February 2009 Archives

ANY Villa fans out there feeling as flat as a Dutch landscape?

And Villa supporters feeling like a can of cola left open overnight?

It wasn't the best January sales was it?

But in an age where Craig Bellamy costs £14 million, prices were quite simply as ridiculous as Jose Boswinga's singlehanded attempt to cut out time-wasting in corner flags (regular readers will know that he gets my vote for Player of the Season on the back of his rake down Yossi Benayoun's back)

No wonder every Premier League manager from Sam Allardyce to Gary Megson, Arsene Wenger to Mick McCarthy (yes I know they are not there yet, but they soon will be.... there that'll put the kiss of death on 'em) were spending the days leading down to the countdown bemoaning the whole sorry "restraint of trade" system.

Wenger took it a stage further and merely extended the deadline himself. Can anyone tell me how the weather played a hand in Andrei Arshavin not signing before 5pm when he had hired a place to get him into London overnight and was at that Hertfordshire hotel in the morning?

Credit crunch? Don't be ridiculous! When it takes £25million to get you Roque Santa Cruz then you know you're in trouble. Hospitals can be built for less.

The prices of players now appear to be set as if you were spending one night at a Travelodge in Heathrow and yet paying for a suite at the Langham Hotel on Portland Place - (apprently it has two bedrooms and its own butlers (Oliver and Ricardo) and costs £6,169 for one night)

As for Villa, at least they managed to beat last year's paltry arrival of Wayne Routledge.

They had confirmed earlier in the month that they had completed the signing of Dutch starlet Arsenio Halfhuid from Excelsior.

And in Emile Heskey they managed to nab a striker whom Rafa Benitez believed would offer Liverpool a significantly better chance of pipping Manchester United and Chelsea to the league title than Robbie Keane.

But was one senior player in enough? It was nothing like the frenzied activity the year before that saw John Carew, Ashley Young, Phil Bardsley and Shaun Maloney all sign up in January.

There was a hope leading into that final day that a Michael Johnson, Daniel Sturridge, or more unlikely, a Micah Richards might be coming in.

You just hope that it won't leave Martin O'Neill - still chasing glory on three fronts - short of quality if injuries or suspensions bite.

Top flight clubs have reportedly splashed a record £178 million in the January transfer window.

Manchester City laid out £51m, with Spurs boss Harry Redknapp paying £44m.

Arsenal- Villa's main rivals this season - look to have spent £15m on Arshavin.

On the other hand Chelsea, of all people, handed over just £500,000 for Gokhan Tore from Bayer Leverkusen and took a loan player- albeit for a princely sum from Inter Milan.

One piece of potential bad news for Villa was the £12 million spent by Tottenham on Robbie Keane.

Why? When Spurs are so far behind in the table?

I have my eyes already on a potential last 16 UEFA Cup clash in just five weeks when Tottenham, already without Jermain Defoe should both sides see off the huge challenges of CSKA Moscow and Shahktar, will be a different side with their former skipper on board.

It promises to be an eventful summer once again when prices should be slightly more sensible. Don't rule out the Man City trio, nor Peter Crouch, whilst a Champions League place could tempt Santa Cruz away from Eastlands if Villa really decide to spend big.

THE pantomime season has started ten months early.

It's deadline day boys and girls.

TV Reporter David Craig, complete with his two mobile phones and a laptop, starts reading an email outside St James' Park.

It appears to be from the one man who really needs every bit of support from anyone in the North-east prepared to lend an ear.

That snivelling crawler Mike Ashley says something along the lines of Sky Sports News being "compulsive viewing" on deadline day. "This is the part I like.." points out our 'Craigy' as he reads the bit about Ashley sending out half-price bacon rolls and tea to the crew.

Craig informs the viewer that the A1 was a 40mph zone on the inside lane on his journey up earlier in the morning: "That could complicate matters" he says.

Do Premiership players refuse to drive slower than 40mph?

