Move over Gareth Barry, it's now the James Milner saga taking centre stage

You're right Damian, something is better than nothing and Milner gives us a far better option than we currently have. I think you're being a little harsh on him though, he is a talented player with bags of experience at this level and the U21's for his age.

I do think he's a player who will probably hit his potential earlier than normal (he's probably almost there to be honest), and I doubt he'll ever become more than just a "good" player.

But you never know, perhaps MON is the man who can get the most out of him and turn him into something better than I'm predicting.

Barry is not making it any easier for us to forgive and forget. He has got it totally wrong in every facet. The only thing we have heard from Barry is his bitching about MON. What an idiot. Black is even worse, letting his player look so poor in front of everyone. The fact he has not handed in a transfer request means he is simply a selfish person. They say if you chase your dreams you must make sacrifices, so if Liverpool is a dream move, sacrifice your entitled percentage of the transfer fee and piss off. All i can say about all this is that Barry has now damaged our preparation for this season (along with other factors mainly envloving MON) and i am "preparing" myself for an underwhelming season unfortunately

I thought Milner was one our better players during that year he was on loan. At the very least he'll give us some actual threat down the right side and help spread out opposing defences. He seems like a pretty good crosser and taker of free-kicks too. We really just need another option to Ash and having crosses whipped in from both sides will give Carew and Gabby plenty of opportunites.

Up the Villa

Milner is just what we need he has some of the flair of Young however is more solid than say SWP or Bentley because he will work hard for the team as well. Balance and creativity is what we need - milner will give us that. What do you know damien then as you state that you know it is more complicated than that?

I for one would be happy if Milner came... after spurs and pompey's poor start it looks like the mags may be our closest rivals for a 5th place finish this season (I know early days) so taking him may be a good move as the terrific toon army seem to like him! He will develop more and who can forget his season with us last time! WOW I'm in love hehe... I mean football... I'm not - y'know... anyway. Let's get him signed THIRD TIME LUCKY and we'll have a future england star on our books... to go with the others hehehe.

i need a del la red with a good falcao topped with a nice joe cole that would keep me happy for now. ;) ;D

Newcastle fan here..

Milner probably played the best game of his life for us against Coventry. He can certainly work the right or the left, but has been found wanting many times when it comes to his end product.

He's a good player, who I thought would become a key player in a few years and hoped we'd see him between 26-31-ish. I've had a sneaking suspicion for a while that he could be transformed into a very good striker. However, if MON wants to pay 10 mil and play him on the wing, then I would snap his hand off if I was in the position to take it..

What I meant was it's not just as simple as saying okay, here is the money you want and we'll have the player. It's about the player contract and all the other bits ... I didn't mean to suggest anything else, only that there is a lot of work involved in actually getting a player.

In essence and this is only my opinion, he is still a prospect. A good prospect yes, but we've had so many good prospects at Villa.

What I'd really like to see is a proven player come in is all.

You can have him, give us the money and we are laughing!! He's nothing special, cant cross/take corner to save his life, he's a hard worker with no end product. Stay clear of the national press and check out the blogs to see what the NUFC fans think of him.

Thanks for your money, should it happen.....

To all of you critical of Barry for not personally announcing to the press that he won't be moving to Liverpool, Arsenal or anywhere else until at least the January transfer window, and that he won't consider renegotiating a contract with us until the end of the season - consider the following:

1) If Barry had made the statement it would have probably come out as I presented it above, i.e. with a little less spin.

2) Barry is most probably not allowed to talk to the press at the moment.

I couldn't care less what he says, I just want him to play well for us until he goes.

Don't forget that if Milner is leaving because he can't get what he wants at Newcastle (in terms of a contract), then he's going to be asking for quite a bit of his new employers I imagine. Though with MON in charge we have no worry of paying more wages than necessary.

Whatever "necessary" is.

Incidentally... I love the way that when this first kicked off a few weeks ago Newcastle fans were certain Milner wouldn't leave, that there was no chance he would want to leave the mighty magpies and join a lesser club like Villa.

Now all of a sudden, he's sub-par. How about that.

