Randy, we love you, Randy, we do

By: Martini Extra Dry | August 9th, 2008

I awoke this morning (at 5.27am because of a screaming hungry baby I might add) with a text on my phone from a friend, that read simply: “Mart, how much do you love Randy Learner?”… And the answer is; “A lot, Simon. PS ‘Lern’ how to spell his name!”.

So what is it that makes us Villans so enamoured with our new owner?

In recent years, a few American business tycoons have entered the world of Premier League team ownership. Judging their success is a debatable issue; Malcolm Glazer’ Man Utd team won the Premiership and Champions League double last season but still the fans hate him and want him out. Whether he has been a financial success is also hotly contested, with many fans angry that he has plunged the club into huge debt.

Just down the road from Manchester, you have Liverpool who are now owned by American business partnership; Gillett and Hicks. These two have suffered similar fan slurs against them AND haven’t had the success on the pitch to offset it against. They have this week made their own lives that bit more difficult by allegedly pulling out of the Gareth Barry deal.

But keep coming down the country and you hit Birmingham and find an American owner who is adored by his team’s fans and is having huge success on the pitch. Since buying Villa, Randy Lerner has taken us from being a team who struggled with relegation to sixth in the Prem and competing in the UEFA Cup.

Randy Lerner has given his cheque book and, more importantly, his support to Martin O’Neill and together the two of them are building a team for the future that will continue to grow. Lerner has also endeared himself to the fans by seeming like such a nice, genuine bloke and by actually caring how the team does on matchday. Lerner can be seen at most matches watching his team with immense pride; cheering when we’re winning and looking glum when we’re losing. He doesn’t storm off in a strop before the full time whistle when we are not performing well and he hasn’t plunged us into huge debt, like some other foreign owners have become unpopular for.

Here’s to another successful season under the guidance of our great owner, Randy Lerner. If I see you in the pub Randy, I’ll buy you a pint… hey, hang on. You’re loaded, I’m not. Scratch that; Randy, it’s your round! But I’m very happy to sit and talk footie with you.