At 9.50am the drama really starts.

Bryan Swanson, chief news reporter, is in snowy Hertfordshire: "I've got a text message from sources close to the deal", he boasts.
"Arshavin is no longer at this north London hotel. Arsenal just cannot afford the player. They want to pay half his current contract. They don't want to pay. He is on his way to a London airport to fly back to Russia and he is not happy....."
And there's more from Bryan: "The twist is that the airport is closed."

So let's get this right - at 9.50am he was flying home. Remember that folks.

10.02am: "It's likely to be a hectic day made even more complicated by this extraordinary weather", says Ian Payne. Ian, that will be snow.

10.04: Swanson interviews a 12 year-old boy and his dad. Swanston to boy: "What is your message to Arsenal?". Boy: "Spend the money." Riveting.
Swanston adds: "I'm not going to tell you where we are, but people find us." You've already told us you're in Hertfordshire, and you're somewhere near the Arsenal training ground Bryan.
"Are Arsenal sending out a message to the rest of the Premier League? Arshavin is here, he is only a private jet away.", adds our Bryan.

11.01am Rob Wooton describes it as "the day that never disappoints." Sorry Rob, but I am already disappointed.

11.22am Things are so quiet that they repeat the interview with the lad and his dad

11.30am OH NO! The Premier League hold talks with the FA and FIFA to extend the deadline.
A shift will play havoc with that countdown clock.

12.39pm: Craig is now at the Newcastle training ground where pictures show Chris Houghton is in an office... wait for it...... on the telephone. "What was that? Did you want me to pop into the bakers on my way back love", you could almost lip read him saying.

12.52 studio bound reporter Andy Burton tells us that Jermaine Jenas has made it into the Tottenham training ground down an un-gritted minor road along with a clutch of other players who were all driving Range Rovers and not their Bentleys.

1.07pm "The snow is getting heavier, the deadline is getting nearer and talks are continuing", says U-turn Swanston at a snowy Emirates Stadium. The clock reads: 3 hours 51 minutes and 45 seconds.

1.39pm another re-run of that kid outside the hotel in Hertfordshire wittering on about Arshavin.

2.43pm U-turn Swanson. Arsenal and Zenit St Petersburg are very close to striking a deal.

3pm. The cavalry have arrived. Jim White is finally on our screens: "The news is coming to us thick and fast", says our Jim.

3.15pm David Craig is forced to back track on an exclusive story he gave half an hour ago that Newcastle tried to swap Obafemi Martins for Darren Bent. "We have had confirmation from the highest possible source (that'll be Mike Ashley then) that was categorically not the case." (that'll have been Martins' agent on the phone to Joe Kinnear then).

"If you've seen loads of children involved in snowball fights......then you'll know that large parts of the country have been affected by the weather." Classic White, who within seconds calls the Villa training ground Bodymoor Health.

"If agents are going to make money - this is the time they are going to do it." This IS rocket science. This time from Andy Burton.

3.54pm. Jim White leaps over the desk when he breaks away from another Superbowl report to announce that: "with 1hour 05 mins and 43 seconds to go, Liverpool and Tottenham have agreed a fee for Robbie Keane". He probably missed his morning paper.

4.31pm David Craig reveals that Manchester City have turned down an £8million offer from Newcastle for Villa target Michael Johnson. That'll be why he's not heading to Villa Park then.

4.57pm The first sight of the Yorkshire-based reporter telling us something about a player at Doncaster. I cannot handle the excitement.

5pm Sky really excel themselves by showing pictures of Big Ben chiming five o'clock: "The window is shut and thank God it is shut!", says Jim White. "Absolutely fascinating," he adds.

Bryan Swanson is still outside Arsenal. It's still snowing. Poor soul.

Roll on Monday August 31.

MARTIN O'Neill's Villa are seven points clear of where they were at this stage last season.

