2004-05

Martin Laursen, 27, makes his debut in a Villa shirt after joining from AC Milan in July 2004 for a fee of £3,600,000 to become the 775th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Carlton Cole, 20, shows a forward line presence on his debut unfamiliar to Villa for a long time after joining on a season long loan from West Ham to become the 776th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Lee Hendrie contributes his 51st goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 257th appearance (207 Starts) to make it W103 D66 L88, 26 Goals, 25 Assists, 49 Bookings and 3 Red Cards at a goal involvement rate of one for every 5.14 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Jlloyd Samuel secures his 50th win in a Villa shirt on his 134th appearance (114 Starts) to make it W50 D35 L49, 3 Goals, 9 Assists, 16 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Villa open the scoring with an early goal for the second successive game but cannot hold onto three points and so remain 3rd in the table as there are hopes that the form of 2003-04 looks to has continued into the new season.

Thomas Hitzlsperger contributes his 25th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 86th appearance (67 Starts) to make it W34 D20 L32, 10 Goals, 15 Assists and 9 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa are well beaten at the Valley to leave them with a first defeat of the season under David O'Leary. As a result Villa fall back to 10th place in the early table.

Jlloyd Samuel suffers his 50th defeat in a Villa shirt on his 136th appearance (116 Starts) to make it W50 D36 L50, 3 Goals, 9 Assists, 18 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Villa bounce back from defeat to Charlton with second Premier League win in four games under David O'Leary to leave them 6th in the early table.

Villa score an early goal for the 3rd time in 4 games under David O’Leary but unlike their surprise defeat to Charlton last time hold on to secure victory over Newcastle.

Nolberto Solano grabs a brace of assists against his former club on his 13th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W7 D3 L3, 4 Assists and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career at a goal involvement rate of one for every 3.25 games he has played so far in his Villa career. 

Lee Hendrie collects his 50th booking in a Villa shirt on his 258th appearance (207 Starts) to make it W104 D66 L88, 26 Goals, 25 Assists, 50 Bookings and 3 Red Cards at a rate of a card every 4.87 games so far in his Villa career.

Ulises de la Cruz secures his 25th win in a Villa shirt on his 59th appearance (40 Starts) to make it W25 D13 L21, 2 Goals, 4 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa hold early pacesetters Chelsea at Villa Park to leave them with one defeat in their first five Premier League game under David O'Leary.

Mark Delaney makes his 150th appearance in a Villa shirt (132 Appearances) to make it W59 D43 L48, 1 Goal, 5 Assists, 19 Bookings and 2 Red Cards so far in his Villa career.

Thomas Sørensen makes his 50th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W22 D13 L15, 58 Goals Conceded at a rate of 1.16 goals per game and 19 Clean Sheets (38%) so far in his Villa career.

Luke Moore makes his 10th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W5 D4 L1, 0 Goals, 0 Assists and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Villa are held to a goalless draw for the second successive game to leave them with two wins in six Premier League games under David O'Leary and remain 7th.

Midfielder Steven Davis, 19, makes his Villa debut aged 19 after joining from St. Andrews Boys’ Club in July 2001 on schoolboy forms to become the 777th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Olof Mellberg makes his 125th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W43 D36 L46, 4 Goals, 4 Assists and 9 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Thomas Sørensen keeps his 20th clean sheet in a Villa shirt on his 51st appearance to make it W22 D14 L15, 58 Goals Conceded at a rate of 1.14 goals per game and 20 Clean Sheets (39%) so far in his Villa career.

Villa make it 4 games unbeaten under David O’Leary as a Nobby Solano inspired side see off Championship side QPR to progress to the League Cup third round.

