The AVST was today deeply saddened to hear of the sudden and unexpected passing of Graham Taylor. We offer our sincerest condolences to his family at this difficult time. Graham will always have a place in Villa folklore after the incredible journey he took us on as our manager in the late 1980’s. From the shambles he is so famously quoted as inheriting in Division 2, he took us back up at the first time of asking and departed for the England job after we…
The Aston Villa Supporters Trust are once again watching the club look for a new manager. It is difficult to pass a great deal of judgement on Roberto Di Matteo’s time with the club. Some of our members think he should have been given more time, whilst others will point to the league table and say the results were unacceptable. What was refreshing was the speed at which the board acted. Dr Xia chose Roberto so he could be forgiven for wanting to give him…
The AVST was deeply saddened to hear the news earlier today of the death of Dalian Atkinson. Whilst it is too early to comment on the circumstances, we extend our thoughts and best wishes to his family at this difficult time. Fans of all clubs will remember Dalian for “that goal” against Wimbledon. However, we also remember him as being part of one of the most exciting to watch teams we have fielded. We will always think fondly of the important goals he scored in…
And so it begins at Villa Park tomorrow! The first two fixtures have offered cause for optimism, and banging your head on the coffee table, in equal measure. Welcome aboard to James Chester who should form part of the best central pair in the league defensively. Still much to be done on transfers as we see it. We need a core in the first team not tainted by failures of seasons past. We really hope the last few weeks of the transfer window are productive.…
The AVST are pleased that the sale of the club to Tony Xia has now been ratified. We have said many times that there is much to be done at Villa Park this summer so let the changes begin. He has certainly spoken well of his plans for Villa and all of us aiming for the same stars would be welcome given the lowering of expectations we should have of our great club that has taken place in recent years. We do sound a word…
AVST is pleased at the appointment of Roberto Di Matteo. He has a good pedigree and has taken another just relegated team up at the first time of asking as part of that. We wish every success. We are delighted to see that Steve Clarke will be his Assistant Manager. A highly regarded coach, with recent knowledge of the Championship, we are sure he will be an important voice in the dressing room and at Bodymoor Heath. Welcome aboard both. You have a lot to…
You might be wondering why we haven’t yet commented on this weeks news that Tony Xia is the new owner of the club. Given that we have been very critical of the previous owner, why haven’t we been jumping for joy at the end of the Lerner era? In truth, it is because we are not sure what to make of it. It was plain for all to see that Randy Lerner had to sell up. Another disastrous campaign has ended in timid relegation and…
When AVST met with Aston Villa officials two weeks ago, we discussed a number of things in great length. We can only apologise if the length of the write up we put out on the website was not substantive enough for some, however, the meeting lasted almost three hours and therefore we felt it was best to abbreviate what was discussed, rather than give a word for word account. One of the key objectives we were keen to discuss with the club though was the…
The Supporters Trust have been receiving a lot of communication from our members since the lack of action in the January transfer window. After a brief respite in January, the performances on the pitch have again nosedived into the dismal and we find ourselves waiting for the trapdoor to open beneath us. With that as a backdrop, it is no surprise that our supporters are angry and made their feelings known with a walkout protest at the Everton game. The view of the AVST board…
Steve Hollis, the new Chairman of Aston Villa Football Club, has expressed his desire to attend our AGM on Thursday. The AVST Executive Board felt that we wanted to accept his request but this will require a small change to our intended running order. Other engagements mean that Steve will need to depart at 8.00pm. To obtain maximum benefit from Steve’s time, we ask that we have a prompt start to the AGM at 7.00pm. Steve and Tom Fox will join us at 7.15pm, and Tom will be…