2007–08 Aston Villa F.C. season
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2007–08 season | ||||
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Chairman | Randy Lerner | |||
Manager | Martin O'Neill | |||
Premier League | 6th | |||
FA Cup | Third round | |||
League Cup | Third round | |||
Top goalscorer | League: John Carew (13) All: John Carew (13) | |||
Highest home attendance | 42,640 (vs. Manchester United, Liverpool, Newcastle United and Sunderland) | |||
Lowest home attendance | 25,956 (vs. Leicester City) | |||
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The 2007–08 season was Aston Villa's 20th consecutive season in the top flight of English football and 16th consecutive season in the Premier League. The season saw Martin O'Neill continue as manager as the club impressed in league competition, but struggled in both domestic cup competitions – being knocked out in the third round of both.
Final league table[]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | Liverpool | 38 | 21 | 13 | 4 | 67 | 28 | +39 | 76 | Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round |
5 | Everton | 38 | 19 | 8 | 11 | 55 | 33 | +22 | 65 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
6 | Aston Villa | 38 | 16 | 12 | 10 | 71 | 51 | +20 | 60 | Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round |
7 | Blackburn Rovers | 38 | 15 | 13 | 10 | 50 | 48 | +2 | 58 | |
8 | Portsmouth | 38 | 16 | 9 | 13 | 48 | 40 | +8 | 57 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[a] |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
For further information on European qualification see Premier League – Competition
Notes:
Players[]
First team squad[]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Left club during season[]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Reserve squad[]
- The following players made most of their appearances playing for the reserves, but may have also appeared for the youth team.[1]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Youth squad[]
- The following players made most of their appearances playing for the youth team, but may have also appeared for the reserves.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Other players[]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Kit[]
The 2007–08 season saw the unveiling of Nike as the club's kit producer, taking over from Danish firm Hummel. The deal – worth £25 million over 5 seasons – was announced on 7 February 2007, with all home, away and goalkeeper kits being unveiled on 17 July 2007. The home shirt was made available to purchase on 8 August 2007, and the away on 4 October 2007. A charcoal and white third shirt was unveiled and released in November 2007. The home shirt followed the club's usual template of a claret body and blue arms, with a white "AVFC" banner and printed lion featured on the hem and back of the collar respectively. The away shirt featured a white body, with blue pinstripes – in a similar style to that of the 1982 European Cup winners’ jersey (which featured claret stripes in place of the modern blue alternative). The third shirt was charcoal with white piping. The home goalkeeper shirt featured horizontal stripes, with different alternating shades of grey. The away replicated this style, with different shades of yellow.
Gibraltar-based betting firm 32Red continued their sponsorship of the club, however with the contract in its last year, Villa are expected to announce another deal for the forthcoming 2008–09 season.
Crest[]
A new crest was revealed on 2 May 2007 to be introduced for the 2007–08 season. The new crest included a star to represent the European Cup win in 1982, and has a light blue background behind Villa's "lion rampant." The traditional motto "Prepared" remained in the crest, and the name "Aston Villa" was shortened to AVFC, FC having been omitted from the previous crest. Randy Lerner petitioned fans to help with the design of the new crest.
Transfers[]
Summer transfer window[]
Following the transfer of prolific striker Juan Pablo Ángel to New York Red Bulls in April, several Villa first-teamers followed the Colombian out of the door in the summer of 2007. Gavin McCann joined Bolton Wanderers in £1 million deal on 12 June, then a fortnight later, versatile defender Aaron Hughes left for Fulham, also in a £1 million deal. McCann was joined by Jlloyd Samuel – who had spent much of the previous season on the bench for the Midlanders – at Bolton, signing on a free transfer when his contract expired on 1 July. However, the two most surprising deals occurred with two academy players, in Steven Davis and Liam Ridgewell. Davis – who had won Player of the Year for the club in the 2005–06 season – signed for Fulham on 5 July for an undisclosed fee. Liam Ridgewell made the trip across the city to Birmingham City on 3 August, in a £2 million move. Other moves saw midfielder Lee Hendrie end his 14-year association with the club in a free transfer to Sheffield United, Phil Bardsley returned to Manchester United after a 13-game loan stint at the club, whilst Stephen Henderson, Bobby Olejnik, Mark Delaney, Scott Bridges and Eric Djemba-Djemba all left Villa Park.