I really think 9/10 mill for Milner is way to much.. He's worth 5/6 mill max..!! He is a good player but thats it, i would rather have SWP i think MON could be the manager he needs. It would be nice to see Ash and SWP flying up the wings..!!

villavilla milner is a good player which is what most players think of him he has got good dribbling skills and works hard but that is it he can not cross to save his life though he is young he can improve but can he despite what milner is saying that he wants a contract to match his development he has not developed a lot he has always been skillful and hard working the only way i can se he has developed in is that he is a little bit stronger keegan says he is ready for the step up and if it had been a few years ago i would agree but since then there have been a few wingers that you could say are better such as bentley and youre very own young who also if i am not mistaken can also play on the right

I know swp is a nice thought but we need to stay a balanced side. Milner WILL chase back and cover where as I fear swp wouldnt? I know all the Geordies are writing him off with all last seasons opta stats. But with no disrespect to you Geordies did anyone have a great season last season?? And I'd also like to add what were Ashley youngs stats like for Watford before we brought him??? Hit miss or maybe I think is what we all thought about our Ashley but the boys come on leaps and bounds and I can't see why Milner can't be a similar talent!! ;) still can't think of a striker? How about a fit Saha on a season loan??? Clutching at straws?? Any suggestions welcome.

by the way if you want to discuss this on a better and faster blog you can go on to the newcastle united blog

i think Barry has learnt not to talk to the press. he'll do his talking with his feet, so i'm pleased he's staying and has learnt his lesson.

Milner will give us the balance, aggression and creativity we need and is really a better option than anyone else. He could be an extremely impressive signing.

javior saviola...oba martins.

FOR GODSAKE DONT BUY MILNER!!!

SWP is available £9-10M...and hes TWICE THE PLAYER THAT MILNER IS!!!

why the hell are ppl saying "oooh wright-phillips wouldnt chase back"

errrrm...thats what we have central midfielders and defenders for...the wingers and strikers ATTACK...that is why they are called ATTACKERS.




GET SWP IN NOW.

and to add

also i think he only got 2 assists last year compared to how many young got that says a lot

Want him more than SWP. Safer bet in my opinion. The last thing we need is out and out pace with no end product.

u might not agree with me here lads, but id like to see dean ashton or kevin davies?? both have add there injury problems but on there day they're both an handful for any defence! as the villa know very well from both of them!!!

id rather have SWP than Milner, Milner to me just doesn't produce, he's a hard working player...BUT...there's just something missing from his game that i can't put my finger on, SWP is more exciting and i believe would fit better into the side.
I'm also finished with GBarry, i thought he was going to announce that he was going to sign a long term contract with us, but to say he won't even discuss another contract until next summer is a joke, he's mugging us off for another year...fcuk him...rot in the stands you cnut... im going to and would like all other Villa fans to show what we think of this leech...

Fair do s Villa , but for nine million ad put him in a taxi.Personally a think he knows he wont get past jonas

Damian I think by now it's obvious that serious footballers won't come unless you get champions league status. Yes Spurs are an exception but they have spent zillions AND are in London. Even then they have just lost their two main strikers to CL clubs leaving them in the lurch. I agree with you though, Milner is a better option though I say so purely for his work ethic. I'm sorry but anyone who would fancy a midfield with Young AND SWP has spent their life on the pc not playing for real.

Nanwasafan - problem is mate have you seen Milner's stats for last season? No end product there either.

Milner is a good player and would do a good job for Villa. I'm not sure why people are knocking him. SWP again is a good player but I'm not sure he's as good as Milner. What ever MON needs to get something in on the right side as we look worse than poor down that flank.

We must also get a quality striker in as we are very limited up front! If Carew gets injured then we've got little cover

One way of looking at it milner has put a transfer request in, if he does come to the villa it because he loves the club and wants to come back.In my opinion milners a quality player who would give his all every week. Hope we get him.

id sign saviola, madrid got him for nothing so if we offered 9-10mil im sure they would accept. still sign de la red aswell and another striker, preferably from abroad, i'm getting sick of being linked with all these average premier league players that MoN thinks he can make amazing.

why are my comments not coming up

if we are going to sign either milner or SWP, id like to sign lennon aswell to challenge them for a place

i beat gabby agbonlahor in a race...
against his car in 30 meter sprint
soooo if villa want a rm ...
swp will do the job :D
villa to sign swp and doyle (:'()
altho milner is not bad

come on standard liege stick it up them scousers!!!!!! ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

Milner would be a great signing, He was head and shoulders above any Newcastle player last night and looked a seasoned player even though he's only 22. Lets just get him in before sunday as we NEED a Right midfielder for that one.

As for Barry I have supported him on this blog all summer even when he told the news of the world he wanted out. Now though I feel a little different, If Gareth actually wants to stay he should come out and tell us fans. Leaving it to his agent tells me he's staying because Liverpool & Arsenal either cant afford or dont want him.

I love Barry and have done for the last 10 years but if he is not going to be 100% committed for the long term then keeping him may do more harm than good, and no player in the world is worth jeopordising what Aston Villa are trying to achieve at the minute.

