Thoughts and issues regarding the past and present of a great football club by "The Chronicler".

Thursday 19 April 2012

Has He a Ticket to Ride?

News is creeping out from the woodwork that the current forecast at Villa Park is for 4,000 season ticket sales for next season. Well, if this proves to be the case (even as little as 12,000 would be very worrying for the owner) it would be on one hand a very, very sad situation, but on the other hand if that lack of support proves to be the reality and it helps the current managerial incumbent to depart early in the summer, then perhaps that will be progress.

But under Randy Lerner, I am learning to wonder just what is going to come next! For example, Randy might just stump up funds in the summer to buy good players in the effort to attract fans back into the fold, and yet leave McLeish in managerial control. The development of that scenario may well be that Villa might succeed in getting back into the top-10, but perhaps with a team that should have been challenging for top-6 and/or a domestic Cup trophy to boot. I'm beginning to see McLeish as a manager that will always produce a lower return than the squad at his disposal deserves - and, perhaps worse, playing uninspiring football. I remain convinced that it would be a disaster for Villa for McLeish to remain in any circumstance. If he were to stay I would see Villa being in perpetual mediocre mode.

On the other hand, if Randy Lerner does replace McLeish, just who will he appoint? Will it be an imaginitive manager, one already with a proven track record or one with star potential? Again, unless Lerner seeks sound advice from someone who understands Villa and its supporters, I see another wasted appointment taking place.

The year 2012 has indeed proved itself to be the end of a calendar. Just what is going to happen next? The answer is indeed in the firmament.
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