Jack Grealish pledges future to England

Jack Grealish has chosen to play for England at full international level rather than the Republic of Ireland.

The 20-year-old has worked his way through the youth ranks for the Republic but turned down a call-up to the senior squad for a friendly against England in June.

Grealish qualifies for the Republic through his grandparents.

pic.twitter.com/j601R8kjmU

— Jack Grealish (@JackGrealish1) September 28, 2015

Match Preview: Aston Villa v Stoke City

by Dek Hogan 

Who are we playing?
Stoke City on Saturday 3rd October 2015

Where are we playing?
Villa Park, you know where it is.

Can I go?
Yep, tickets still on sale but don't leave it too long if you want to bag your favourite spot.

Easy to get to?
Doddle. We've got a shiny new station at New Street if you are getting the train in. With ticket barriers.

Can I watch it on telly?
UK telly can't showing live games (from anywhere) until 5.15pm on a Saturday. You'll have to find a dodgy dish pub or get a stream. If you can though, come to the game. The bigger the crowd, the more influence we can have. Don't spectate, participate.

Big game?
Huge.

We gave Liverpool acres of space

The stark fact is that in comparable games we are TEN POINTS WORSE OFF than we were last term.

A major factor in this truly awful start to the season has been Tim's team selections and tactics.

At Anfield, for more than an hour, we stood off Liverpool, giving them time and space to play with seemingly no attempt whatever to press the ball and put them under any pressure.

In the Premier League, against any team, that is tantamount to football suicide and it's fortunate that Liverpool are out of sorts at the moment because most other teams would have buried us the way Southampton did last season.

Does Tim need to think bigger?

Tim talked after the game of "staying in the division". That should be a fucking prerequisite, not an ambition and if Mister Sherwood thinks he can survive serving the sort of abject crap we saw at Anfield, he won't last very long.

He needs to take responsibility, start learning from his many mistakes and STOP THE ROT.

Tim Sherwood will be a good manager one day but he hasn't got there yet. We can argue the merits of whether Villa Park is the best place to learn his craft but we've got him now, we're stuck with him and we really have no option but to get behind him and help him to somehow make this work.

That certainly doesn't make him immune from criticism though and the last thing we want is for him to morph into Paul Fucking Lambert.

Tim can turn this around.

Shaqiri

Stoke City have been, by their recent standards, piss poor too, so this can be seen as a six point relegation battle. Stoke's form is a bit of a puzzle as Mark Hughes has seen the return of Bojan and added genuine quality in Shaqiri, but they come to us on the back of their first win of the season.

If Villa don't get three points AND put in a decent performance in this one, alarm bells will clang as loud as the full time boos.

Do Stoke City have any famous fans?

Not really. Heard of veteran squash player Angela Smith? Remember smart Alec quiz host Nick Hancock? No?

We've got fiddle playing scruffbox Nigel Kennedy off of Radio 3.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?
Increasingly hard to predict Tim's team selections these days. He surely can't persist starting both Sanchez AND Westwood in the same team.  Will he be bold enough to give the improving Jordans, Ayew and Vertout a start?

God knows what it would do to the Villa Park atmosphere were he daft enough to bring Gabby back. With speculation about Guzan's future, might Bunn be given a run out?

Who's playing for them?

Possibly not Shaqiri who seems to have tweaked a hamstring. Jon Walters, who nearly left the club in the window, appears to have found a bit of form.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:

• Stoke City have beaten us 32 times while we have 51 wins. There have been 30 draws.

  

  Bigger than me and you

• This fixture last season was Tim Sherwood's first in charge. Ron Vlaar was sent off in the second minute of added time in the second half as he was shown his second yellow card in two minutes and is largely blamed for us losing the match 2-1 after we took an early lead through Scottie Sinclair.

• Our only Villa Park victory over The Potters in the last thirty years came in December 2009, when a John Carew goal gave us a 1-0 win.

• Didier Six scored a rare Villa goal in our previous Villa Park victory in 1985. A George Berry own goal from a Peter Withe shot gaves us a 1-0 nil lead on 75 minutes, then Six made sure of victory neting from close range from a Gary Williams free kick.

Didier Six scores v Stoke City

Prediction
Going for an all action 4-1 Villa win.

