2011-12

Of all the results Villa wouldn't have wanted under Alex McLeish as a cynical fan base looked on was a nil-nil draw at a team Villa should be easily beating.

Already the pressure on the new boss after just 90 minutes rises to rarely seen levels. 

Alex McLeish makes his Premier League bow as Villa boss and records a score that appears to solidify negative expectation and reputation as a dull goalless draw is the order of the day.

Shay Given makes his Villa debut aged 35 after joining from Manchester City for a fee of £3,380,000 in July to become the 836th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Charles N'Zogbia makes his Villa debut aged 25 after joining from Wigan Athletic for a fee of £9,720,000 in July to become the 837th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

James Collins makes his 75th appearance in a Villa shirt (70 Starts) to make it W30 D26 L19, 5 Goals and 12 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Alex McLeish confounds the doubters in his first home game in charge as his side scores three and wins to leave them with two unbeaten games at the start of the Premier League campaign.

Alex McLeish records his first Premier League win as Villa boss at the second attempt.

Darren Bent scores his 10th goal in a Villa shirt on his 17th appearance to make it W8 D5 L4, 10 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Right back Luke Young plays his final game for Villa aged 32 after asking to leave the club for personal reasons. Young moved to Queens Park Rangers for £1,010,000 shortly after. A player that many feel Villa should have signed far earlier in his career, Young was a consummate professional who fitted into Villa perfectly. Overall Young made 89 appearances for Villa (86 Starts) during his time with the club to leave with a record of W37 D25 L27, 2 Goals, 1 Assist and 12 Bookings.

Stiliyan Petrov contributes his 10th assist on his 80th win in a Villa shirt on his 191st appearance (179 Starts) to make it W80 D60 L51, 8 Goals, 10 Assists and 34 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

A second string Villa side toils to an uninspired victory at home to League Two Hereford in the second round of the League Cup as Alex McLeish already faces loud demands to up the attacking tempo of his teams.

Eric Lichaj scores his first goal in a Villa shirt on his 9th appearance (7 Starts) to make it W5 D2 L2, 1 Goal and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Andreas Weimann makes his first appearance for a year due to injury to make it 3 substitute appearances, W2 D1 L0 and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Chris Herd makes his first appearance for five months and first under Alex McLeish to make it 8 appearances in a Villa shirt (3 Starts), W3 D1 L4 so far in his Villa career.

Midfielder Jean Makoun plays first game in 4 months and first under Alex McLeish in what is his 8th and final appearance for Villa aged 28 before moving on to Stade Rennais for a fee of £2,700,000 in July 2013. Former manager Gérard Houllier had brought Makoun to the club just 7 months before his final game spending £5,580,000 on the player who frankly looked completely out of his depth in English football regardless of the standard of opposition, and whose sole contribution was the regularity with which he accumulated cards. Makoun would leave with a record of W3 D3 L2, 3 Bookings and 1 Red Card.

Right back Habib Bèye, makes his first appearance in 13 months, his first under Alex McLeish and his final in a Villa shirt. Bèye, who was an eyebrow raising signing under Martin O'Neill had looked well below the necessary standard before being placed on Gérard Houllier's infamous 'bomb squad' of first team players not to be considered for duty during 2010-11. Bèye, 34, was released by Villa before subsequently joining Doncaster Rovers with whom he had spent a loan spell. Bèye had been bought by Martin O’Neill for £2,610,000 in 2009. Bèye left with a record of W8 D3 L7, 1 Assist, 3 Bookings and 1 Red Card across his 3 seasons with the club and, despite having spent previous seasons in English football with Newcastle, never looked of sufficient standard to play in the top flight.

Marc Albrighton contributes his 15th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 26th start (44 Appearances) to make it W17 D11 L16, 6 Goals, 9 Assists, 4 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Stephen Ireland makes his 15th appearance in a Villa shirt (10 Starts) and first under Alex McLeish having failed in his loan spell at Newcastle (where he was shipped just 6 months after his regretted arrival at the club) and even against League Two Hereford contributed precisely nothing, just as he had done throughout his 12 months with Villa. Ireland's record stands at W3 D4 L8, 0 Goals, 0 Assists and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Villa suffer a second goalless draw in three Premier League games under Alex McLeish and although it extends Villa's unbeaten run to four in all competitions under the new manager few are in the mood to celebrate a solid, if underwhelming, start to the season.

The natives were already getting restless as Alex McLeish records a second goalless draw in his first three Premier League games and everything the doubters feared appeared to be coming to fruition.