Lee Hendrie contributes his 26th assist in a Villa shirt on his 260th appearance (208 Starts) to make it W105 D67 L88, 26 Goals, 26 Assists, 50 Bookings and 3 Red Cards at a goal involvement rate of one for every 5.09 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Midfielder Mathieu Berson, 24, makes his debut in a Villa shirt after joining from FC Nantes for £2,070,000 in July 2004 to become the 778th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Nolberto Solano scores his 1st goal in a Villa shirt and contributes his 5th assist on his 16th appearance to make it W8 D5 L3, 1 Goal, 5 Assists, 1 Booking and 1 Red Card at a goal involvement rate of one for every 2.67 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Peter Whittingham makes his 1st start in a Villa shirt in 17 games after being relegated to the role of substitute by David O’Leary in January. Before that point Whittingham had made 26 starts in his first 31 Appearances but was now left with a record of 48 Appearances (27 Starts), W19 D14 L15, 1 Goal, 4 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa are held to third successive Premier League draw as they drop to 9th in the table after two wins in seven matches under David O'Leary.

Juan Pablo Ángel contributes his 10th assist in a Villa shirt on his 89th start (110 Appearances) to make it W44 D27 L39, 45 Goals, 10 Assists and 8 Bookings at a goal involvement rate of one for every 1.62 starts so far in his Villa career.

Villa climb to 8th place after recording a fourth consecutive Premier League draw to leave them with two wins in eight matches but are unbeaten in 5 having lost once in 8 games under David O'Leary as the media starts to call out the manager's post match dribbles of drivel.

Olof Mellberg scores his 5th goal in a Villa shirt on his 128th appearance to make it W44 D38 L46, 5 Goals, 4 Assists and 9 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Ulises de la Cruz contributes his 5th assist in a Villa shirt on his 64th appearance (45 Starts) to make it W26 D17 L21, 2 Goals, 5 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa take the lead but are beaten by Arsenal for their second loss in nine Premier League games but drop to 13th in the table after recording just two wins and five draws under David O'Leary.

Carlton Cole contributes his 1st assist in a Villa shirt on his 9th appearance (7 Starts) to make it W3 D4 L2, 2 Goals, 1 Assist and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career at a goal involvement rate of one for every 3.00 games he has played so far in his Villa career. 

Peter Whittingham makes his 50th appearance in a Villa shirt (22 Starts) to make it W19 D15 L16, 1 Goal, 4 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Olof Mellberg collects his 10th booking in a Villa shirt on his 129th appearance to make it W44 D38 L47, 5 Goals, 4 Assists and 10 Booking at a rate of a card every 13 games so far in his Villa career.

Villa win for the first time in 6 under David O’Leary although over that time they have lost just one - to leaders Arsenal - as they climb back to 9th in the table after 10 Premier League games.

Mark Delaney secures his 60th win in a Villa shirt on his 155th appearance (137 Starts) to make it W60 D46 L49, 1 Goal, 6 Assists, 20 Bookings and 2 Red Cards so far in his Villa career.

Carlton Cole makes his 10th appearance in a Villa shirt (7 Starts) to make it W4 D4 L2, 2 Goals, 2 Assists and 1 Booking at a goal involvement rate of one for every 2.50 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Villa suffer an embarrassing defeat to Championship Burnley in the League Cup as the doubts over David O'Leary - which had been dispelled by such a strong performance in the closing months of the 2003-04 campaign - re-emerged. 

Meanwhile the Villa boss makes increasingly detached comments about his reign and his accountability.

Luke Moore contributes his 1st assist in a Villa shirt on his 11th appearance (0 Starts) to make it W5 D4 L2, 0 Goals, 1 Assist and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Jlloyd Samuel makes his 125th start in a Villa shirt (145 Appearances) to make it W53 D40 L52, 3 Goals, 9 Assists, 19 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Mark Delaney suffers his 50th defeat in a Villa shirt on his 156th appearance (138 Starts) to make it W60 D46 L50, 1 Goal, 6 Assists, 20 Bookings and 2 Red Cards so far in his Villa career.

Villa are held to a 6th draw in 11 League games under David O’Leary and fall back to 10th in the table.