Report: Liverpool 3-2 Aston Villa

Two goals from Daniel Sturridge have helped Liverpool to beat Aston Villa in a 3-2 victory at Anfield this afternoon, though Villa's failure to press the ball allowed Liverpool the space to play and meant that the home side were far more dominant than the scoreline would suggest.

Liverpool got off to a cracking start, Philippe Coutinho threading a pass into space, and the delighted James Milner latching onto the ball and drilling a low shot past Brad Guzan on 2 minutes while Villa player's were still scratching their arses.

Emre Can and Sturridge both kept Guzan on his toes in the first 10 minutes, before Rudy Gestede missed two chances to find an equaliser for Villa, the striker heading straight at Simon Mignolet before shooting wide with a volley.

Coutinho forced a good save from Guzan with a deflected shot, before Scott Sinclair looked for an equaliser from distance, but his limp effort fell comfortably to Mignolet.

After the break James Milner forced a good save from Guzan and Coutinho hita free kick straight at the Villa keeper.

On 58 minutes Sturridge scored his first Premier League goal of the season to double Liverpool's lead, as the striker - once on Villa's books- struck a volley past a helpless Guzan.

We finally pulled a goal back on 66 minutes, Hutton's cross finding Gestede, who tapped past Mignolet from close range.

Liverpool roared back in mere second to restore their two-goal cushion, Coutinho finding Sturridge in the penalty area, who slotted past Guzan for his second of the game.

Gestede scored his and Villa's second goal on 71 minutes, the former Blackburn Rovers man rose like a salmon to head home a Jordan Amavi cross.

Coutinho forced a stunning save from Guzan with a free kick from 25 yards, before Micah Richards popped up to head over  a Jordan Veretout set piece at the other end of the pitch.

Sturridge should have completed a hat-trick before the final whistle, but the England international fired wide with a deflected shot.

Post-mortem:

The bottom line is that Tim got his tactics all wrong in this one, his midfield content to stand back and give Liverpool space and time instead of putting pressure on the ball, while Gestede spent much of the match isolated with little or no support. 

Only in the last twenty minutes did Villa do anything like compete but a shaken Liverpool could have been there for the taking if we'd put them under any sort of pressure.

Tim must take responsibility for this defeat. We know he's learning on the job. Let's just hope his inflated ego doesn't stop him from taking home some harsh lessons from this unfortunate endeavour.

Donacien loaned out to Newport County

Defender Janoi Donacien has joined Newport County on emergency loan.

Saint Lucia-born Donacien, 21,  joined Aston Villa's academy in 2010, can play as both a central defender and as a wing- back.

He is yet to make a first-team appearance for Villa and has been farmed out to Tranmere Rovers where he was a regular in the team that bombed out of The Football League last season.

He has just spent a month at Wycombe Wanderers, making two appearances.

Has N'Zogbia turned to the dark side?

😱😱😱 I can't help u anymore Charles 😅😆😂. This has got to stop!

A photo posted by Micah Richards (@micahrichards) on Sep 24, 2015 at 6:03am PDT

Match Preview: Liverpool v Aston Villa

by Dek Hogan

Who are we playing?
Liverpool on Saturday 26th September at 3pm

Where are we playing?
Liverpool Football Club,
Anfield Road
Liverpool
L4 0TH.

Can I go?
Not unless you've already got your sticky paws on a ticket. Sold Out.

Easy to get to?

Trains to Liverpool can be particularly annoying at weekends, but if they are running properly (big if) it's a doddle. Mind you don't get lost at the new New Street station though...

#avfc fans travelling 2 Liverpool via train b aware trains to & from fixture will b dry trains, with NO alcohol allowed. BTP will b checking

— Aston Villa WMPolice (@WMPVillaFC) September 25, 2015

Can I watch it on telly
Saturday 3 o'clocker so you'll need a pub with a dodgy dish or a decent internet feed.

Big game?
Huge.

In comparable games we are already SEVEN points short of last season and right in the shite. Lose this one and we'll be TEN points behind last year's pathetic haul.

The football may be far superior to the twaddle served up under Lambo, but Timbo has to find a winning blend soon or we'll be too deep in the mire to crawl out.

Liverpool don't like playing us at Anfield though and their form so far this season has disappointed their miserable following. Keep them out long enough and their support will get tetchy, which can only help our cause.