Villa clinched their first transfer on 5 July with the £8.5 million signing of midfield battler Nigel Reo-Coker from West Ham United. 11 days later, Marlon Harewood also moved from Upton Park, for an undisclosed fee. Scott Carson was the next to arrive on 10 August, in a loan switch from Liverpool (although some media sources claim a fee of £2 million up front was agreed), before defenders Zat Knight and Curtis Davies both signed on 29 and 31 August respectively. Knight signed for his hometown club for a fee of £3.5 million from Fulham, whilst Davies signed on a season-long loan from local rivals West Bromwich Albion. Other deals saw Austrian youngsters Andreas Weimann and Dominik Hofbauer sign, as well as Eric Lichaj, Harry Forrester and Togolese international Moustapha Salifou.
Winter transfer window[]
After failing to find a suitor in the summer, Gary Cahill was allowed to leave on a loan deal to Sheffield United in September; however, he joined Bolton on a permanent deal on 30 January for an undisclosed fee. Youngsters Chris Herd, Tobias Mikaelsson, Stephen O'Halloran and Zoltán Stieber were all farmed out on loan. The biggest news, however, was that Swedish international defender Olof Mellberg, was to join Italian giants Juventus on a free transfer at the end of the season.
Unlike the summer transfer window, Aston Villa were extremely quiet in the winter equivalent, purchasing just one senior player in Wayne Routledge (£1.25 million) from Tottenham Hotspur. He was also followed by youngsters Thomas Dau and Lance Heslop.
Summary[]
In[]
Date | Player | Previous Club | Fee | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
June 2007 | Andreas Weimann | Rapid Wien | Undisclosed | |
July 2007 | Harry Forrester | Watford | Undisclosed | |
July 2007 | Eric Lichaj | University of North Carolina | Undisclosed | |
5 July 2007 | Nigel Reo-Coker | West Ham United | £8,500,000 | |
17 July 2007 | Marlon Harewood | West Ham United | Undisclosed | |
29 August 2007 | Zat Knight | Fulham | £3,500,000 | |
31 August 2007 | Moustapha Salifou | FC Wil 1900 | Undisclosed | |
4 December 2007 | Thomas Dau | SV Schwechat Juniors | Undisclosed | |
December 2007 | Lance Heslop | Auckland City | Undisclosed | |
30 January 2008 | Wayne Routledge | Tottenham Hotspur | £1,250,000 |
Out[]
Date | Player | Transfer to | Fee | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
12 June 2007 | Gavin McCann | Bolton Wanderers | £1,000,000 | |
27 June 2007 | Aaron Hughes | Fulham | £1,000,000 | |
1 July 2007 | Stephen Henderson | Bristol City | Free | |
1 July 2007 | Bobby Olejnik | Falkirk | Free | |
1 July 2007 | Jlloyd Samuel | Bolton Wanderers | Free | |
5 July 2007 | Steven Davis | Fulham | Undisclosed | |
19 July 2007 | Lee Hendrie | Sheffield United | Free | |
3 August 2007 | Liam Ridgewell | Birmingham City | £2,000,000 | |
30 January 2008 | Gary Cahill | Bolton Wanderers | Undisclosed |
Pre-season results[]
Date | Opponent | Venue | Result F – A |
Competition | Scorers |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
25 July 2007 | Toronto FC | A | 4–2 | Friendly match | Moore (3), Carew |
28 July 2007 | Columbus Crew | A | 3–1 | Friendly match | Young, Barry, Moore |
01/08/2007 | Stoke City | A | 2–0 | Friendly match | Berger, Agbonlahor |
04/08/2007 | Internazionale | H | 3–0 | Friendly match | Barry (2), Lausren |
07/08/2007 | Walsall | A | 1–1 | Friendly match | Boertien (og) |
Players of the year[]
At the end of season awards dinner, Martin Laursen was announced as the Supporters' Player of the Year, whilst Gabriel Agbonlahor was the Supporter's and Player's Young Player of the Year.[2]
Results[]
Premier League[]
Results by matchday[]
11 August 2007 1 | Aston Villa | 1–2 | Liverpool | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Mellberg 26' Bouma 58' Barry 67', 85' (pen.) Petrov 89' |
Report | Laursen 31' (o.g.) Pennant 55' Reina 84' Gerrard 87' |
Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 42,640 |
18 August 2007 2 | Newcastle United | 0–0 | Aston Villa | Newcastle upon Tyne |