Lee Hendrie scores his 30th goal in a Villa shirt, and his 4th in 6 games, on his 266th appearance (214 Starts) to make it W106 D70 L90, 30 Goals, 26 Assists, 53 Bookings and 3 Red Cards so far in his Villa career at a goal involvement rate of one for every 4.83 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Villa win for the second time in three unbeaten Premier League games to rise to 6th in the table but David O'Leary decides it's appropriate to dig out his most talented goalscorer.

Juan Pablo Ángel contributes his 60th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 94th start (116 Appearances) to make it W46 D29 L41, 48 Goals, 12 Assists and 8 Bookings at a goal involvement rate of one for every 1.57 starts so far in his Villa career.

Carlton Cole contributes his 5th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 13th appearance (10 Starts) to make it W5 D5 L3, 2 Goals, 3 Assists and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career at a goal involvement rate of one for every 2.60 games he has played so far in his Villa career. 

Thomas Sørensen secures his 25th win in a Villa shirt on his 58th appearance to make it W25 D17 L16, 66 Goals Conceded at a rate of 1.14 goals per game and 22 Clean Sheets (38%) so far in his Villa career.

Nolberto Solano secures his 10th win in a Villa shirt on his 22nd appearance to make it W10 D8 L4, 3 Goals, 5 Assists, 2 Bookings and 1 Red Card at a goal involvement rate of one for every 2.75 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Villa make it successive wins for the first time this season and their first away win of the campaign as Der Hammer builds his reputation to give Villa a third win in four Premier League games and lift Villa to 6th in the table under an increasingly detached David O'Leary.

Gavin McCann contributes his 5th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 50th appearance to make it W23 D15 L12, 3 Goals, 2 Assists, 8 Bookings and 2 Red Cards so far in his Villa career.

Ulises de la Cruz makes his 50th start in a Villa shirt (69 Appearances) to make it W29 D18 L22, 2 Goals, 6 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa record three successive wins for the first time in 2004-05 to climb to fifth in the Premier League table under David O'Leary.

Thomas Hitzlsperger makes his 100th appearance in a Villa shirt (74 Starts) to make it W40 D25 L35, 11 Goals, 15 Assists and 9 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Steven Davis makes his 1st start in a Villa shirt on his 6th appearance to make it W3 D2 L1 so far in his Villa career.

Ulises de la Cruz secures his 30th win in a Villa shirt on his 70th appearance (51 Starts) to make it W30 D18 L22, 2 Goals, 6 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose for the first time in five under David O'Leary as Juan Pablo Ángel misses a late penalty and Lee Hendrie is sent off.

Lee Hendrie is sent off for the 4th time in a Villa shirt on his 269th appearance (217 Starts) to make it W108 D70 L91, 30 Goals, 27 Assists, 54 Bookings and 4 Red Cards at a rate of a card every 4.64 games so far in his Villa career.

Nolberto Solano makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W12 D8 L5, 4 Goals, 5 Assists, 2 Bookings and 1 Red Card at a goal involvement rate of one for every 2.77 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Jlloyd Samuel makes his 150th appearance in a Villa shirt (130 Starts) to make it W56 D41 L53, 3 Goals, 9 Assists, 20 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Villa bounce back from defeat last time out to draw their seventh match in sixteen Premier League games under David O'Leary, But David O'Leary's praise for the opposition and his talking down of his own team post match overshadows another decent showing from 6th placed Villa.

Nolberto Solano contributes his 10th goal involvement on his 26th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W12 D9 L5, 5 Goals, 5 Assists, 2 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career at a goal involvement rate of one for every 2.60 games he has played so far in his Villa career. 

Villa make it two defeats in three winless games as they suffer a shock home defeat to leave them seventh in the table under David O’Leary.

Villa lose to Birmingham for the 3rd time in 5 meetings - their longest spell without a victory against their neighbours since 5 defeats between 1976 and 1978.

Olof Mellberg contributes his 10th goal involvement as he suffers his 50th defeat in a Villa shirt on his 138th appearance to make it W48 D40 L50, 5 Goals, 5 Assists and 10 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa fall to ninth in the table as despite an improved performance they suffer a third defeat in four winless Premier League games under David O'Leary.

