How impressed are you with BMcD's return to the club?

[Ian Royal]

What should be Villa's expectation next season in the Championship Ian?

Like the other 23 clubs in the league. Promotion. No point in participating otherwise.

Villa should certainly be looking to go straight back up, but they're in disarray on and off the pitch and not sure on their finances. They really could go any way depending on their summer and first five games. But if I had to stick my neck out I'd say they had a fractured season of mid-table mediocrity ahead of them.

Championship you generally can expect to call five teams and have about four of them be in the top seven and the same at the bottom.

[Lower West]

What should be Villa's expectation next season in the Championship Ian?

Like the other 23 clubs in the league. Promotion. No point in participating otherwise.

Villa should certainly be looking to go straight back up, but they're in disarray on and off the pitch and not sure on their finances. They really could go any way depending on their summer and first five games. But if I had to stick my neck out I'd say they had a fractured season of mid-table mediocrity ahead of them.

Championship you generally can expect to call five teams and have about four of them be in the top seven and the same at the bottom.

There's a gulf between League 1 and the Championship now. Difficult to see any of the 3 promoted sides achieving any better than bottom 8 places.

[Kitsondinho]

Like the other 23 clubs in the league. Promotion. No point in participating otherwise.

Villa should certainly be looking to go straight back up, but they're in disarray on and off the pitch and not sure on their finances. They really could go any way depending on their summer and first five games. But if I had to stick my neck out I'd say they had a fractured season of mid-table mediocrity ahead of them.

Championship you generally can expect to call five teams and have about four of them be in the top seven and the same at the bottom.

There's a gulf between League 1 and the Championship now. Difficult to see any of the 3 promoted sides achieving any better than bottom 8 places.

I agree that the gulf is getting bigger BUT Wigan could have enough funding to be a bit further up than 16th. Burton (should they go up) are obviously massive candidates to go straight back down.

[Top Flight]

It was great to see Brian receiving good support from the travelling Royals supporters at QPR. He's very popular among our adoring crowd.

[Maneki Neko]

What should be Villa's expectation next season in the Championship Ian?

Like the other 23 clubs in the league. Promotion. No point in participating otherwise.

Thats your aim,not your nailed on expectation

[Lower West]

Villa should certainly be looking to go straight back up, but they're in disarray on and off the pitch and not sure on their finances. They really could go any way depending on their summer and first five games. But if I had to stick my neck out I'd say they had a fractured season of mid-table mediocrity ahead of them.

Championship you generally can expect to call five teams and have about four of them be in the top seven and the same at the bottom.

There's a gulf between League 1 and the Championship now. Difficult to see any of the 3 promoted sides achieving any better than bottom 8 places.

I agree that the gulf is getting bigger BUT Wigan could have enough funding to be a bit further up than 16th. Burton (should they go up) are obviously massive candidates to go straight back down.

Saw them play a few weeks back. On that performance Bristol City the year before were a better team in comparison. Wigan lack experience. Have a number of "Evans " in their team i.e. ex premiership academy players.

[SCIAG]

There's a gulf between League 1 and the Championship now. Difficult to see any of the 3 promoted sides achieving any better than bottom 8 places.

On what grounds?

Two years ago Bournemouth finished tenth, last season Brentford finished 5th and Wolves 7th. Preston are currently sitting in 11th.

[Ian Royal]

There's a gulf between League 1 and the Championship now. Difficult to see any of the 3 promoted sides achieving any better than bottom 8 places.

On what grounds?

Two years ago Bournemouth finished tenth, last season Brentford finished 5th and Wolves 7th. Preston are currently sitting in 11th.

Agree. Occasionally you'll get duff years where the promoted teams collectively can't cope, but over the last 5-10 years there's loads of examples of sides promoted from League One finishing in the top half of the Championship. Plenty getting promoted to the top flight within a couple of years and a few going straight up again.

