun MacDonald, Junior Stanislas and Ryan Fraser also on target.

it'll be interesting to see their approach this time, but we'd be surprised if they played their best XI.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:

  • Bournemouth have beaten us once while we have 2 wins. There has been 1 draw.
  • We've never met Bournemouth in the FA Cup before..
  • Last time we played The Cherries at Villa Park, we laboured to a 1-1 draw with a goal from Mark Walters, Villa's 6000th league goal.
  • Our last encounter with Bournemouth was at their place and we won 2-1 thanks to goals from Tony Daley and David Platt


Prediction
Going for a 2-0 Bournemouth win.

Villa 0-2 Liverpool as it was tweeted...

Saturday 17 January 2015

Songs of Praise needs a Villa fan to sing at FA Cup Final

A once in a lifetime chance to sing on the pitch at Wembley before the FA Cup Final: Entries open today for the Songs of Praise FA Cup Fans Choir.

Ever wanted to stand on the pitch at Wembley for the FA Cup final and sing your heart out? Well now is your chance.

As part of the BBC’s FA Cup programming Songs Of Praise has teamed up with BBC Sport to offer football fans the unique chance to be in the Songs Of Praise FA Cup Fans Choir. The choir will sing Abide With Me, backed by the FA Cup Final military band in front of 90,000 people on the hallowed ground on Saturday 30 May. Entries open today at bbc.co.uk/songsofpraise

First sung at the FA Cup Final in 1927 and a constant fixture ever since, Abide with Me has featured in a number of ways in the pre‐match build up over the years. Originally a conductor, nicknamed 'the man in white' led community singing. In recent years a single celebrity singer has performed the song.

At the final in 2015, the BBC’s Songs of Praise team are putting together a choir with one fan representing each of the 64 teams who’ve made it to this year’s third round.

David Taviner, Songs of Praise Executive Producer, says: “The chance to sing at Wembley is a dream come true for any football fan, and I’m delighted that Songs Of Praise are teaming up with The FA to offer this opportunity. The performance of Abide With Me is such an iconic moment in FA Cup final day and to be a part of that, at Wembley, in front of 90,000 people, live on BBC One would be something very special indeed.”

They normally get a fit bird in to sing it
Ask any football fan their favourite FA Cup memory and they’ll come to life, so to be part of the choir Songs of Praise are looking for great FA Cup stories, the winners to be judged by a panel. No singing experience is necessary! Applicants need to visit bbc.co.uk/songsofpraise where there is all the information on how to enter and the terms and conditions.

Songs of Praise is looking for stories that reflect the personal memories and passion of the cup from every level of the game. Maybe witnessing giant killings, perhaps the first time your non- league team made the third round or the first time you were in the final with tales of great players, key moments, unforgettable goals and family anecdotes.

The competition opens today on 17 January 2015 and closes on 7 March.

A panel of judges from the worlds of football, music and journalism will read the best five stories representing each club and pick a winner. Winners will be notified mid-April. There will be a singing lesson and rehearsal before the big day.

Full entry details and terms and conditions can be found at bbc.co.uk/songsofpraise

Thursday 15 January 2015

Lambert begs for protest call off

Beleaguered Aston Villa manager, Paul Lambert, is begging the club's irate support to call off a protest planned for the start of Saturday’s match at home to Liverpool.

Three Villa websites – The Villa Blog, My Old Man Said and A Villa Fan – have called on Holte Enders to boycott the opening eight minutes of the Premier
League match via an open letter. They claim that each minute represents a year for the eight that the club’s owner, Randy Lerner, has been in charge and they have had enough at the way the club is being run and the direction it is going.

The call for action, which has divided the Villa faithful, comes after Lambert's charges have managed to score just 11 league goals this season in 21 games, easily the worst record in the country. Following Saturday’s depressing 1-0 defeat to Leicester, who could have won by a damn sight more, the patience of the away following was tested to its limits and the fans turned on Lambert, calling for him to be sacked.

The Birmingham Mail held a poll asking whether Lambert should be axed or given more time, with 67% demanding that he go. Lambert is feeling the heat.

“I understand the frustration and nobody is more frustrated than myself,” said Lambert. “Everybody involved with Aston Villa is frustrated at what has happened over the last five or six years since Martin O’Neill left and the team was in the top six.