Juan Pablo Ángel makes his 100th start in a Villa shirt (122 Appearances) to make it W48 D30 L44, 48 Goals, 12 Assists and 8 Bookings at a goal involvement rate of one for every 1.67 starts so far in his Villa career.

Thomas Sørensen concedes his 75th goal in a Villa shirt on his 64th appearance to make it W27 D18 L19, 75 Goals Conceded at a rate of 1.17 goals per game and 23 Clean Sheets (36%) so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose for the fourth time in five winless games as they are beaten at Stamford Bridge to leave them 10th in the Premier League under David O'Leary having sat 5th five games earlier.

Ulises de la Cruz makes his 75th appearance in a Villa shirt (56 Starts) to make it W30 D19 L26, 2 Goals, 6 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Mathieu Berson makes his 1st start in a Villa shirt (4 Appearances) to make it W1 D1 L2 so far in his Villa career.

Villa end 2004 with a fifth defeat in six winless games to leave them eleventh in the table but the fact they put in an improved performance is overshadowed by David O'Leary taking the concept of damning with faint praise to a new level.

As a result Villa end 2004 moving in a very different trajectory than 2003 but one consistent is David O'Leary continuing to belittle his charges in post match interviews. 

Stefan Moore, 21, makes his 30th and final appearance in a Villa shirt before moving on to Queens Park Rangers on a free transfer in July 2005 leaving with a record of W14 D6 L10, 2 Goals and 2 Bookings.

Villa open 2005 with a first win in seven Premier League games and first goal in 3 under David O'Leary to move them into ninth place in the table but it still takes a very late strike from Nolberto Solano to struggle past a lowly Blackburn side. 

Meanwhile a new year brings no change to David O'Leary's curious, and surely damaging, public criticism of his squad.

Gavin McCann secures his 25th win in a Villa shirt on his 56th appearance to make it W25 D16 L15, 3 Goals, 3 Assists, 9 Bookings and 2 Red Cards so far in his Villa career.

Luke Moore makes his first start on his 19th appearance in a Villa shirt (1 Start) to make it W9 D5 L5, 0 Goals, 1 Assist and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose for the sixth time in eight Premier League games as Roy Aitken takes his turn to demoralise a struggling squad with the latest reverse coming against a relegation threatened Crystal Palace and who hadn't won in 11. 

Meanwhile David O'Leary doesn't turn up for the post match interviews instead sending assistant Roy Aitken as the fractures with the fan base widen and his unpopularity with the media increases.

Luke Moore remains without a goal on his 20th appearance in a Villa shirt (1 Start) to make it W9 D5 L6, 0 Goals, 1 Assist and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Gavin McCann collects his 10th booking in a Villa shirt on his 57th appearance to make it W25 D16 L16, 3 Goals, 3 Assists, 10 Bookings and 2 Red Cards at a rate of a card every 4.67 games so far in his Villa career.

Villa's miserable run under David O'Leary continues as they lose for the seventh time in nine games, this time to League One side Sheffield United in the FA Cup.

Villa’s latest defeat makes it 7 losses in 9 games under O’Leary.

Luke Moore makes his 20th start in a Villa shirt (21 Appearances) to make it W9 D5 L7, 0 Goals, 1 Assist and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa win for the second time in three Premier League games but only for the second time in ten in all competitions under David O'Leary as they see off relegation threatened Norwich at Villa Park.

Olof Mellberg secures his 50th win in a Villa shirt on his 144th appearance to make it W50 D40 L54, 5 Goals, 5 Assists and 13 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Luke Moore secures his 10th win in a Villa shirt on his 22nd appearance (1 Start) to make it W10 D5 L7, 0 Goals, 1 Assist and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Juan Pablo Ángel secures his 50th win in a Villa shirt on his 106th start (128 Appearances) to make it W50 D30 L48, 48 Goals, 13 Assists and 8 Bookings at a goal involvement rate of one for every 1.74 starts so far in his Villa career.