Jordan Ayew managed to win a few hearts and minds in the Birmingham City game but we wouldn't even hazard a guess at Tim's team selection, given some of the frankly bizarre decisions he's been making lately.

Caroline Wozniacki

The frustrating thing is that we have gifted points to the opposition this season in games we could and should have won. Hopefully competition for places will lead to a wee bit more concentration from our boys.

This game could have been all about Benteke, but he's injured so we'll have to hope that the returning Sturridge hasn't hit form as yet.

Certainly, Liverpool being dragged through extra time and penalties by our old ally Keith Curle (ask yer dad kids) has done us a favour.

Does Liverpool boast any famous fans?
Well there's Caroline Wozniacki off of the tennis and Daniel Craig out of that long running spy thingy

We've got David Bradley off of films and the telly.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?

Tricky one this but both Jack and Mister Ayew have surely done enough to merit a start. Would you pick Lescott at the moment? Not sure I would.

Who's playing for them
No Big Chris but Danny Ings has remembered where the goal is. Biggest threat is likely to come from Coutinho whho has looked impressive despite his team not firing on all cylinders.


Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:

Evil Gerrard

• Liverpool have beaten us on 92 occasions while we have 57 wins.  There have been 40 draws.

• We nabbed all three points in this fixture last season, Gabby getting the solitary goal in one of his best games in a Villa shirt.

• In 1894 we won our first ever encounter with Liverpool at Anfield, Stephen Smith and Bob Chatt the scorers as we took it 2-1.

• Our last defeat at Anfield was way back in 2010. David N'Gog was amongst the scorers as we fell by 3-0.

Prediction
2-1 to us

Preview: Aston Villa v Birmingham City

by Dek Hogan 

Who are we playing?
Birmingham City on Tuesday 22nd September 2015.

Where are we playing?
Villa Park, you know where it is.

Can I go?
Not gonna sell out, partially due to strict restrictions on ticket sales, partially because many of us consider Blues an irrelevance these days.

Easy to get to?
Doddle. Assuming you are on the right shift... Fair chance that your pub of choice in the city centre may decide to shut its doors early, due to past incidents with this particular fixture.

Can I watch it on telly?
Live on Sky Sports, which should ensure that many of the city's drinking establishments are "lively".

Big game?
Huge.

Well, it is now, because pressure is mounting on Tim Sherwood after a shaky start to the season, compounded by losing to fierce local rivals West Bromwich Albion.

Gary Rowett is doing a surprisingly decent job in very difficult circumstances at St. Andrews and going into the cauldron of this cup tie, ot's the blue side of the second city that carries the momentum.

Villa are badly missing Gana at the moment and while Tim has pledged to play his strongest available side, it could be argued that he's not sure what that actually is as yet.

Certainly, the mumblings that have started over Sherwood's competence will grow far louder if he suffers the indignity of getting knocked out of a tournament by a team whose supporters hate our guts.

Do Birmingham City have any famous fans?

Well there's some of ELO, David "homeland" Harewood and Tom Ross off of BRMB.

We've got fiddle playing scruffbox Nigel Kennedy off of Radio 3.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?
Injuries will play a part and although Tim has stated that he won't rotate, the lacklustre performance against the Albion and summer signings pushing for starting places may well mean he rings the changes anyway.

We see no reason not to play Bunn in goal.

Who's playing for them?

Some Blues players. You're not really interested.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:

• Blues have beaten us 38 times while we have 52 wins. There have been 21 draws.

Prediction
Going for an all action 4-1 Villa win.

Report: Villa poor as Baggies walk away with all three points.

Tim Sherwood got his team selection, formation, tactics and substitutions all wrong as Villa crashed to a disastrous 1-0 defeat to West Brom at Villa Park.

The defeat leaves Villa seven points shy of the total they achieved in comparable fixtures last term and must call Premier League survival chances into doubt, bearing in mind how close the club came to the drop last time around.

The Baggies started the game on the front foot, Salomon Rondon forcing a spectacular save from Brad Guzan after just two minutes, while both Jonny Evans and Berahino missed chances early doors.

Villa's first chance of the match landed at Carles Gil's feet, he should have nettedfrom 12-yards, but was denied by Claudio Yacob .