Milner ?
Christ thats depressing.
Has O'neill no imagination.Does he not realise theres a whole wide world out there and the majority of it plays foootball.
What bothers me is his distrust of foreign players.
I'm sure he wouldn't have signed Cuellar directly from a Spanish club.
Milner,Doyle......pass me the valium !

i dont think we need another target man i.e davies or ashton we need someone with flair someone who will come short and combine the play rather than balls hoofed up in the air for Carew or played down the channels for gabby to chase. We must do better at retaining the ball.please suprise me MON. :o :o

Oh how i love villa . dont care who comes in as i know martin can make them brill. looking at the liverpool game.ooooh how i hate them. barry is lucky he didnt join them.

still think he is acting like a big baby throwing all his toys out of the pram.

milner or swp.
feck sake buy them both.
why not.

That's more like it! Buy them both. SWP is good - say £10-12m plus Milner at the same, that's a few mill more than GB is valued at - think on that. They are both proven in the Prem - no Carlos Kickballs. If one or either of them came to us I would be down the bookies like a ferret up a drainpipe (just to lower the tone a bit).

UTV

SWP having man city medical tomoz

MY GOD WHAT IS MON DOING!!!!!!!!!!!

right this is well anoyin my comments never comethrough n apparetnly my email address is being used by some1 else
is it cus i dnt av a user or sumin??? please reply

Just out of curiosity, what's your definition of a proven right-winger, Damien?

Milner wud be the kind of player perfect to balance out our first 11, watched this guy felliani who we have been linked to, in the two liverpool games and he's been excellent in both, certainly would be an improvement on either reo-coker or petrov, get em MON an if liverfool are as bad as they were 2nite, i'd be gutted if we don't get 1 over on em at VP on sunday

frickin poxy Liverpool, just bloody scored. Bugga! >:(

Can Rafa afford to splash the cash now. Rafa, give MON a call and in the morning to make Stevie and Gareth's dreams come true! ;D

Well Liverpool's luck maybe running out. No $tevie MBE this weekend, Villa need to go right at them and tear them apart!

whyare we getting milner when SWP IS Available. he is a diffferent class to milner who is average at best. his stats are pretty dreadful to be honest. at 22 years of age wright philips was streaks ahead of where milner is now. just cause he has sat on the bench (he still played nearly 30 games last year though - 1 less than milner) he hasnt lost his class.
milner hasnt been picked for england for a reason he is average - swp at 22 had been all be it not to start!
swp was an oneil target not so long ago but he has probably only just found out he is now available. our mannager is pathetic, not clued into whats goin g on in the transfer market and seems never to get his first choice targets.

Milner will do a job for us, but I would be well gutted if MON signed, he's a v.good championship striker at best. APparently any player who speaks to MON in person signs.....lets get Ashton in a room with him!!! UTV

I'd be well gutted if DOYLE signed, is what I meant to say! :)

SWP is not having a medical at Man City he has already stated that he will NOT join a team in the north and wants to join Pompey. The only stumbling block is that Pompey have not got the £9mil required!!

SWP is on his way to Man City.For Milner,if we want him we have to pay 10M at least.

I don't see what all the fuss is about with SWP. I've never seen him play a decent 90mins. A lot of bluster, occassional flashes of skill, not much else. On a par with Vassell if you ask me. He's done nothing at Chelski to make me change my mind. Milner impressed me on his loan spell. A hard working team player in the midfield wouldn't do any harm at the right price. As for Joe Cole - we've got no chance of signing him at this time. Maybe when we start finishing top 5 or 6 season after season and winning some silverware in Europe we might be in with a chance.

I have good friends who are close relatives to GB and I have to say that since he was disciplined by the club, he has stayed VERY quiet about his intentions. I think he learned his lesson, and is trying to be as professional as possible. I don't blame him for wanting to go to Liverpool - it could have been any top club in the champions league. He's only human and wants what every footballer wants. Having said that, I don't think there are many that could doubt his dedication to playing the best football he can at any given time - something which can't be said for a lot of players who don't get their own way. Turning in poor performances and sulking is not his style and I think we should be proud of him, not moaning about his agent. Agents are money men, not football men. That's what they're hired for.

I think Milner is a good player but not a great player. 10m as is suggested in the press seems a bit too much. However, I think we do need a good right-sided player so as to let Gabby play his favourite position as a CF. That way, we won't need Doyle. If we can't find a better right sided player before the transfer window closes, Milner at a rather inflated price might still turn out to be the best thing for the team.

SWP has gone to Man City - I am glad we didn't go for him.

Milner checked into the Hyatt on Broad Street this morning. Hopefully this will mean we get some good news sometime this afternoon.