Liam Ridgewell secures his 10th win in a Villa shirt on his 23rd appearance (12 Starts) to make it W10 D4 L9 and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Thomas Sørensen keeps his 25th clean sheet in a Villa shirt on his 70th appearance to make it W29 D18 L23, 82 Goals Conceded at a rate of 1.17 goals per game and 25 Clean Sheets (36%) so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose for the eighth time in eleven games in all competitions under David O'Leary and drop to 11th in the Premier League table as a result as O'Leary's second season descends into disjointed disaster on and off the pitch.

Villa miss two penalties and concede an injury time equaliser to draw with Fulham and leave them with two wins in their last eleven Premier League games under David O'Leary. 

Meanwhile, O'Leary again ducks the post match press conference once again to leave Roy Aitken to hang Juan Pablo Ángel out to dry. A curious motivational policy as a manager who has bemoaned his lack of 'firepower' all season.

Midfielder Eric Djemba Djemba makes his debut in a Villa shirt after his barely credible signing from Manchester United for a fee of £2,290,000 in January 2005. Djemba Djemba had been a figure of mirth at his previous club but somehow David O’Leary not only took Alex Ferguson’s word that the player had qualities but actually got the club to pay for his services. Anyone who had seen Djemba Djemba play would attest to the fact that the player was not endowed with any such talent and the acquisition was met by most fans with head in hands. That Djemba Djemba had neither scoring ability or the quality to perform was shown to be all the greater a folly given Villa already boasted the likes of Gareth Barry, Thomas Hitzlsperger, Steven Davis, Gavin McCann, Lee Hendrie and Mathieu Berson ahead of the Cameroonian chancer.

Lee Hendrie makes his 225th start in a Villa shirt (277 Appearances) to make it W110 D71 L96, 31 Goals, 29 Assists, 55 Bookings and 4 Red Cards at a goal involvement rate of one for every 4.69 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Thomas Hitzlsperger makes his 75th start in a Villa shirt (104 Appearances) to make it W41 D26 L37, 11 Goals, 16 Assists and 9 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Liam Ridgewell makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (14 Starts) to make it W10 D5 L10 and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose for the ninth time in thirteen games in all competitions under David O'Leary but remain 11th in the Premier League table.

Juan Pablo Ángel scores his 50th goal in a Villa shirt on his 109th start (131 Appearances) to make it W50 D31 L50, 50 Goals, 13 Assists and 9 Bookings at a goal involvement rate of one for every 1.73 starts so far in his Villa career.

Luke Moore remains without a goal on his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (2 Starts) to make it W10 D6 L9, 0 Goals, 1 Assist and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Mathieu Berson makes his 10th appearance in a Villa shirt (5 Starts) to make it W2 D2 L6 and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa win for the second time in five Premier League games to make it three wins in thirteen under David O'Leary but move up to 10th in the table.

Eric Djemba Djemba makes his 2nd start in a Villa shirt (3rd appearance) and is witnessed to be utterly bewildered in midfield, stationary, with wide eyed panic unable to receive the ball with his new team-mates seemingly unwilling to pass to him. Djemba Djemba was proving worse than even the most committed naysayers predicted.

Villa follow up a battling win at Portsmouth with a tenth defeat in fourteen Premier League games under David O'Leary as his curious signing Eric Djemba Djemba still fails to last 90' and once again is carded.

Thomas Sørensen makes his 75th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W30 D19 L26, 93 Goals Conceded at a rate of 1.24 goals per game and 25 Clean Sheets (33%) so far in his Villa career.

Villa's curious yo yo form continues as they beat Boro to record just their 5th win in 16 games under David O'Leary to climb to 10th in the table. 

Villa win for the third time in seven Premier League games and second time in three having lost ten in fifteen but any positivity is wrenched asunder by more demoralising dribbles of drivel from David O'Leary.