Villa extend their unbeaten run to five in all competitions at the start of the season but draw for the third time.

Villa legend and right back Alan Hutton makes his Villa debut aged 26 after joining from Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of £4,050,000 in August 2011 to become the 838th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Marc Albrighton contributes his 10th assist in a Villa shirt on his 46th appearance (26 Starts) to make it W17 D13 L16, 6 Goals, 10 Assists, 5 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Barry Bannan makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (16 Starts) to make it W9 D7 L9, 1 Goal, 1 Assist and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa make it six unbeaten in all competitions but draw for the fourth time under Alex McLeish with the home fans desperate to see a footballing approach designed to deliver wins.

Villa draw for the 4th time in five Premier League games as unbeaten Villa rise to 6th in the early table under Alex McLeish.

Gabriel Agbonlahor makes his 200th start in a Villa shirt (222 Starts) to make it W88 D68 L66, 59 Goals, 25 Assists and 21 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Fabian Delph makes his 20th start in a Villa shirt (28 Appearances) to make it W12 D8 L8, 1 Goal and 8 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa are described as "inept" in the national media after they are knocked out of the League Cup with Alex McLeish fulfilling the worst fears of a sceptical fan base.

James Collins makes his 75th start in a Villa shirt (80 Appearances) to make it W31 D29 L20, 5 Goals and 13 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Alex McLeish's Villa draw for the fifth time in six Premier League games and although unbeaten fall back to 8th in the early table.

Alan Hutton collects his 1st booking in a Villa shirt on his 4th appearance to make it W0 D3 L1 and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Villa win for the first time in five Premier League games to extend their unbeaten run in the top tier to seven games at the start of the season under Alex McLeish.

Gabriel Agbonlahor makes his 225th appearance and scores his 60th goal in a Villa shirt (203 Starts) to make it W89 D69 L67, 60 Goals, 27 Assists and 22 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Darren Bent secures his 10th win in a Villa shirt on his 22nd appearance to make it W10 D8 L4, 11 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Barry Bannan contributes his 5th goal involvement and secures his 10th win in a Villa shirt on his 29th appearance (20 Starts) to make it W10 D9 L10, 2 Goal, 3 Assists and 3 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa's seven game unbeaten run at the start of their Premier League campaign comes to an end as Alex McLeish is beaten for the first time to leave Villa with two wins in eight so far this season.

Alex McLeish's Villa lose their unbeaten status as they are swept aside at Abu Dhabi by old boys Gareth Barry and James Milner to fall back to 8th in the table.

Charles N'Zogbia comes off the bench to contribute his first assist in a Villa shirt on his 10th appearance (7 Starts) and make it W3 D5 L2, 1 Assist and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Marc Albrighton makes his 50th appearance in a Villa shirt (27 Starts) to make it W17 D15 L18, 6 Goals, 10 Assists, 5 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose consecutive games for the first time under Alex McLeish and now have just two wins in nine Premier League games. 

How to win friends and influence people from Alex McLeish as he leads Villa to a first defeat to Albion at Villa Park in 32 years having failed to beat Wolves on home turf earlier in the season.

After a two month absence, Chris Herd is sent off on his 10th appearance in a Villa shirt (5 Starts) to make it W3 D2 L5 and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Villa stop a run of consecutive defeats but draw for the sixth time to leave them with two wins in ten Premier League games under Alex McLeish.

Villa sit ninth in the table on twelve points. At the same stage in 2010-11 they had sat fourteenth under Gérard Houllier.

Stiliyan Petrov contributes his 20th goal involvement on his 200th appearance in a Villa shirt (188 Starts) to make it W81 D65 L54, 10 Goals, 11 Assists and 35 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Darren Bent makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W10 D9 L46, 12 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Richard Dunne contributes his 5th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 91st appearance to make it W34 D33 L24, 4 Goals, 1 Assist and 14 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Alan Hutton contributes his 1st assist in a Villa shirt on his 8th appearance to make it W1 D4 L3, 1 Assist and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Meanwhile Barry Bannan misses the game as he is suspended by the club while they carry out an internal investigation into the motorway car crash that the midfielder was involved in during the early hours of Sunday morning.

Villa win a third Premier League game of the season as Paul Lambert's Norwich are beaten at Villa Park by the much maligned Alex McLeish.

Villa win for the first time in four Premier League games to climb to 8th in the table under Alex McLeish.

