'A season of missed opportunities'
We asked for your views on our fan contributor David Michael's end of season scorecard (27 May, 15:58 BST).Here are some of your comments:Tony: Absolutely agree with this assessment. We've played some brilliant football - home to Newcastle, for example - some of the best play I've seen in over 57 years at Villa Park. Yet we then don't turn up in crunch games, and I don't get it. Next season will be trepidation about possibly falling back from what we achieved over the past three seasons. Nervous!Robert: I give this season a 7/10. While we can take Villa seriously as regular European contenders now, there's more work to do before we're regulars in the Champions League. Our season will be defined by the number of times we've had to get a result from a losing position, but it could've been different if we'd avoided individual defensive mistakes that led to goals conceded or, in the case of the last day, getting our goalkeeper sent off. Champions League regulars are strict on players who make mistakes at that level, and if Villa aspire to become one of them in years to come, that's the mentality we need to adopt.Tim: My old chap watched Villa with my grandad through the 50s and 60s. He always said, even then, that Villa didn't score enough goals. It's the same this season, our goals-for column is too low. That said, we shipped a lot too. Liam Delap would be a good start at correcting that imbalance.Prit: Season rating - 7/10. Could have easily been 9/10 but two pivotal games, against Crystal Palace and Manchester United, when the team froze and cost us dearly has lost a lot of goodwill. Our unsung hero has to be Boubacar Kamara. Midfield dynamo who can play across midfield, got us out of a lot of trouble by playing in the back four when we were desperate and is now scoring goals. Kamara is very much the glue that has held Villa together this season.Russell: The season has been one of missed opportunities. Seeing Newcastle and Palace win trophies, something we haven't managed since 1996, makes me very envious. Missing out on the Champions League in the way we did also sticks in the craw. Overall 7/10.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times
2 hours ago
- Times
Mum's in a care home. Dad has a new girlfriend
I watched my mum's face beam as she read her retirement cards, each one urging her to embrace freedom, explore hobbies and savour the best years of her life. Just eight months on, she was sat staring at the television, silent. When I asked what she was watching, she hesitated — then smiled as if to cover the fact that she didn't know the answer. Something was wrong. Mum was diagnosed with early onset dementia at 64. The celebration of her retirement had barely faded before she began withdrawing. Less eye contact. Short answers. Smiling and scoffing before walking away. Within a few months, my dad, my brother and I knew what life had in store for Mum, and it was far from anything in those retirement cards. At the same time, my wife was expecting our first child —Mum's first grandchild. We had decided to name her after Mum. The announcement was met with silence. No flicker of emotion from a woman who had always been so sentimental, so affectionate — never short of happy tears, even at corny adverts on TV. Dementia tightened its grip. Within three months, Mum became adamant nothing was wrong. She refused to see professionals, shutting us out with stubborn silence. Dad took over all housekeeping duties while Mum sat quietly, emotionless, staring into space. When she became doubly incontinent and suffered recurring infections, we accepted we needed help. After she was found in her nightgown down the road, Dad called a family meeting. We made the painful decision to move Mum into a local residential home. Then Covid hit, and for the next 12 months we waved at our despondent, rapidly declining mum — now a grandmother — through a window. I knew the adjustment would be hard. For me it meant losing the family unit I had always known. For Dad it meant the end of a 40-year marriage as he'd known it. But what none of us could have prepared for was how quickly life would shift once Mum was in the home. And how, in the midst of our grief, Dad would find love again. Out of the blue, Dad announced he was going on holiday. 'That's brilliant,' my wife said, nodding at me to agree. I did, half-listening as they chatted about the details. That night, she turned to me. 'Did you hear him say 'we'?' I hadn't. But now I couldn't stop hearing it. We speculated. Had he met someone? Could it be a catfish after his retirement fund? • Women who go through early menopause 'have higher risk of dementia' It wasn't a fraudster. It was Carol — Mum's best friend. The woman who had lived over the road for as long as I could remember. Mum and Carol had met when my parents moved to the street aged 29. Unlike Mum, who was quite shy, Carol was the wild one, the party girl. She told stories of nudist beaches and reckless adventures that made Mum giggle. Their friendship was built on shared experiences, always being there for one another, and a general mutual love of all things 'good housekeeping'— they were the typical Tupperware partygoers. Carol and her husband had been there for all of Mum's milestones. But shortly after Mum's 60th birthday, Carol's husband died suddenly. Carol and her two grown-up daughters were devastated. From this point on, Carol