O'Leary's continued his bizarre proclamations that seem designed to denigrate the club whilst distancing himself from any responsibility. Whether that was having an effect on the dressing room wasn't clear but something had affected the same set of players who had evidently overachieved to such a high degree the previous season according to O'Leary.

Martin Laursen scores his 1st goal in a Villa shirt on his 4th appearance having not played since August 2004 due to injury, in so doing Laursen makes it W2 D1 L1, 1 Goal and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Luke Moore scores his 1st goal in a Villa shirt on his 28th appearance (4 Starts) to make it W12 D6 L10, 1 Goal, 2 Assists and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Nolberto Solano contributes his 15th goal involvement on his 40th appearance in a Villa shirt (39 Starts) to make it W16 D10 L14, 8 Goals, 7 Assists, 5 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career at a goal involvement rate of one for every 2.67 games he has played so far in his Villa career. 

Olof Mellberg makes his 150th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W52 D41 L57, 5 Goals, 5 Assists and 13 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Jlloyd Samuel secures his 60th win in a Villa shirt on his 162nd appearance (142 Starts) to make it W60 D42 L60, 3 Goals, 9 Assists, 22 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

David O'Leary fails against Birmingham once again to record Villa's eleventh defeat in sixteen Premier League games. 

To make matters worse O'Leary has the audacity to claim a "voodoo" against a side who had beaten Villa four times in eleven games across eighteen years.

Villa lose home and away to Birmingham for the second time in three seasons and now are winless in their last 6 games against their neighbours despite having won their previous 6 meetings by an aggregate of 17 goals to 1.

At 6 games the 4 defeats and 2 draws is now Villa's longest winless streak against Birmingham.

Only once before have Villa failed to win in 6 successive matches against their neighbours - in 1933-35 when they had a run of 4 draws and 2 defeats.

Midfielder Mathieu Berson, 25, makes his 13th and final appearance in a Villa shirt before moving on to Levante Unión Deportiva for a fee of £225,000 in July 2006. Villa had paid FC Nantes £2,070,000 for Berson's services in July 2004 allegedly to recreate a midfield that had featured for the French club consisting of Berson and Eric Djemba-Djemba. They played together twice at Villa, never starting together, and both failed to make the grade at Villa Park with Berson leaving with a record of W4 D2 L7, 0 Goals, 0 Assists and 3 Bookings.

Villa win for the third time in five Premier League games to climb to 10th in the table under David O'Leary amidst a remarkable game at St James' and for once it’s the opposition’s soap opera that takes the headlines.

Carlton Cole makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (19 Starts) to make it W9 D7 L9, 2 Goals, 4 Assists and 1 Booking at a goal involvement rate of one for every 4.17 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Villa go two games unbeaten for the first time November but can only draw with relegation threatened Albion to remain 10th in the Premier League under David O'Leary.

Liam Ridgewell contributes his 1st assist before being sent off for the 1st time in a Villa shirt on his 30th appearance (18 Starts) to make it W12 D16 L12, 1 Assist, 3 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Villa recover from a poor first half to beat Southampton and make it four wins in seven and six wins in nineteen Premier League games under David O'Leary to climb to 9th in the table - their highest position since New Years' Day.

Villa go 3 games unbeaten for the first time November despite former Villain Peter Crouch putting relegation threatened Southampton two up in the first half. 

A strong result, and improved performance, are tainted somewhat by more David O'Leary post match barbs towards his players.

Steven Davis scores his 1st goal in a Villa shirt on his 24th appearance (14 Starts) to make it W9 D5 L10, 1 Goal and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Ulises de la Cruz contributes his 10th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 87th appearance (66 Starts) to make it W34 D21 L32, 2 Goals, 8 Assists and 6 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Carlton Cole secures his 10th win in a Villa shirt on his 27th appearance (19 Starts) to make it W10 D8 L9, 3 Goals, 4 Assists and 1 Booking at a goal involvement rate of one for every 3.86 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Darius Vassell secures his 75th win in a Villa shirt on his 196th appearance (120 Starts) to make it W75 D50 L71, 45 Goals, 14 Assists, 15 Bookings and 1 Red Card at a goal involvement rate of one for every 3.31 games played so far in his Villa career.

