Scott Carson is available, unless Benítez has changed his mind
Written by Damian   
Wednesday, 06 February 2008

I just read something over on the new and looking quite nice Birmingham Mail website where they've got Martin O'Neill sounding a little unsure about the availability of Scott Carson.

Well, back in November Liverpool were willing to let him go, leaving the decision very firmly in the hands of Aston Villa. Maybe more communication is needed between the two clubs?

In the paper today Martin O'Neill says "I'm trying to look a bit further forward but I don't know the situation with Liverpool", while back in November Liverpool manager, Rafael Benítez said "At the moment we are concentrating on our own team and our own competitions, but Villa can decide if they want to keep the player. We have Pepe, Charles Itandje and David Martin as goalkeepers so we can manage the situation OK."

I'm not sure if anything has changed at Liverpool since November, but what Benítez said in November sounded very much like an invitation to buy the keeper in January, if we wanted him.

But it's now February so we'll have to wait and see in the summer if Martin O'Neill is serious about Carson or more interested in the yank.

Drop your views about Carson below and click here and vote for us, you know it makes sense.

Comments (39)add comment

theprimeminister said:

A loan deal can be made permanant at any point so why doesn't O'Neill get it done, or why hasn't it been done.
It's sounds more like he's not sure he wants to pay 10m for him.
February 06, 2008

VijayD said:

I think at 10million Carson is very expensive, i dont think many teams would pay that for him, more like 6 million, if not we'll have to look around the continent, there are many good keepers around, especially with Euro 2008 MON should look around.
February 06, 2008

GonzoAvfc said:

carson is a quality goalkeeper but 10 mil is alot to ask but he has a hell of alot of potential, i think he will be england number 1. if gordan is worth what sunderland paid then carson is worth that
February 06, 2008 | url

mickey86 said:

rafa has probly realised that itandje is crap and martin is young, unproven and english, we should be able to buy him if the fee was agreed, its usually part of the loan contract. but as its villa, we'll probably bend over n take it up the arse (allow liverpool to not go through with what they agreed) because it seems like we are walkovers when it comes to spending recieving money.
February 06, 2008

PaulE said:

For me, Carson hasn't performed well enough this season to be worth anywhere near £10 million. If we do buy him, it will be totally on the blind faith that he will improve with age, which might not happen. He's quite average in my opinion.

I'd be more inclined to go for this American guy and give Stuart Taylor a chance as our number 1.
February 06, 2008

mossiewalsh said:

10m is too much, the jurys still. out, i voted anyway and looks like avfc blog is way out in front.go on the boys
February 06, 2008

robvilla said:

i dont think hes worth 10 million, and im still to be convinced that he is world class. Hes not commanding enough..
February 06, 2008

andy5759 said:

Taylor as No.1 choice, with Tommy/Brad as back-up? Or Carson for £10mn? What would you do? Am I asking too many questions?
February 06, 2008

gabby26 said:

a mon avis scott carson c'est trés mauvais est c'est trés chére pour dix million. je crois que MON pouvais trouver un autre GK qui est plus reliabléat plus conistanté. merci poota
February 06, 2008

jinksy said:

Not in a million years is Carson worth 10million. Any half decent goalie would have caught that awfull Bullard free kick. I can't remember him pulling off 1 great save this season & when the shots rain in the ball never sticks.
February 06, 2008

kayarcee said:

Watch tonight's US/Mexico match. You'll see Guzan, and you'll see why he'll be the #1 choice when MON brings him in.
February 06, 2008

Badger said:

@Gabby26

Tres mauvaise?, No IMO, he's not that bad. Remember he's only 23YO.
£10mill is too much though, I agree smilies/smiley.gif
February 06, 2008

theprimeminister said:

a mon avis scott carson c'est trés mauvais est c'est trés chére pour dix million. je crois que MON pouvais trouver un autre GK qui est plus reliabléat plus conistanté. merci poota

my opinion scott carson it has is very bad is it is very expensive for ten million. I believe that MON could find another GK which is more reliable more consistant. thank you poota
February 06, 2008

jamtomorrow said:

I think Craig Gordon was worth his fee... he's done more than most to keep Sunderland in contention for staying up. Carson is not quite in that league IMHO.
February 06, 2008

word said:

if ten million is the cost of an england goalkeeper then pay it,, but we need the right one. in my opinion we should try and sign paul robinson and make good on our failed attempt several years ago.... if only we'd kept david james.....
February 06, 2008

andy5759 said:

That's easy for you to say gabby26.
February 06, 2008

legend said:

ironic that most posters here think Carson is not worth 10m yet on "The Doc's Diagnosis" thread most are banging on about how O'Neill should pay over the odds for just about anybody half decent or in the "superstar" bracket
February 06, 2008

mylesmorris1 said:

You way out front lads i just voted 52% of the vote the nearest is 16% going well for you all
UTV!!!
February 06, 2008

parker said:

salifou has signed new deal

http://www.skysports.com/story...80,00.html
February 06, 2008

nan was a fan said:

10 million money bad crossing he is MON stick it up No1 American get the ball catch arse. Finishing where next window time to 5 year plan it has is he and was. UTV
February 06, 2008

nan was a fan said:

Sorry I think my anti-virus is playing up again.
February 06, 2008

Tommy Ross said:

The problem I have with Stuart Taylor is that statiscally speaking we always seem to concede when he plays despite seeming him pull off good saves. This has been the case last season and also before that I feel. Maybe Carson can communicate with the defenders better becasue we seem to have less to do when he plays.
February 06, 2008

kohoutek said:

legend: Well said.
February 06, 2008

soulmerchant said:

no way is Scott Carson worth £10.000000,Liverpool have a contracted player that hasn't played for them for something like three seasons and they value him at ten mill,so how much do they rate their current goalkeepers 30-40 mil get real,the reds are trying to pull a fast one,five or six mil maybe but not ten.
February 06, 2008

dai t said:

only prob with carson too was when was the last time he kept a clean sheet

he seems to make a few too many blunders if we bought him i dont think he will blossum till another 3 or 4 years maybe more

That guzan is around his age but looks alot more confident at crosses

i think the last time we had a confident keeper was bosnich
February 06, 2008

theprimeminister said:

I think Carson would be more confident in the MLS
February 06, 2008

Jimmy Villain said:

"10 million money bad crossing he is MON stick it up No1 American get the ball catch arse. Finishing where next window time to 5 year plan it has is he and was. UTV"

nan was a fan are you related to Yoda?