15:00 BST | Report | Gardner 68' Reo-Coker 87' |
Stadium: St. James' Park Attendance: 51,049 Referee: Howard Webb |
25 August 2007 3 | Aston Villa | 2–1 | Fulham | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Young 51' Maloney 90' |
Report | Baird 6' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 36,638 |
2 September 2007 4 | Aston Villa | 2–0 | Chelsea | Birmingham, West Midlands |
16:00 BST | Knight 47' Reo-Coker 56' Barry 66' Carew 71' Agbonlahor 88' |
Report | Drogba 70' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 37,714 Referee: Mark Clattenburg |
16 September 2007 5 | Manchester City | 1–0 | Aston Villa | Manchester |
16:00 BST | M. Johnson 47' Sun 68' Moore 78' |
Report | Stadium: City of Manchester Stadium Attendance: 38,363 Referee: Martin Atkinson |
23 September 2007 6 | Aston Villa | 2–0 | Everton | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Carew 14' Agbonlahor 50' |
Report | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 38,747 |
1 October 2007 7 | Tottenham Hotspur | 4–4 | Aston Villa | Haringey, London |
Berbatov 20' Chimbonda 69' Keane 82' (pen.) Kaboul 90' |
Report | Laursen 22', 33' Agbonlahor 40' Gardner 49' |
Stadium: White Hart Lane Attendance: 36,094 Referee: Mike Dean |
6 October 2007 8 | Aston Villa | 1–0 | West Ham United | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Gardner 24' | Report | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 40,842 |
20 October 2007 9 | Aston Villa | 1–4 | Manchester United | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Agbonlahor 12' Reo-Coker 60' Carson 66' |
Report | Rooney 36', 44' Ferdinand 45' Giggs 75' |
Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 42,640 Referee: Rob Styles |
28 October 2007 10 | Bolton Wanderers | 1–1 | Aston Villa | Greater Manchester |
Anelka 22' | Report | Moore 57' | Stadium: Reebok Stadium Attendance: 18,413 |
3 November 2007 11 | Aston Villa | 2–0 | Derby County | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Laursen 57' Young 61' |
Report | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 40,938 |
11 November 2007 12 | Birmingham | 1–2 | Aston Villa | Birmingham |
Forssell 62' | Report | Ridgewell 11' (o.g.) Agbonlahor 87' |
Stadium: St Andrew's Attendance: 26,539 |
24 November 2007 13 | Middlesbrough | 0–3 | Aston Villa | Teesside |
Report | Carew 45' Mellberg 48' Agbonlahor 58' |
Stadium: Riverside Stadium Attendance: 23,900 |
28 November 2007 14 | Blackburn Rovers | 0–4 | Aston Villa | Blackburn, Lancashire |
Report | Carew 29' Agbonlahor 53' (pen.) Young 81' Harewood 89' |
Stadium: Ewood Park Attendance: 20,776 Referee: Phil Dowd |
1 December 2007 15 | Aston Villa | 1–2 | Arsenal | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Gardner 14' | Report | Flamini 23' Adebayor 35' |
Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 42,018 |
8 December 2007 16 | Aston Villa | 1–3 | Portsmouth | Birmingham, West Midlands |
12:45 | Carew 4' Berger 67' Barry 72' (pen.) |
Report | Gardner 10' (o.g.) Muntari 40', 61' Mendes 43' Johnson 68' James 74' Pamarot 75' Kranjčar 80' |
Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 35,790 |
15 December 2007 17 | Sunderland | 1–1 | Aston Villa | County Durham |
Higginbotham 10' | Report | Maloney 73' | Stadium: Stadium Of Light Attendance: 43,248 |
22 December 2007 18 | Aston Villa | 1–1 | Manchester City | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Carew 14' | Report | Bianchi 11' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 41,455 |
26 December 2007 19 | Chelsea | 4–4 | Aston Villa | Fulham, London |
Shevchenko 45+4' (pen.), 50' Alex 66' Carvalho 80' Ballack 88' A. Cole 90' |
Report | Maloney 14', 44' Knight 45' Laursen 72' Barry 90+2' (pen.) |
Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 41,686 Referee: Phil Dowd |
29 December 2007 20 | Wigan | 1–2 | Aston Villa | Wigan |
Bramble 28' | Report | Davies 55' Agbonlahor 70' |
Stadium: JJB Stadium Attendance: 18,806 |
