Aston Villa will today unveil their new manager Paul Lambert at Villa Park at 1pm. The announcement that Aston Villa had captured their original no.1 target came on Saturday afternoon. Paul Lambert left Norwich under a cloud of smoke following Lambert tendering his resignation at a meeting between him and Norwich board.
The meeting was held late on Wednesday evening and speculation began to grow and it was revealed that in fact Aston Villa were meeting with Lambert’s representatives on Thursday. Things appeared to be going smooth until there was temporary stall in the deal, this was due to Norwich wishing to receive money for Lambert’s potential departure.
Negotiations went carried on all day on Friday, it is believed a deal was finally reached on Saturday morning before being revealed that Aston Villa had secured the services of Paul Lambert.
The press conference and unveiling has been put on the back burner due to the weekends celebrations of “The Queen’s” diamond jubilee. So today has been the set day for the unveiling and press-conference which is being held at Villa Park.
Until the presentation to the media it is unclear whether Aston Villa has also captured some of Paul Lambert’s staff who he worked with during his time at Norwich. Lambert’s No 2 Ian Culverhouse and head of football operations Gary Karsa could well join him.
Last night is was revealed that Alan Thompson had parted company with Celtic, this is due to Thompson being asked to attend a meeting with Lennon over his lifestyle issues. This was an issue Lennon felt needing addressing as that Thompsons actions could harm the Scottish club.
Subsequently Lennon sacked Thompson via mobile communication, Thompson has vowed to fight his dismissal and could be offered employment by Paul Lambert and be part of his Aston Villa new backroom setup.
Thompson has threatened legal action over his Bhoys’ sacking but is now in the frame to work under Lambert in the West Midlands. The pair know each other well from their time in Glasgow and Thompson’s Villa connections – he spent two years at the club between 1998-2000 – means he could be the perfect fit.
The appointment has been welcomed amongst the Villa fans who were dealt an uninspiring hand last season managing just 7 wins all season finishing in 16th position. Paul Lambert’s arrival has restored Villa’s faith in owner Randy Lerner following the sacking of Alex McLeish.
In Lambert’s time at Norwich he managed to get them back to back promotions in consecutive seasons and raised the profile of the East-Anglian club. Last season Norwich finished in a respectable 12th position and was a joy to watch with their free-flowing attacking football.
| Aston Villa | Norwich City |
| 38 games | 38 games |
| 53 conceded | 66 conceded |
| 37 scored | 52 scored |
| 1.39 goals conceded per game | 1.79 goals conceded per game |
| 75.5% tackle success | 71.4% tackle success |
| 25% cross accuracy | 27% cross accuracy |
| 42% shot accuracy | 42% shot accuracy |
| 11% chance conversion | 13% chance conversion |
| 16th Premier League | 12th Premier League |
Many Villa fans believe that Norwich City were a better performing side compared to Villa last season the table above shows that the two sides were similar. Aston Villa conceded fewer goals and scored fewer this is the bottom line.
The Alex McLeish factor is believed to have cost Aston Villa an average of 1,400 lost fans per game with attendances dropping and has fallen from when Martin O’Neill walked out on Villa. Below shows the recent trend of Villa Park attendances.
2006/2007: 36,214
2007/2008: 40,029
2008/2009: 39,812
2009/2010: 38,573
2010/2011: 37,194
2011/2012: 33,873
Aston Villa fans will see the appointment as a new beginning and a long prosperous journey with Villa cutting back on costs. Randy Lerner is thought to give between £20-£25million to new manager Paul Lambert to reaffirm Aston Villa back in the top-10.
