Villa fall behind to a Vágner Love goal in the home leg of the UEFA Cup Round of 32 before John Carew hits an equaliser with everything to play for in the second leg as a Quarter Final berth beckons. 

Villa face CSKA Moscow for the first time in competitive football, CSKA become the 158th team that the Villa first team has played in League or Cup football, Villa’s 41st continental European opponents and their second from Russia after their meeting with Spartak Moscow in their 1982-83 European Cup campaign.

Martin O'Neill resisted the temptation to field his 'Cup' side but there were murmurs of consternation around the goalkeeping change and the absence of Brad Friedel, James Milner, Carlos Cuéllar and Emile Heskey as Villa embarked on a tough tie. A draw and the concession of an away goal set Villa up for a tough away leg if they were to progress in Europe and a strong 1st XI was essential.

Stiliyan Petrov collects his 15th booking in a Villa shirt on his 99th appearance (92 Starts) to make it W44 D32 L23, 4 Goals, 4 Assists and 15 Bookings so far in his Villa career.