Midfielder Jermaine Jenas, 28, makes his belated Villa debut after injury since joining on a season long loan from Tottenham Hotspur in August 2011 to become the 839th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Darren Bent contributes his 15th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 26th appearance to make it W11 D9 L6, 14 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Stephen Warnock secures his 30th win in a Villa shirt on his 75th appearance to make it W30 D23 L22, 2 Goals, 7 Assists and 13 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose for the third time in five games as they begin to replace draw with defeats under Alex McLeish to leave them with three wins in twelve Premier League games.

Alan Hutton makes his 10th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W2 D4 L4, 1 Assist and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa draw for the seventh time under Alex McLeish to leave them with three wins in thirteen Premier League games but another disappointing result is overshadowed by the tragic passing of Gary Speed and his close connection with man of the match Shay Given.

James Collins collects his 15th booking in a Villa shirt on his 87th appearance (82 Starts) to make it W33 D32 L22, 5 Goals and 15 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Richard Dunne collects his 15th booking in a Villa shirt on his 94th appearance to make it W35 D34 L25, 4 Goals, 1 Assist and 15 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Meanwhile, off the pitch Barry Bannan is banned from driving for 18 months but avoids a custodial sentence for a drunken crash on the M1 as further signs of a lack of professionalism has infected the club from top to bottom.

Villa lose for the fourth time in seven games under Alex McLeish to make it just three wins in fourteen Premier League games but Villa remain ninth in the table six points clear of the drop zone as the safety net of seven draws keeps them afloat.

Jermaine Jenas makes his final appearance for Villa aged 28 having appeared just 3 times, 2 as a substitute, in his time with Villa to leave with a record of W1 D1 L1, 0 Goals and 0 Assists.

Brad Guzan makes his second league appearance in a Villa shirt on his 23rd appearance overall (21 Starts) after coming on as a 38' substitute for the injured Shay Given. Guzan's only previous League appearance had come 15 appearances earlier in March 2009 as a substitute following the dismissal of Brad Friedel. Unlike that appearance however, Guzan would not concede a goal and in so doing would add to his clean sheet tally to make it W12 D3 L8, 26 Goals Conceded, 7 Clean Sheets and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Shay Given concedes his 20th goal in a Villa shirt before leaving the field with injury on 38' on his 15th appearance to make it W3 D7 L5, 20 Goals Conceded, 4 Clean Sheets and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Meanwhile Charles N'Zogbia misses the game as he is suspended and find for a breach of club discipline.

Villa beat bottom of the table Bolton to secure a fourth win in fifteen Premier League games under Alex McLeish.

Stephen Warnock contributes his 10th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 79th appearance to make it W31 D24 L24, 2 Goals, 8 Assists and 13 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Darren Bent makes his 30th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W12 D10 L8, 14 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose for the 5th time in 16 Premier League games to leave them with four wins in sixteen Premier League games under Alex McLeish.

Brad Guzan makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (23 Starts) to make it W13 D3 L9, 29 Goals Conceded, 7 Clean Sheets, 1.20 Goals per Game and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose consecutive matches to make it six defeats in ten under Alex McLeish and just four wins in seventeen Premier League games.

Alan Hutton is sent off on his 15th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W3 D5 L7, 1 Assist, 5 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Brad Guzan concedes his 30th goal in a Villa shirt on his 26th appearance (24 Starts) to make it W13 D3 L10, 31 Goals Conceded, 7 Clean Sheets, 1.23 Goals per Game and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Stephen Ireland makes his 15th start in a Villa shirt (23 Appearances) and continues to contribute precisely nothing with a record of W5 D7 L11, 0 Goals, 0 Assists and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Off the pitch Barry Bannan opens up on his driving ban and avoidance of a custodial sentence whilst Darren Bent pops out to the shops.

Villa record a fourth goalless game and eighth draw under Alex McLeish to make it just four wins in eighteen Premier League games.

Villa stop a run of consecutive defeats to draw for the 8th time in 18 Premier League games under Alex McLeish. Villa remain 12th in the table.

Villa deliver a stunning performance and result to end a difficult 2011 with Alex McLeish's fifth win in nineteen games as hopes grow for a more positive 2012.

Alex McLeish, having taken Villa into the top 10, had clearly brought progress to the club yet was a figure of far greater ire than even Houllier had been, despite the latter having Villa in 15th place at the same stage the previous season. His football wasn’t likely to win plaudits but objectively Villa, however distasteful for a lot of the support, were in a better place twelve months on. The question now was whether a foundation was there for a top ten finish and more football. 