Albion took the lead on 39 minutes through Berahino, who pounced on a deflected James Morrison shot to finish past the hapless Guzan.

It was increasingly obvious that Sherwood's two defensive midfielders were failing to link up with his attacking line up, but he chose to remove the mobile Scott Sinclair and replace him with the far more static Rudy Gestede.

After the break Carlos Sanchez had a punt to test Boaz Myhill, but the keeper produced wasn't troubled, while Rondon put Villa's backline under presuure at the other end.

Alan Hutton’s cross bounced off Berahino on the edge of the area, leading to appeals for a penalty, but Carles Gil’s free-kick found Jack Grealish who dragged his shot wide.

Rondon came close to adding Baggies moments lead with a low shot, but Guzan dealt with the effort, and made another save from the Venezulan late on.

Report: Heartbreak as Villa lose two goal lead and come away with fuck all.

Ex-Swansea City star Nathan Dyer was on target to break Villa hearts and complete a dramatic 3-2 comeback win over Aston Villa.

Tinkerman Claudio Ranieri's charges found themselves two goals behind with less than 20 minutes left to play, but came back valiantly to snatch all three points.

Villa's first decent chance came early doors, Gabby Agbonlahor unselfishly picked out Scottie Sinclair with a pass across the face of goal which the winger failed to convert.

Leicester came close through both Wes Morgan and Riyad Mahrez, but neither could quite find a way past Brad Guzan.

Carles Gil closed down a clearance and played in ex-teenager Jack Grealish, but he hit it with his handbag.

Thankfully, Jack made amends six minutes before the break, though, curling the ball out of the grasp of Schmeichel to score a pearler.

Shinji Okazaki almost levelled the scoreline just before the break, he failed to steer his header on target.

Leicester were revitalised in the second half, and nearly had a goal when Jamie Vardy's instinctive flick flew just wide of goal.

Villa doubled their advantage with Carles Gil curling a fine effort beyond the reach of Schmeichel.

Leicester plied on the pressure and Richie De Laet flicked the ball in on 72 minutes to give the home team a foothold.

Then, lightweight Jamie Vardy turned home Drinkwater's cross to make it 2-2.

Then, tragedy! Dyer managed to get his head on to the impressive Mahrez's cross to steal all three points, not that he knew much about it, having been seemingly knocked unconscious in the process.

Jed Steer buggers off to Huddersfield for a month

Huddersfield Town have borrowed Aston Villa goalkeeper and serial loan out Jed Steer on a one-month loan deal.

The 6ft 2in Steer – an England age-group international – played on loan for Doncaster Rovers and Yeovil Town last season before playing the final match of the Premier League season for Villa against Burnley. He has played 57 senior matches and 14 in England Youth colours.

Steer's arrival comes after usual Terriers shot stopper Joe Murphy was ruled out with a leg injury.

He could make his debut for Town  in Saturday's trip to Cardiff.

Timbo reckons Bionic Gana has half a chance of playing Leicester

Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood hopeful Idrissa Gana will be fit for the Leicester game:


The midfield star hobbled off with a hamstring injury five days ago during Senegal's 2-0 victory over Namibia.



"He picked up a hamstring injury in the 75th minute of the game so I'm hoping it's only fatigue, because normally if you're going to pull a hamstring it's normally early on.

"I'm hoping it's fatigue, the physios are assessing him.

"If it is fatigue then he's got a chance but he's a tough guy, I think when you cut him wires come out of him so he's got half a chance!

"Since he's been here he has not been fazed,

"Some guys are going to take time to adjust to the pace of this league – it can't be quick enough for him.

"He wants to hustle and bustle and enjoys the physical side.

"I said when people were asking me about Idrissa, if you walked past him in the corridor you wouldn't think he would be a footballer of that stature, but he looks so big on the pitch.

"He changes size when he's on the pitch. He's a huge presence, a driving force and a fantastic signing for the club."

Qatar backs an English team at last: Sheffield FC

The oldest football team in the world, Sheffield FC, is reported to have become the first English club to receive Qatari investment.

Sheffield FC was the world's first ever football team when it was founded in 1857 - though there wsn't much point to it unril a second team was founded - and it has now turned to one of football's newest and most controversial powerhouses for key investment.