I suspect that if someone like Sheffield Utd get their act together enough to get promotion, they'd probably be comfortably around mid-table as an example. At the moment most of the bigger teams have fought their way out of League One, but some will find their way back down again soon enough and then if they can get back, they'll have a good chance of mixing it up in the Championship. There are plenty of club's with potential to grow there too.

[Longhorn1970]

not impresed at all


the guy seems so full of bad vibes
get rid and bring in a winner

sorry brian as a fellow slough guy
you aint up for it no more

bless you......

+1

[Longhorn1970]

lol at getting all upset, double posting and calling someone a numpty after an obviously lighthearted joke, then deleting it.

have the courage of your convictions man!

I don't recall saying I was upset ? Did you make that bit up ..

sounded upset to me, though I admit its hard to tell in a text conversation.
you called me a numpty, then deleted it, then posted something else, and now youre having a go again.
this is all the evidence I have to hand, so im just making assumptions based on it.
if you say youre not upset ill accept that and be pleased I didn't upset anyone.

What you whittering on about now ..

[Maneki Neko]

I just love to whitter
Cant help meself

[No Fixed Abode]

I'll just leave this here.

http://www.statto.com/football/stats/en ... form-table

[Hoop Blah]

There's a gulf between League 1 and the Championship now. Difficult to see any of the 3 promoted sides achieving any better than bottom 8 places.

On what grounds?

Two years ago Bournemouth finished tenth, last season Brentford finished 5th and Wolves 7th. Preston are currently sitting in 11th.

Momentum and confidence are massive factors in that, as is a bit of budget to invest and add players at a time of strength.

Wolves and Bournemouth aren't typical examples of League One clubs coming up because of the players and money behind them. Preston are more typical though, and Brentford certainly closer to the norm for a League One coming up.

I think Burton would be more likely to struggle than most though. I don't see any of the 3 coming up being too strong though, but stranger things have happened.

[Maneki Neko]

I'll just leave this here.

http://www.statto.com/football/stats/en ... form-table

phew, just clear of the relegation spots

[Top Flight]

There's a gulf between League 1 and the Championship now. Difficult to see any of the 3 promoted sides achieving any better than bottom 8 places.

I agree that the gulf is getting bigger BUT Wigan could have enough funding to be a bit further up than 16th. Burton (should they go up) are obviously massive candidates to go straight back down.

Saw them play a few weeks back. On that performance Bristol City the year before were a better team in comparison. Wigan lack experience. Have a number of "Evans " in their team i.e. ex premiership academy players.

That won't necessarily count against them. Once upon a time we were in a similar position with Sidwell and Harper. Look how that turned out.

The Wigan players must be really hungry. They were good enough to get out of League One. If they have the talent to match that work ethic and hunger they could go far. It's what we should be trying to build.

[No Fixed Abode]

I'll just leave this here.

http://www.statto.com/football/stats/en ... form-table

phew, just clear of the relegation spots

Moving in the right direction eh!

[Ian Royal]

I'll just leave this here.

http://www.statto.com/football/stats/en ... form-table

Interesting you haven't been leaving it after the rest of the 20 odd games BM has been in charge or after the end of Clarke's. Just after we've had a poor run of 4 defeats.

[No Fixed Abode]

I'll just leave this here.

http://www.statto.com/football/stats/en ... form-table

Interesting you haven't been leaving it after the rest of the 20 odd games BM has been in charge or after the end of Clarke's. Just after we've had a poor run of 4 defeats.

His PPG is still below Clarke's too. Any more evidence you want that things aren't improving?

[Maneki Neko]

looks, we get that you love Steve Clarke and that you are upset about how we are treating him now hes left.
we don't h8 him, we don't think hes totally shit.
he just wanted to leave to go to another club a few months into a contract, because he hadn't researched the club well enough, and wanted more money to spend. that's all fair enough.


we got brian in instead. I like brian more than Clarke, but that is understandable.

its touching how you defend him though. real loyalty.

[leon]

I think he looks like a tramp that has just shat himself in a piss sodden car park stairwell.