Remarkably they are 19 points clear of where they were two seasons ago in the Irishman's first season.

And yet O'Neill finds himself answering questions about an altercation with one supporter behind the dugout after Saturday's goalless draw with Wigan when only four incredible close shaves prevented another three points.

Had he been bussed in from St Andrew's for the day?

Perhaps even more ridiculously were the boos from a minority of fans at the final whistle.
Villa are five points ahead of John Gregory's fast-fading side of 1998/99, who had boasted a record start and infamously posed for celebratory team pictures at The Dell.

O'Neill's men are six points clear of Brian Little's fourth-placed side of 1995/98 and four ahead of Ron Atkinson's runners-up.

Believe it or not they are still a point clear of where they were after 24 games of the title-winning season of 1980/81.

This is as good as it has been in 19 years.

February 1990 and Graham Taylor's Villa were trading punches blow for blow with the super heavyweights of the First Division, namely Liverpool.

February 2009 and Martin O'Neill's Villa - despite that weekend wobble - are doing likewise against Manchester United, Liverpool , Chelsea and Arsenal.

Back to Taylor's first era and after 24 games Villa were seven points clear of third-placed Arsenal and 21 points ahead of a Manchester United team struggling in 16th place.

Their manager Sir Alex Ferguson was seemingly one bad result away from the sack.
Taylor's side had taken 49 points from their opening 24 matches - winning 15 of them - to pip this present lot by a single point.

Boosted by Paul McGrath's arrival from Manchester United five months earlier Villa sat just a point behind Liverpool but with two games in hand after 24 matches.

Taylor's side promptly went top of Division One with a 2-0 win at Tottenham next game but they would wilt badly, winning only five more matches but still finishing second behind Kenny Dalglish's champions.

Villa will not keep pace with the record of Ron Saunders' side who had beaten Stoke City in their 24th game and after a draw with Nottingham Forest just steamrollered the rest of the division.

Only Spurs and Ipswich got the better of them before the title was clinched with Ipswich's defeat at Middlesbrough on the final day when Villa were being beaten at Arsenal.

O'Neill's Villa are nowhere near as good. They are the first to admit it.

Their season has been one of major advancement. Just study Gael Clichy's comments on the Arsenal web-site today to see how much Villa are worrying them - despite his assertions to the contrary.

Supporters have every right to boo.

But last Saturday at Villa Park almost beggered belief.

Paul Birch has died at the age 46.

If that doesn't make you wince, nothing will.

It was only nine months ago that news broke that he was to undergo treatment for bone cancer.

It's all too easy to say something along the lines of: "He was the nicest bloke you will ever want to meet" when a person dies.

But in Birch's case, so many people are saying exactly that. That he was down to earth and just happy to help others.

Just ten years ago he was playing professional football for Exeter City.

Just a few weeks ago he was enjoying a few drinks at Walsall Cricket Club where I had gotten to know one of his best mates.

A group of them were all due to have a good night out together down Sutton Coldfield a few weeks back. But he he wasn't up to it and cancelled.

Now he is no longer with us.

All this on the day that Vic Crowe is being laid to rest at Sutton Coldfield Crematorium.

And 24 hours before Johnny Dixon's funeral.

West Bromwich born Birch began his career in the Villa youth team, becoming a regular first-team player in 1983/84 season after making his league debut on 29 August 1983 in a 1-0 win at home to Sunderland.

He was a tigerish performer with bags of energy. A firm favourite indeed.

After ten years Birch was sold to Wolves in early 1991 for £400,000 where he joined up with former manager Graham Turner. He was awarded a testimonial by the club (against Wolves) in August 1991.

Birch stayed at Wolves for five years in the second tier. He was almost an ever-present under Turner.

He was finally released by Wolves in Summer 1996, and finished his career with a season at both Doncaster Rovers and Exeter.

Villa and Wolves fans everywhere will be saddened by this news.

But they do say that God only takes the best ones early.