Qatar is said to have invested £100,000 to allow Sheffield FC relocate to its spiritual home at Olive Grove in Sheffield.

Qatar

"This is not about Qatar muscling in," Sheffield FC chairman Richard Tims rambled. "This is about having a catalyst that makes everyone sit up and take note... a partnership between the new kids on the block and the world's first football club protecting the heritage of football."

Sheffield FC play in the Northern South branch of non-league division one, seven levels below the Premier League, so it'll probably be a good ten years till they are battling for Champions League places.

Gana set to miss Leicester City clash.

Idrissa Gana Gueye is a big doubt for Aston Villa's clash with Leicester City this weekend.

The midfielder picked a hamstring injury while with Senegal which has forced him out of Tuesday's match with South Africa.

Gana will undergo a scan on Tuesday morning after injuring the leg in the African Cup of Nations qualifying win over Namibia on the weekend.

Gana has impressed in the early stages of the Premier League season since moving from French club Lille in the summer but is now likely to miss Sunday's trip to King Power Stadium and must be considered a doubt for the bi derby games against Albion and Blues.

Match Preview: Leicester City versus Aston Villa

by Dek Hogan

Who are we playing?
Leicester City on Sunday 13th September at 4pm

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

Can I go?
Not unless you've already got your sticky paws on a ticket. Sold Out.

Easy to get to?

Leicester Station

Yep, it's only up the road. The M69 will get you there or the ground is a doable stroll from the train station or a short taxi ride. Leicester plod have a history of kettling Villa fans and herding them to designated pubs so bear that in mind when you choose whether to wear colours.

Can I watch it on telly?

Main game on Sky Sports Super Sunday, so yes you can.

Marc

Big game?
Huge.

Leicester ended last season in something close to league winning form and despite a change of manager in the summer, they've started brilliantly again. We're all waiting for the wheels to fall off though aren't we?

A big factor in Leicester's form this season has been the sparkling form of one Marc Albrighton.

New lads need game time to adjust

Marc was seen as something of a one-trick pony at Villa and had to seek pastures new to get a decent run of games. He's certainly taken his chance with both hands this season. We need to hope he has an off day, he certainly had a few of those when he played for us.

Typical Leicester fan

Villa certainly need to find a winning formula quickly, while hopefully continuing to put attack above defence. Timbo now has competition for places all over the park, but it's finding the right blend that is key now. He has to balance that with ensuring that the lads that have come in from overseas get enough game time to adapt to the Premier League.

No easy task.

All we can do is to be as supportive as we possibly can be while the boys find their feet. Some of us will be supportive, some of us will behave like knobheads...

Does Leicester boast any famous fans?

Tiago

Well there's Roy Cropper off of Coronation Street and Engelbert Hemperdinck from the 1960s. There's also the singing prison officer from X Factor and that jug-earred goalhanger from the crisp adverts.

We've got David Bradley off of films and the telly.

So we win.

Who's playing for us?

Very much depends on who returns from international shenanigans uninjured and unknackered. Gana is a massive doubt have done a hamstring while with Senegal.

Kasper

New boys Ilori and Lescott will be pushing for first team starts, putting Clark under pressure, while Gabby will be hoping for a recall. Surely goal-machine Scottie Sinclair will keep his place but young Rudy's berth in the team may be at risk after a lack-lustre display against the Black Cats.

Who's playing for them
Much like us, they'll be hoping their international stars such Andy King, Jamie Vardy and Kasper the Keeper return unscathed.

Any useless stats?
Of course, here you go:

• The Foxes have beaten us on 40 occasions while we have 33 wins making Leicester one of our bogey teams.  There have been 23 draws.

• Last time we played Leicester at their place in January, they won thanks to a Paul Konchesky goal. We got revenge by knocking them out of the FA Cup at Villa Park.

• Our last Premier League win at their place was back in 2004. Two goals each for Darius Vassell and Peter Crouch and one from makeshift defender Dion Dublin did the bizzo as we trotted out 5-0 victors.

Prediction
2-1 to us

Blues tickets FINALLY on sale...

Tickets for the Blues game are now on sale.

The clash (live on Sky) is on Tuesday September 22, kick-off 7.45pm.