10 mil my arse, Taylor is a better keeper Bullard free kick as mentioned above was in the middle of the goal, let Liverpool have him back.
February 07, 2008

Villa_Rules said:

Craig gordon better than carson what in the blue hell are u on about?

Gordon has been absolutly rubbish this season

Carson has done enough to earn a full time contract at villa but we all no what villa are like when it comes to buying players

allways whinge about paying over the odds get used to it thats how football runs these days even the likes of bourmouth no that
February 07, 2008

Zidave said:

Keep in mind we already paid 2m just to have Carson on loan for the season... we could have bought Guzan for that much O_O
February 07, 2008

eoin1981 said:

Not too convinced about Carson. He seems ok and doesn't make that many big errors, well for Villa anyway. Then again - he doesn't come for crosses and doesn't seem to talk that much to the defence. He also seems to be beaten to shots form distance that you would have to question if a 10M goalie should be stopping. Why not him both him and the yank and let them fight it out. The fact that one costs 2m and the other 10m is probably solely because Carson is english.

Best Villa argument for a while - http://www.vbbfootball.com/?p=41

I now promise to stop whinging about transfers, but all bets are off at the end of the next transfer window - and Carson and Davies count as last summers signings if they happen!!!
February 07, 2008

Peter said:

I think the delay in signing may be due to the uncertainty with respect to the future of Benitez. If they sack him, the new manager may prefer Carson to Reina (who being Spanish is closely linked to Benitez)
February 07, 2008

paddyfish said:

ze boy Carson , he is (and i shall zay these only once) utterly and completely useless at stopping any ball moving faster than about 15mph....if it doesn't hit him it goes in the net !!!

my hovercraft is full of eels.
February 07, 2008

VILLA82 said:

Taylor would probably have done better this season had he played the same games, i think if Sunderland go down we should buy Gordon at a cut price. He looks decent but he's gonna let goals in when he's got to save 20 shots a game, Carson makes ro many mistakes for me, Bullards free-kick was a joke and that wasn't the first incident of it's kind.
February 07, 2008

somersetvilla said:

last time we had a keeper that you never worried about was jimmy rimmer...awsome keeper,,and anyone who was at anfield the season we won the league,would have seen the best by a villa keeper ever..some scousers in the seats said theyd never seen a better keeper up there,,and they had clemence....on carson hes suspect but can only get better..pay the 10 mil,if thats what it takes
February 08, 2008

AV4EVER said:

Carson worth 10 mill! your having a laugh, i would rather Villa had paid 9 mill for Craig Gordon, he has won man of the match for Suderland on a number of occasions, i don't think Carson has won it once for Villa. If it wasn't for the majestic Laursen he would have probably conceded a lot more goals.

The man doesn't seem that interested in playing for Villa.

As for being England Goalkeeper, it's only because were thin on the ground for good quality English keepers that he is even in the England squad in my opinion.
February 08, 2008

vivavilla said:

To all of you who believe £10 is too much for a goalkeeper, you're all missing one crucial fact. Scott Carson is 22 years old.

Let's compare this potential deal to the two current most expensive 'keeper deals in Premier League history. Fabian Barthez joined Man United in 2000 for a then record £7.8m. Many people thought he was the best in the world and that United were getting a good deal. At the time he was 29 years old. He lasted less then 4 years as United's top keeper, before they paid him to terminate his deal.

Craig Gordon joined Sunderland at the start of the season for a deal that will eventually reach £9m. Gordon is 25 and has so far, been average at best. Sunderland took a big risk because they had no idea how Gordon would perform in the Premiership. If I were a Sunderland fan, so far I'd be very angry that my club forked out a record fee for a player like that (though I admit he has plenty of time to turn it around).

Carson is 22, and by the end of the season will have 2 full seasons of Premiership experience under his belt. We know he's good enough, most of us reckon he has the potential to become one of the best in the league and certainly England's number one keeper. If all went according to plan, he would be our goalkeeper probably until he reached his mid 30's. Who else in the world could we buy who has all of these positive factors? £10m for a proven quality Premiership goalkeeper who could give us 10 years of service and become England's first choice? Sounds like a bargain if you ask me.
February 08, 2008

rake said:

please mon send carson back to liverpool he's as dodgy as david james.why these two are in the england squad is a mystery to me.get kirkland in during the summer.in the meantime taylor should be given his chance
February 09, 2008 | url

rake said:

have to agree with somersetvilla rimmer best in the world in early 1980's
February 09, 2008 | url

dave w said:

Bring back Bozzie. We could get him for free. On his recent interviews he's fit and raring to go !
February 10, 2008

Write comment
quote
bold
italicize
underline
strike
url
image
quote
quote
smile
wink
laugh
grin
angry
sad
shocked
cool
tongue
kiss
cry
smaller | bigger

busy
 

Battle Royale: Villa score two to take a point from Everton

football bets AVFC Blog

Subscribe to our News Feed

RSS at the AVFC Blog

If you like the site and want to be one of the first to know when something is published, click here.

Share our News