often came over, escaping the silence in her now-empty house. And when Mum started forgetting things, mixing up days and names, it was Carol who first suggested something might be wrong. She knew Mum so well — probably better than Dad did. After Mum moved into the care home, I would visit Dad and Carol would be there, drinking tea, just as she always had. It felt normal. She was family. I never imagined there was anything more to it. The holiday made it official. When Dad returned, tanned and relaxed, he told us he'd been away with Carol. He explained they had found comfort in each other's company and that they felt it was right to tell us. I was in shock. My wife did all the talking. All I could hear was Mum, in my head, scoffing: 'Carol? Dad and Carol? No.' The next time Dad came over, Carol was with him. She had always been around, yet suddenly everything was different. They sat closer to each other than before. Dad looked at her the way he used to look at Mum. And when Carol played with our daughter — her natural ease from raising two of her own — it hit me. Dad was happy. Wasn't that the point? Whether it was because he wanted an extension of Mum to live on in Mum's place, or just have a great companion, I'll never know. Dad was happy and that was all that mattered. • Drink coffee, tell jokes, read, nap — how to cut your risk of dementia Five years later, Mum is still here, though bedbound, unable to move or recognise any of us. Twice a week she gets visits from not one but two of her best friends: Dad and Carol. They care for her as a husband and a best friend would. They talk about Mum all the time, reminiscing about their memories together. Dad's attention sometimes drifts in the absence of Carol, and I know he's thinking about Mum. I have two daughters now, and one is an absolute double of my mum — Dad comments on it all the time. Carol smiles when he does. They both love and miss Mum just as much as I do. I'm not denying the fact that there have been uncomfortable moments. When Dad and Carol cleared out Mum's wardrobe, he brought a bag of her hats, scarves and handbags for my wife. I bristled. It felt too soon — she was still alive. But the truth is, she's never going to wear them again. She's not coming back. Without Carol, Dad would have been lonely, eating microwave meals for one, sitting by Mum's bedside having a one-way conversation. That's no life. If Dad had met a stranger, it would have been harder to accept. But Carol? Someone who had loved Mum too? It made sense. At first, friends and family were intrigued, full of questions. Some expected us to be upset, to reject Carol. We never felt that way. And as time passed, we realised this situation wasn't so unusual. It's common, in fact. One of my colleagues had family friends in an identical situation, and I've heard of many more too. People gravitate towards those they trust, those who understand their grief, those who are just as lonely but share the same experiences and values. And why shouldn't they? • Don't let age or dementia steal the right to a sex life Life doesn't follow the rules we expect. Grief and happiness can exist side by side, intertwined like the past and present. And if I've learnt anything, it's this — sometimes, the best way to honour someone you love is to keep living.
Sky News
2 hours ago
- Sky News
Spending Review 2025: Faster drug treatments and longer-lasting batteries to come from £86bn science and tech package
Research into faster drug treatments and longer-lasting batteries will form part of the £86bn science and technology funding due to be unveiled in the government's spending review next week. On Wednesday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves will unveil how much taxpayer money each government department will get. Each region in England will be handed up to £500m to spend on science and technology projects of their choice, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) says. In Liverpool, the funding is being earmarked to speed up the development of new drug treatments, while in South Wales, it will fund longer-lasting microchips for smartphones and electric cars. Overall by 2030, Ms Reeves's spending package will be worth more than £22.5bn a year, the government says. "Britain is the home of science and technology," she said on Sunday. "Through the 'plan for change', we are investing in Britain's renewal to create jobs, protect our security against foreign threats and make working families better off." Science and technology secretary Peter Kyle added: "Incredible and ambitious research goes on in every corner of our country, from Liverpool to Inverness, Swansea to Belfast, which is why empowering regions to harness local expertise and skills for all of our benefit is at the heart of this new funding - helping to deliver the economic growth at the centre of our plan for change." 