23 Feb 2021 14:31:29
Sander Berge being linked, would be perfect and hopefully at a good price if they go down.
23 Feb 2021 14:59:08
Would be a good signing if true Chris, he is a big lad as well.
{Ed077's Note - Isn't he out with a long term injury currently?
23 Feb 2021 15:08:10
Ed077 yes he is but Utd are expecting him back before the end of the season Wilder has said he knows Berge is using Utd as a stepping stone to bigger and better things however I think from the interview he gave they are expecting interest from clubs involved in Europe rather than teams like us,
{Ed077's Note - that's sensible point of view from Sheffield United and Wilder.
23 Feb 2021 15:10:38
Yes Ed, don`t think he will feature again this season, hamstring problem I think.
{Ed077's Note - Might not be fully fit and firing even if he gets back before this season's end}
23 Feb 2021 15:23:52
I agree it’s a sensible point of view, but also a dangerous one. I remember us signing Gueye and him mentioning something about bigger things in his first interview, we got relegated and he was sold.
I admit I didn’t know Berge was injured, he’s a brilliant player though and could be that anchor man we’ve been missing for so long.
{Ed077's Note - It largely comes down to the players mentality. Its better for players to want to do so well that the better team come after them than it is to have players who are just happy to be there and not strive to improve IMO.
Although it might pain but Gueye did do well enough to earn a move to Everton and then to PSG.}
23 Feb 2021 16:06:00
Don’t get me wrong Ed Gueye was phenomenal, in an awful team for us. But looking back after the comments he made and then the stats he picked up, was he playing within himself, playing safe in order to get that move should the worse happen.
{Ed077's Note - That is one way of looking at it but he wasnt useless like you pointed out. If I remember correctly he was one of your better performers during that season which wasnt the biggest achievement but still not too bad.
23 Feb 2021 16:43:53
It was obvious to most Villa fans that both Gueye and Veretout were excellent players, and they’ve gone on to have successful careers at PSG and Roma. Unfortunately they were largely surrounded by mediocrity when they were with us, and we were unable to match their ambitions. Neither would be out of place in the current squad though, and I would be more than happy if we could bring a few more of their calibre and ambition in this Summer.
{Ed077's Note - Well said mark.
23 Feb 2021 17:04:38
Are you our new Ed? if so welcome on board mate.
{Ed077's Note - I am the editor of the masses mark. But I am not a Villa supporter if you meant in that way:-P
23 Feb 2021 17:16:28
Ok, my apologies, it’s just that Ed001 made reference to a new Ed this morning. Perhaps we can work on you becoming a Villa supporter ðŸ˜.
{Ed077's Note - Unlikely nay Impossible mate. But appreciate the thought. And no need to apologise mark
23 Feb 2021 19:46:47
Veretout was my favourite of the bunch to be honest, just never ever played in the right position. When you look back we had 5 or 6 players good enough to keep us in the league. Gueye, Veretout, Amavi, Traore, Ayew, Grealish (albeit young), problem was 5 of those had been signed that summer, the turn around was way too much and it didn’t really matter who we brought in, too much change and no cohesion meant we were doomed from the start.
{Ed077's Note - off the top of my head didn't you have Richards and past it Lescott as the CB pairing though? Might explain how you went down no!}
23 Feb 2021 20:16:11
Certainly didn’t help Ed, nor did the atmosphere in the dressing room or the decisions in the boardroom ie how we got shut of a manager who a few months earlier had taken us a very average team at best to an FA cup final and replaced him with the wrong man at the wrong time, come to think of it I am not sure Remi Garde would ever have been the right man at any time. In fact does anyone know where Remi is now?
{Ed077's Note - Remi has been out of job since getting sacked by Montreal Impact in 2019}
23 Feb 2021 20:15:25
2 questions about this rumour
1 can he do the skirting boards in the players lounge? (sorry wrong kind of sander😳)
2 is he any relation to the bloke who sang "Lady in red"?
Seriously though, decent player and physical presence ðŸ‘.
23 Feb 2021 20:36:56
Gone from strength to strength then I see.
23 Feb 2021 20:36:56
Yes Ed, we had Lescott who quite literally didn’t care and Micah Richards who refused to accept he’s a right back! Wasn’t the best base to build from!
Garde has to go down as one of the worst premier league managers of the last decade🙈.