“Martin had this club buzzing at that time, vying for Europe, going great, and what’s happened has happened. But I don’t think you can look at the chairman and say it’s one guy’s fault. It’s unfair. He has the club’s interest at heart. I understand the fans’ frustrations but we’ll have a better chance of winning a game of football if they don’t protest, if they stick with the lads, no matter how hard it gets at times.

“When the stadium is behind the players it’s a great place to play football and we’ve a better chance of winning if they don’t do it. Whoever has planned it, I hope the guy next to them tries to keep them on their seat. I don’t want Aston Villa fans to come to Villa Park – or even away from home – and not see the team win or not be entertained.”

Quizzed on how he feels about calls for his head, he replied: “It’s not great. I’m human, like everybody else, but I’m also big enough and strong enough mentally to handle it. But what I don’t want it to do is affect the players.

The fans have been great with me up until late, and I guess now they are waiting for something to go wrong. All I would say to them is stay behind the side. We need their support when times are tough.”

Lambert insists he will not quit, saying: “I want to make a success of this. I’m obviously not happy with the way things are going, with what’s happening in the last third of the pitch. But anybody that knows me knows I’m not one for downing tools and walking away. I’ve never done that in my football career, and I don’t intend to do it now.”

Wednesday 14 January 2015

Aston Villa 5 Liverpool 1

Sunday 11 January 2015

Match Preview: Aston Villa v Liverpool

Who are we playing?
Liverpool on Saturday 17th January at 3pm

Where are we playing?
Villa Park

Can I go?
Tickets remain available but (amazingly given the circumstances) they are selling fast, so get in quick if you want your favourite spot.

Easy to get to?
Yep, but if you are going through town, be aware that they buggering up all the roads near Paradise Circle as they knock down the old library.

Can I watch it on telly?
Saturday 3 o'clocker, so not officially available on UK telly, though there are plenty of web streams and loads of pubs will screen the game live.

Big game?
Huge.

Liverpool are by no means the force they were last season, with some of Southampton contingent struggling to settle in. They have undoubtedly missed the services of the departed Suarez and and the injured Sturridge, while the imminent departure of long serving captain Steve "Don't try to change the CD" Gerrard is casting a long shadow.

Indeed, arguably Villa's best performance of the season was up at Anfield where we deservedly took all three points as Gabby effectively nullified the threat of Stevie G from the game.

If only Mister Agbonlahor had been any where near as useful in any game since.

No point calling this a must-win game because you have to score goals to win matches and we don't know how any more.

There's zero point in having the lion's share of the ball if you haven't got a Scooby what to do with it and Villa's lack of (useful) movement is becoming a chronic condition.

Do Liverpool have any famous fans? 
A big hello to Jason Isaacs! There's also Ian Beale off of EastEnders and controversial pop star Lana del Rey

We've got fiddle playing scruffbox Nigel Kennedy.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?
Who knows. We might even buy someone by Saturday. Defence could be an issue. Vlaar and Senderos are long term absentees and Clark has got himself suspended so it looks like fragile Nathan Baker will be pitched in. Gawd knows what we'll do if he makes his characteristic early exit.

Who's playing for them?
If you believe the rumours, quite possibly Fabian Delph. Honestly believe the current regime at Villa would be daft enough to allow that to happen. At least it might liven up the atmosphere.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:


  • Liverpool have beaten us 91 times while we have 56 wins. There have been 40 draws.
  • Our last Villa Park win over Liverpool was back in May 2011. Stewart Downing got the only goal. 


Prediction
Going for a 2-0 Liverpool win.

Saturday 10 January 2015

Match Report: Leicester City 1-0 Villa as it was tweeted

Gary Gardner buggers off to Forest

Struggling Nottingham Forest have completed the signing of Aston Villa midfielder Gary Gardner on loan until the end of the season.

The 22-year-old, who won five England Under 21s caps under Psycho Stuart Pearce, scored twice as he spent the first half of the season at Brighton.

He has made a smattering of Premier League appearances for Villa and will be eligible for selection against Sheffield Wednesday, where he had a very brief loan spell last season.


Sunday 4 January 2015

Match Report: Villa 1-0 Blackpool as it was tweeted

Match Preview: Leicester City v Aston Villa

Who are we playing?
Leicester City on Saturday 10th January at 3pm

Where are we playing?
King Power Stadium Filbert Way, Leicester LE2 7FL

Can I go?
Allocation: 3,335 Tickets Sold Out

Easy to get to?
Always found the train the best option. It's a fair yomp to the ground, but do-able. Policing can be a bit heavy handed though and if you're not careful you'll end up being kettled by Leicestershire's finest.