Darius Vassell records his 50th draw in a Villa shirt on his 196th appearance (119 Starts) to make it W75 D50 L71, 45 Goals, 14 Assists, 15 Bookings and 1 Red Card at a goal involvement rate of one for every 3.32 games played so far in his Villa career.

Despite being forced to field a makeshift defence, Villa extend their unbeaten run to four games under David O’Leary. 

Villa are held at home for the second successive game to leave them with six wins in twenty Premier League games under David O'Leary 

Villa remain in 9th position and an unexpectedly positive end to what has times been a predictably acrimonious season under the divisive O’Leary looks possible.

Mark Delaney records his 50th draw in a Villa shirt on his 173rd appearance (155 Starts) to make it W66 D50 L57, 1 Goal, 6 Assists, 21 Bookings and 2 Red Cards so far in his Villa career.

Steven Davis makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (15 Starts) to make it W9 D6 L10, 1 Goal and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa are held at home for the third successive game but extend their unbeaten run to 5 games - their best since November - however they now have just 7 wins in the last 22 League matches under David O'Leary.

Villa's five game unbeaten run is shattered at White Hart Lane as they concede five to leave them with six wins in twenty two Premier League games under David O'Leary and 11 defeats in the last 23 but of even more concern is the delusional dribbles of drivel that pour out of the manager's mouth post match.

Goalkeeper Stefan Postma, 28, makes his 14th and final appearance in a Villa shirt (10 Starts) before moving on to ADO Den Haag on a free transfer in August 2006. Villa had paid £2,000,000 to De Graafschap in July 2002 for his services and over his 3 seasons with the club he recorded W4 D3 L7, 26 Goals Conceded at a rate of 1.86 goals per game, 3 Clean Sheets (21%) and 1 Booking together with 118 unused substitute appearances.

Martin Laursen makes his 10th appearance in a Villa shirt after missing most of the season due to injury to make it W4 D3 L3, 1 Goal and 3 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose successive games to make it six wins in twenty three Premier League games under David O'Leary as yet more dribbling drivel gushes forth.

Villa make it 12 defeats in the last 24 League games under David O'Leary as the Villa boss claims he is yet to have been able to put his preferred XI out on the pitch after 40 games. 

His protestations however have more than a feint air of ridiculousness about it as this defeat marks the final game for Villa of the talented Thomas Hitzlsperger. Just as a year previously O'Leary had got rid of Peter Crouch and so he would again with Hitzlsperger in what was one of the most ill-conceived player sales for a very long time. 

Meanwhile O'Leary had reintegrated the prodigiously untalented Eric Djemba-Djemba back into the matchday squad.

Thomas Hitzlsperger, 23, makes his 114th and final appearance in a Villa shirt (82 Starts) before joining VfB Stuttgart on a free transfer in a move that bewildered and enraged in equal measure. Hitzlsperger scored 12 goals, mostly of the spectacular variety, and contributed 17 assists in a struggling side. That he had to contend with a new country, language and two deeply unsatisfactory managers it is little short of a miracle that he produced the development levels and performances that he did in delivering W44 D28 L42 and 10 Bookings over his 4 seasons in the Villa team.

Eric Djemba Djemba makes his first appearance since February 2005 and only his 5th in a Villa shirt (3 Starts) since joining the club in January to make it W1 D1 L3, 0 Goals, 0 Assists and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Lee Hendrie suffers his 100th defeat in a Villa shirt on his 287th appearance (233 Starts) to make it W114 D73 L100, 31 Goals, 29 Assists, 58 Bookings and 4 Red Cards so far in his Villa career.