Prices

£30 n the Trinity Road and Doug Ellis

£25 in the Holte End and North Stand Upper

£20 in the North Stand Lower and Family Stand.

Controversially, in the name of "safety" Blues have only been allocated 2,800 seats. It's therefore highly likely that elements of City's support will seek to infiltrate home areas of the ground, which will, in our view, be rather unsafe.

VIDEO: At last! Cooking with Nigel Reo-Coker!!!!

Villa name 25 man Premier League squad:

25 Squad players (*=Home grown)
*Agbonlahor, Gabriel
Ayew, Jordan
Bacuna, Leandro Jones Johan
*Bunn, Mark John
*Clark, Ciaran
*Cole, Joseph John
Crespo Rincon, Jose Angel
*Gardner, Gary
Gestede, Rudy Philippe Michel Camille
Gil de Pareja Vicent, Carles
Gueye, Idrissa Gana
Guzan, Bradley Edwin
Hutton, Alan
Ilori, Tiago
Kozak, Libor
*Lescott, Joleon Patrick
*N'Zogbia, Charles
Okore, Tetchi Jores Charlemagne U
*Richards, Micah
*Richardson, Kieran Edward
Sanchez Moreno, Carlos Alberto
*Sinclair, Scott Andrew
*Steer, Jed John
Veretout, Jordan Marcel Gilbert
*Westwood, Ashley Roy

Under-21 players (Contract and Scholars)
Abdo, Khalid
Amavi, Jordan Kevin
Bannister, Charlie Brendan Alec

Bateman, Liam Vere
Blackett-Taylor, Corey
Calder, Riccardo
Clark, Mitchell
Clarke, Jack Aidan
Coates, Jack Lewis
Cowans, Henry Gordon Mander
Cox, Jordan Raymond
Grealish, Jack
Green, Andre
Hailey, Liam
Hale, Rory Danny
Hall, Louis Aiden
Hepburn-Murphy, Rushian
Humphries, Jake Raymond
Idem, Emmanuel Okokon
Kinsella, Lewis
Knibbs, Harvey
Leggett, Thomas Jacob
Linley, Joseph
Lyden, Jordan
Lyons-Foster, Kodi
Mason, Niall Aadya
McKirdy, Harry
Mooney, Kelsey
O'Hare, Callum
Omerovic, Anes
Pastorek, Jozef
Prosser, Alexander
Robinson, Callum Jack
Sarkic, Matjia
Sellars, Jerell
Suliman, Easah
Sundman, Joonas Sebastian
Swift, Benjamin George
Toner, Kevin Stephen
Traore Diarra, Adama
Watkins, Bradley
Webb, Joshua John
Zeidan, Moustafa

Government responds to West Ham stadium concerns

The Government has responded to the petition “Hold public inquiry into West Ham & LLDC deal for rental of Olympic Stadium”.

West Ham United has a concession at the Stadium and their contributions reflect that status. The contract, awarded after an open public competition, has been widely scrutinised and tested in court.

Following the completion of its transformation programme the Stadium will be - unlike so many previous Olympic Stadiums - a world-class multi-use arena with a long-term future, and one that won’t require continuous support from the taxpayer. The stadium remains in public ownership (E20 Stadium LLP – a joint venture between the London Legacy Development Corporation and Newham Council) and the profits from its multiple uses will flow to the taxpayer.

As a long-term concessionaire West Ham United will only access the full stadium facilities for and shortly ahead of home matches, anticipated to be an average of 25 games a year. The stadium’s other anchor concession-holder, British Athletics, has a concession for one month a year. The stadium will be available for commercial and other uses at all times outside of these existing commitments.

The Stadium is a multi-use venue, which has already hosted a major athletics meet this year, the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games, and will host a range of other events in 2015 including five matches during the Rugby World Cup this autumn, a Rugby League international between England and New Zealand and the Race of Champions motorsport event. In addition the Stadium will host elite athletics including the IAAF and IPC Athletics World Championships in 2017.

A world class stadium operator has been appointed and it is part of the operator agreement that the Stadium will host concerts and other events.

None of these events will financially benefit West Ham United. All revenues from these events will be shared by the operator and the Stadium owners. The stadium operator has a proven international track record of success in managing and maximising revenue from multi-use stadia and is contractually incentivised to generate maximum income.