3:54 Flat real-terms budget 'won't be enough' Regional leaders such as North East Mayor Kim McGuiness and West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker welcomed the funding promise. But the announcement was met with caution by industry leaders. John-Arne Rottingden, chief executive of Wellcome, the UK's biggest non-governmental research funder, said: "While it's positive under the financial circumstances, a flat real-terms science budget, along with continuing barriers such as high visa costs for talented scientists and the university funding crisis, won't be enough for the UK to make the advances it needs to secure its reputation for science in an increasingly competitive world." He claimed the UK should be "aiming to lead the G7 in research intensity" to "bring about economic growth" and "advances in health, science, and technology that benefit us all". Director of policy and public affairs at the Institute of Physics Tony McBride expressed similar concerns. "To fully harness the transformational potential of research and innovation - wherever it takes place - we need a decade-long strategic plan for science," he said. Mr McBride said a "plan for a skilled workforce... starting with teachers and addressing every educational stage" is key - something he hopes will feature in Ms Reeve's spending review. Among the other announcements expected are a potential scrapping of the two-child benefit cap and a green light to a new nuclear power station in Suffolk - Sizewell C.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
White House warns Downing Street against letting China build 'super embassy' near sensitive financial sites
The Oval Office has urged Downing Street against giving a Chinese embassy the green light to be built near London financial centres. Previously, proposals for the 'super-embassy' were rejected by the Conservative government amid concerns from British intelligence. However, the plans have been reintroduced following lobbying from China 's very own President Xi Jinping. But fresh warning have since emerged, as due to the Royal Mint Court's locality to a sensitive hub of essential communication cables, it poses a great risk for an attack. The suggested site is also situated between several major financial hubs in Canary Wharf and the City as well as three crucial data centres. It is understood US President Donald Trump has warned Sir Keir Starmer against giving the embassy the go-ahead. The matter is believed to have been discussed during trade talks, as Britain and its Atlantic allies discuss how they will implement a trade deal to avoid UK steel producers being lumbered with 50 percent import tariffs by July 9. According to the Times, US diplomats would be trepidatious about sharing intelligence with Britain if the embassy went ahead. A senior US official told the publication: 'The United States is deeply concerned about providing China with potential access to the sensitive communications of one of our closest allies.' It comes after a claims 'dark cabling' running beneath the proposed site 'feeds the City of London' were given in a memo to the United States' National Security Council by members of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (Ipac). John Moolenaar, the Republican head of the House of Representatives' China committee said if these reports were 'accurate' that the site would 'pose an unacceptable risk' to both the UK and US. 'The Chinese Communist Party has a clear track record of targeting critical infrastructure.' he said. 'This development would raise serious concerns in the United States and could be viewed as an act of strategic overreach by Beijing and a curious error in judgment by London.' The executive director of IPAC, Luke de Pulford dubbed the matter as a 'flashpoint' in US-UK trade talks, adding that it was 'staggering' the White House had to corroborate the cabling risk to 'defend its own financial system. 'It's time to send Xi Jinping a clear message: no matter the pressure or coercion, the UK and US won't trade away national security, and this embassy isn't happening,' he said. China has been attempting to revise plans for the Royal Mint building, which neighbour the Tower of London, since they were purchased in 2018. It is believed the Chines foreign minister, Wang Yi, brought up the matter with foreign secretary, David Lammy, while visiting London last year. According to The Times, President Xi had also discussed the same issue with the Prime Minister in a phone conversation. The proposal for the embassy, which would be China's largest in Europe, was previously rejected by Tower Hamlets council in 2022. But two weeks after Labour Chancellor Rachel Reeves came back from a visit to China earlier this year, both the council's and Scotland Yard's objections were dropped. Priti Patel, the shadow foreign secretary, described China as a 'dangerous threat to the national and economic security of our country'. She said the Conservative party continued to stand 'firmly' against the embassy proposals, stating her party would never put the UK's 'financial centre or country at risk.' Next Monday, three of Trump's aides are scheduled to meet with their Chinese peers in London for discussions in a bid to solve the current trade war between the two economic powerhouses. The Treasury secretary Scott Bessent, the commerce secretary Howard Lutnick and the trade representative Jamieson Greer will act as representatives for the US, Trump has declared on Truth Social. Yesterday, China 's foreign ministry confirmed vice-premier He Lifeng will be on British shores from June 8 until June 13, adding that talks would with the US would take place. Previously, a Chinese embassy spokesperson has quashed spy allegations, stating: 'Anti-China elements are always keen on slandering and attacking China.' A government spokesman said: 'Applications for a new Chinese embassy in Tower Hamlets have been called in for ministers to decide. A final decision will be made in due course.'