1 January 2008 21 | Aston Villa | 2–1 | Tottenham | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Mellberg 41' Laursen 81' |
Report | Defoe 79' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 41,609 |
12 January 2008 22 | Aston Villa | 3–1 | Reading | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Carew 22', 88' Laursen 55' |
Report | Harper 90' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 38,288 |
21 January 2008 23 | Liverpool | 2–2 | Aston Villa | Merseyside |
Benayoun 19' Crouch 88' |
Report | Harewood 69' Aurélio 72' (o.g.) |
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 42,590 |
26 January 2008 24 | Aston Villa | 1–1 | Blackburn | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Young 73' | Report | Santa Cruz 68' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 39,602 |
3 February 2008 25 | Fulham | 2–1 | Aston Villa | Hammersmith |
Davies 73' Bullard 86' |
Report | Hughes 69' (o.g.) | Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 24,760 |
9 February 2008 26 | Aston Villa | 4–1 | Newcastle United | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Bouma 48' Carew 51', 72', 90' (pen.) |
Report | Owen 4' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 42,640 Referee: Lee Mason |
24 February 2008 27 | Reading | 1–2 | Aston Villa | Berkshire |
Shorey 90' | Report | Young 45' Harewood 82' |
Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 23,889 |
1 March 2008 28 | Arsenal | 1–1 | Aston Villa | Highbury |
Bendtner 90' | Report | Senderos 27' (o.g.) | Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 60,097 |
12 March 2008 29 | Aston Villa | 1–1 | Middlesbrough | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Barry 74' (pen.) | Report | Downing 23' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 39,874 |
15 March 2008 30 | Portsmouth | 2–0 | Aston Villa | Hampshire |
Defoe 11' Reo-Coker 38' (o.g.) |
Report | Stadium: Fratton Park Attendance: 20,388 |
22 March 2008 31 | Aston Villa | 0–1 | Sunderland | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Report | Chopra 83' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 42,640 |
29 March 2008 32 | Manchester United | 4–0 | Aston Villa | Trafford, Greater Manchester |
Ronaldo 17' Tevez 33' Rooney 53', 70' |
Report | Stadium: Old Trafford Attendance: 75,932 Referee: Mark Halsey |
5 April 2008 33 | Aston Villa | 4–0 | Bolton Wanderers | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Barry 9', 60' Agbonlahor 56' Harewood 85' |
Report | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 37,773 Referee: Martin Atkinson |
12 April 2008 34 | Derby County | 0–6 | Aston Villa | Derby, Derbyshire |
Report | Young 25' Carew 26' Petrov 36' Barry 58' Agbonlahor 76' Harewood 85' |
Stadium: Pride Park Stadium Attendance: 33,036 Referee: Keith Stroud |
20 April 2008 35 | Aston Villa | 5–1 | Birmingham City | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Young 28', 63' Carew 42', 53' Agbonlahor 78' |
Report | Forssell 67' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 42,584 Referee: Mark Clattenburg |
27 April 2008 36 | Everton | 2–2 | Aston Villa | Merseyside |
Neville 54' Yobo 84' |
Report | Agbonlahor 80' Carew 86' |
Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 37,936 |
3 May 2008 37 | Aston Villa | 0–2 | Wigan | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Report | Valencia 52', 63' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 42,640 |
11 May 2008 38 | West Ham United | 2–2 | Aston Villa | London |
Solano 8' Ashton 88' |
Report | Young 14' Barry 58' |
Stadium: Upton Park |
League Cup[]
28 August 2007 Second round | Wrexham | 0–5 | Aston Villa | Wrexham, North Wales |
Report | Maloney 30', 72' Moore 52' Reo-Coker 62' Harewood 78' |
Stadium: Racecourse Ground Attendance: 8,221 Referee: Graham Laws |
26 September 2007 Third round | Aston Villa | 0–1 | Leicester City | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Report | Fryatt 86' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 25,956 |
FA Cup[]