The agreement with West Ham United, including their contribution to transformation costs and rent, followed an open competitive process, which was delivered under EU rules, conducted visibly and exposed to significant scrutiny. The outcome has been tested in the courts and upheld. As the winning bid this constituted the best available return for the taxpayer and secures the commercial viability of a national asset for the next 100 years.

The European Commission (EC) is responsible for assessing whether public investment distorts the competitive market. The EC has considered this issue on more than one occasion and has done so with full sight of the contractual terms, comprehensive detail of the tender exercise and in depth legal opinion on compliance with UK and EU law. It has found no case to answer. Therefore we do not believe that a public inquiry is necessary.

The detail of the rental agreement between the Stadium owners and West Ham United is commercially sensitive. Disclosing details of the contract would undermine the future negotiating position of the Stadium's operator, Vinci, who are working hard to bring in future events to get the greatest possible return and ensure that the Stadium is a commercial success.

It is important that the stadium owners and operator are able to negotiate future contracts in a way that derive maximum value and are not constrained by any one agreement. Such arrangements are standard practice and are designed to both protect the previous public expenditure and maximise the return on this investment.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

a bunch of clowns...

VIDEO: Jordan Ayew scores a cracker for Ghana

Ok, the picture quality could be better and the commentary might get on your tits but here's Jordan Ayew's late winner for Ghana...

 

Tiago Ilori IN on loan from Liverpool

Tiago Ilori is coming to Villa in a season long loan after Liverpool lodged a last gasp deal sheet as the transfer window slammed shut.

The centre half, who is said to have shunned Sunderland's advances because of the cold, will add to our defensive choices as Baker and Bennett bugger off on loan.


Ilori joined Liverpool in the summer of 2013. Two years later, he is still waiting for his debut, though.


He spent the latter half of the 2013/14 season on loan with Granada in Spain, while he spent the whole of 2014/15 on loan at Bordeaux.

Liverpool get a £1m loan fee. If Ilori plays a set number of games Villa can trigger a clause of between £6m and £9m to buy him permanently.

Tim Sherwood "I am very pleased to bring Tiago into the football club.

"He's someone I have been aware of for some time and I am looking forward to working with him.

"He's a young guy who I believe will enhance the group here."

Joe Bennett out on loan more than a library book

Agent Bennett

Aston Villa defender Joe Bennett is off to Bournemouth on a six-month loan deal.

Bennett has made 38 appearances since signing for Villa in 2012, but he spent last season on loan at Brighton & Hove Albion.

Now 25-year-old is off on his travels again. He must bloody love the south coast.

Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe needs to find cover for the stricken Tyrone Mings, who was clattered against Leicester City last weekend.

This wisdom of lending a defender to a rival in the league? We'll reserve judgement on that one.

"It's a good opportunity for me to add to the Premier League experience I've already amassed from my time at Aston Villa." said Bennett

Lescott joins the Villa

Aston Villa have completed the signing of Joleon Lescott from West Bromwich Albion for a reported  £1.5m though the actual fee is "undisclosed". The defender has signed a two-year deal at Villa Park after spending just over a year in Smethwick.

Lescott passed a medical on Tuesday after speculation that has gone on for a month or so.

Lescott made 39 appearances, scoring once, for West Brom after joining from Manchester City on a free transfer last summer.

But the arrival of Jonny Evans and James Chester left the 33-year-old former England international surplus to requirements at The Hawthorns.

Teen keeper Matija Sarkic joins Villa

Aston Villa have completed the signing of teenage shot stopper Matija Sarkic from Anderlecht.

The 18-year-old keeper has put his moniker on a three-year deal with the Premier League side.

Sarkic has recently been selected for the Montenegro Under-21 squad for the first time and hasbeen playing in the Anderlecht Under-19 team before his move to Villa Park.

Nathan Baker on season long exile at Bristol City

Bristol City have completed the season-long loan signing of Aston Villa defender Nathan Baker.

The 24-year-old centre half who can double as a left back and was once an England Under-21 international, agreed the deal on deadline day.

A product of Villa’s Academy, he has made more than 80 appearances for the the Villa, including the FA Cup semi-final last term.

Baker, who stands at 6ft 4in tall, has also enjoyed loan spells at Lincoln City and Millwall earlier in his career.