Jlloyd Samuel makes his 150th start in a Villa shirt (170 Appearances) to make it W62 D45 L63, 3 Goals, 9 Assists, 22 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Thomas Sørensen concedes his 100th goal in a Villa shirt on his 83rd appearance to make it W33 D22 L28, 101 Goals Conceded at a rate of 1.22 goals per game and 28 Clean Sheets (34%) so far in his Villa career.

Villa end the season with a third successive loss to make it 13 defeats in their last 25 League games under David O'Leary. 

Villa end the season fittingly on three consecutive defeats to leave them with just six wins in twenty four Premier League games under a manager so detached from reality that their are concerns for his sanity. A tenth placed finish however is nothing short of miraculous over the course of a season packed with far more lows than highs and a manager seemingly hell bent on demoralising an already limited squad.

And so a season ended that had been more notable for the acrimonious way in which O’Leary operated and his seeming desire, from early in the season, to distance himself from the club and his responsibilities, than for any particular footballing highlights. 

Villa had been poor for much of the season and the optimism that 2003-04 had unexpectedly was roundly dashed on the rocks of acrimony. 

Seemingly happy to publicly belittle and bemoan his squad both individually and collectively, O’Leary seemed to be aiming for underachievement. He succeeded. 

Indeed but for the form of (the admittedly excellent David O’Leary signing of) Nobby Solano and the continued class shown by Juan Pablo Ángel, Villa’s tumble down the table could have been much more severe. 

What was abundantly clear however was that under David O’Leary all was not harmonious. The defeats had come thick and fast and the myriad of changes made to the match day squad was at times as confusing as it was worrying. 

Admittedly Villa suffered from poor luck on occasion but that couldn’t explain away the issues. 

Coupled with poor form, his denigration of his team and a tendency to discard genuine prospects with alacrity, prospects for the future under O’Leary were not encouraging. 

And just as he had surprised many with his achievements the previous season, there were few surprises that the O’Leary many had feared on his appointment very much arrived in 2004-05. 

Admittedly key players like Martin Laursen and Olof Mellberg were often injured, as were influential and stabilising figures like Gavin McCann however equally it seemed that a haphazard and oft changing selection policy was also a destabilising factor in the failure of the team to find any consistent runs of form through the season. 

The obvious conclusion was that things needed to change ahead of the 2005-06 season if there was going to be material improvement under an unpopular manager and Chairman. 

At a minimum new additions to the squad were required as was a clear vision for the both the team and club. 

Nobody would be surprised if O’Leary wasn’t in post by the start of 2005-06 but few thought the same could be said of the problematic Chairman. 

Centre forward Carlton Cole, 21, makes his 30th and final appearance in a Villa shirt (20 Starts) before returning to Chelsea at the end of his season long loan. In truth Cole hadn’t been a success, despite starting with some promise it became clear quickly that he was not the goalscorer Villa needed and would leave with a record of W10 D10 L10, 3 Goals, 4 Assists and 1 Booking at a goal involvement rate of one for every 4.29 games he played, 

Forward Darius Vassell, 24, makes his 201st and final appearance in a Villa shirt before moving on to Manchester City for a fee of £3,240,000 in July 2005. Vassell had come through the youth set up and been a squad fixture for eight seasons but his development was incredibly slow. With just 5 starts in his first 50 appearances between 1998 and 2001 it was almost as if John Gregory had no trust in the player, by that point Vassell had scored 5 and created another 4 at a goal contribution rate of one every 5.56 games. However, taken against his rare starts, the figure was one every 0.56 games. The question was which was the true Vassell? Still No one seemed to know after 3 years in the side. By 100 appearances, Vassell had 20 goals and 7 assists, with 18 coming in his second 50 games, compared to his 9 in his first 50, still though he could hardly be described as prolific - contributing once every 3.70 games. By 150 games, it was 33 goals and 11 assists as he added 17 goal involvements in his third lot of 50 games. By his final appearance and under his third manager, Vassell had added another 12 goals and 3 assists to leave with a record of W75 D52 L74, 45 Goals, 14 Assists, 15 Bookings and 1 Red Card at a goal involvement rate of one for every 3.41 games played.