5 January 2008 | Aston Villa | 0–2 | Manchester United | Birmingham, West Midlands |
Report | Ronaldo 85' 87' | Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 33,630 |
Statistics[]
Appearances and goals[]
- As of end of season[3]
No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Premiership | League Cup | FA Cup | ||||||
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Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||||
Goalkeepers | |||||||||||||
13 | GK | ENG | Stuart Taylor | 6 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
22 | GK | ENG | Scott Carson | 36 | 0 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
Defenders | |||||||||||||
3 | DF | NED | Wilfred Bouma | 39 | 1 | 38 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
4 | DF | SWE | Olof Mellberg | 37 | 2 | 33+1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
5 | DF | DEN | Martin Laursen | 39 | 6 | 38 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
15 | DF | ENG | Curtis Davies | 14 | 1 | 9+3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
16 | DF | ENG | Zat Knight | 28 | 1 | 25+2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
26 | DF | ENG | Craig Gardner | 25 | 3 | 15+8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | ||
Midfielders | |||||||||||||
6 | MF | ENG | Gareth Barry | 40 | 9 | 37 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
7 | MF | ENG | Ashley Young | 39 | 9 | 37 | 9 | 0+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
17 | MF | TOG | Moustapha Salifou | 4 | 0 | 0+4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
18 | MF | ENG | Wayne Routledge | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
19 | MF | BUL | Stilian Petrov | 31 | 1 | 22+6 | 1 | 1+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
20 | MF | ENG | Nigel Reo-Coker | 39 | 1 | 36 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
23 | MF | CZE | Patrik Berger | 9 | 0 | 0+8 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
27 | MF | ENG | Isaiah Osbourne | 10 | 0 | 1+7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
28 | MF | SCO | Shaun Maloney | 25 | 6 | 11+11 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0+1 | 0 | ||
Forwards | |||||||||||||
8 | FW | ENG | Luke Moore | 18 | 2 | 8+7 | 1 | 1+1 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 | ||
9 | FW | ENG | Marlon Harewood | 25 | 6 | 1+22 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
10 | FW | NOR | John Carew | 33 | 13 | 32 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
11 | FW | ENG | Gabriel Agbonlahor | 40 | 11 | 37 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
Players transferred or loaned out during the season | |||||||||||||
21 | DF | ENG | Gary Cahill | 2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last updated: September 2017
Source: Competitions
Topscorers[]
- John Carew – 13
- Gabriel Agbonlahor – 11
- Ashley Young – 9
- Gareth Barry – 8
- Martin Laursen – 6
Notes[]
- ^ Lowry was born in Perth, Australia, but also qualifies to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally through his parents and represented them at U-17, U-19, and U-21 level before switching his international allegiance to Australia.
- ^ Clark was born in Harrow, England, and represented them at U-17, U-18, U-19, and U-20 level, but also qualifies to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and would make his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in February 2011.
- ^ Collins was born in Coventry, England, but also qualifies to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally through his parents and has represented them at U-19 and U-21 level.
References[]
- ^ "Aston Villa Player Database".
- ^ "Gabby's Double Gold". Aston Villa F.C. Archived from the original on 12 May 2008. Retrieved 16 September 2008.
- ^ "Aston Villa players: Premier League 2004".
External links[]
- Aston Villa official website
- avfchistory.co.uk 2007–08 season
- Aston Villa F.C. seasons
- 2007–08 Premier League by team