Can I watch it on telly?
Saturday 3 o'clocker so dodgy web streams and pubs with overseas satellite systems are your best bet.

Big game?
Huge.

Leicester's early doors promise quickly faded away and they find themselves propping up the rest, but they have been signs of late they are starting to play a bit again and were unlucky not to get a win at Anfield.

Villa meanwhile continue to be horrible to watch, content to pass the ball about while rarely venturing over the halfway line.

There is a bewildering lack of movement and creativity and Paul Lambert must be watching every game through rose tinted spectacles as his post match press conferences show just how deluded his really is.

It's absolutely vital that we take three points here because if we can't beat Leicester we are BANG in trouble.

Do Leicester have any famous fans?
Well there's ATV Sport's Gary Newbon of "Gary Newbon. What a wanker! What a wanker" fame, jug-earred goal hanger Gary Lineker and the bloke that played Greengrass in Heartbeat.

We've got heir to the throne the Duke of Cambridge.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?
The usual useless uninspiring and unspired suspects, but Lambert lacks the imagination to take a risk when what he's doing has taken all the joy out of watching Aston Villa.

Who's playing for them?
Ulloa has been in and out of the team of late, but we reckon he's found his scoring boots again and is a major danger.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:
  • Leicester City have beaten us 39 times while we have 32 wins. There have been 23 draws
  • Our last win away at the then Walkers Stadium came in 2006 as we we ran out 3-2 winners in a League Cup tie. Gabby Agbonlahor scored the winner right at the end of extra time.
  • Our last Premier League meeting at their place in 2004 saw us demolish them with five second half goals. Darius Vassell and Peter Crouch scored two each while Dion Dublin also found the net.

Prediction
Going for a 1-0 win for Leicester

Thursday 1 January 2015

FA Cup 3rd Round Preview: Aston Villa v Blackpool

Who are we playing?
Blackpool on Sunday 4th January at 3pm

Where are we playing?
Villa Park

Can I go?
Tickets are cheap and plentiful

Easy to get to?
Should be an absolute doddle, though the trains can be shite on Sundays

Can I watch it on telly?
Not on the list of games to be screened on UK telly and with the FA Cup, there is no guarantee that the game will be screened live overseas, no a live stream can't be guaranteed. Best bet is haul your arse down Villa Park and watch the game in the flesh.

Big game?
We last won the FA Cup in 1957 and we've precious little chance of winning it under Paul Lambert's hapless leadership.

This season's limp display from a weakened side as we slumped out to a second string Leyton Orient in the League Cup was not a one off. Lambert's cup record for Villa against "inferior" opposition is fucking woeful.

A poor Blackpool side are plumb bottom of the Championship and there can be NO EXCUSES if we lose to them.

Do the Tangerines have any famous fans? 
Nolans don't make waves...
Apparently not. It has been said that some of The Nolan Sisters are Blackpool fans, but we're not even sure they count as famous anymore...

We've got fiddle playing scruffbox Nigel Kennedy.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?
Gawd knows. Players returning from loan (unless we send them back out again) may give Paul Lambert more scope to rotate his squad, something injuries and suspensions have hampered of late.

We'd be hugely tempted to give both Callum Robinson and Jack Grealish a proper run out but who knows what goes on in Lambo's head.

He will claim whoever he plays was "excellent" even if we get knocked out, because the bloke is a knobhead.



Who's playing for them?
Dunno but they've got Nathan Delfouneso on their books and we'll be hoping the the magic of the cup doesn't transform him into a goal scorer.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:

  • Blackpool have beaten us 21 times while we have 28 wins. There have been 17 draws.
  • Our previous FA Cup encounter with Blackpool was on 22 January 1938 in the fourth round. We won the match 4-0, Eric Houghton amongst the scorers.
  • Blackpool haven't beaten us since a 2-1 win at their place in 1974. Chico Hamilton got our goal.
  • James Collins got the last gasp winner the last time we beat Blackpool, a 3-2 victory in November 2010.


Prediction
Going for a 1-1 draw and an awkward replay to negotiate

Match Report Villa v Palace as it was tweeted....

 
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