Villa have 5 Wins, 8 Draws and 6 Defeats under Alex McLeish with 19 games played to sit 9th in the table. 

12 months previously Gérard Houllier had sat 15th and had tumbled to 18th by the first weekend of January. 

Darren Bent scores his 15th goal in a Villa shirt on his 31st appearance (30 Starts) to make it W13 D10 L8, 15 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Carlos Cuéllar makes his 100th start in a Villa shirt (107 Appearances) to make it W52 D27 L28, 3 Goals, 4 Assists, 15 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career. Cuéllar had made his 100th appearance back in February 2011.

Richard Dunne makes his 100th appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W37 D35 L28, 4 Goals, 1 Assist and 15 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

After 16 months on Villa's books, a loan away and several periods in ostracism from first team selection, Stephen Ireland finally puts in a performance and helps Alex McLeish's Villa to their best win of the season on the final day of 2011. Stephen Ireland makes his 16th start in a Villa shirt (24 Appearances) and finally contributes something to make it W6 D7 L11, 1 Goal, 1 Assist and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Gary Gardner makes his Villa debut as a substitute to become the 840th player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Off the pitch Stephen Ireland is sanctioned for an online image apparently showing him smoking from a hookah pipe - the latest player indiscretion of plenty this season.

Less than 12 months after facing their first ever £200m opposition (Chelsea - £200.39m), the Blues line up at Stamford Bridge having taken spending to yet new heights and field a side that had cost an astonishing £244.76m. Over a 20% increase in spending in just a year as the influx of new money continued to distort the League.

Villa open the year with a result as bad as their final game of 2011 was excellent. Handing Swansea their first away win and ceding places to them, Villa fall to 13th in the table.

Villa beat bottom of League Two Bristol Rovers in the third round of the FA Cup.

Brad Guzan makes his 30th and final appearance in a Villa shirt (28 Starts) before being released by the club at the end of the season. Guzan would leave with a record of W15 D4 L11, 35 Goals Conceded, 8 Clean Sheets and 2 Bookings. Paul Lambert would cement his legend of incompetence by re-signing Guzan and appointing the surplus to requirements 'keeper as the club's Number 1.

Ciaran Clark scores his 5th goal in a Villa shirt on his 36th appearance (30 Starts) to make it W14 D9 L13, 5 Goals, 2 Assists and 11 Bookings so far in his Villa career. Clark has now picked up a booking every 3.27 games he has played.

Alex McLeish's Villa record their ninth draw of the season to remain 13th in the table. 

Robbie Keane, 31, makes his Villa debut 13 years after he should have done. Keane joined on a 3 month loan from LA Galaxy to become the 841st player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football. In 1999 hesitation lost Villa bound Keane to Coventry City and a genuine talent was lost to Villa Park until a short cameo in his twilight years.

Stephen Ireland contributes his 2nd assist in 4 games having failed to contribute anything in his first 23 appearances in a Villa shirt to make it 27 Appearances, 19 Starts, W7 D8 L12, 1 Goal, 2 Assists and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Vila win in the League for the first time in 2013 as another astute Alex McLeish signing makes the desired impact to deliver a sixth victory in twenty two Premier League matches. 

Keane's brace against his old club sends Villa up two places to 11th in the table. In comparison Villa were languishing in 17th under Gérard Houllier at the same stage in 2010-11.

Robbie Keane scores his first goals in a Villa shirt on his second appearance and first start to make it W1 D1 L0 and 2 Goals so far in his Villa career.

Marc Albrighton secures his 20th win in a Villa shirt on his 62nd appearance (36 Starts) to make it W21 D18 L23, 9 Goals, 10 Assists, 7 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Darren Bent secures his 15th win in a Villa shirt on his 35th appearance (31 Starts) to make it W15 D11 L9, 17 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Alan Hutton secures his 5th win in a Villa shirt to make it W5 D5 L8, 1 Assist, 5 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Ciaran Clark secures his 15th win in a Villa shirt on his 38th appearance (32 Starts) to make it W15 D10 L13, 5 Goals, 3 Assists and 11 Bookings so far in his Villa career. Clark has now picked up a booking every 3.45 games he has played.

Villa lose a two goal lead as they are defeated in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

In total contrast to the disrespect that Gérard Houllier had showed Villa and the FA Cup in 2010-11 and which had caused such a furore, Alex McLeish named his strongest possible line up for the tie at Arsenal. And yet Alex McLeish was not rewarded by fortune on the pitch or favour from the stands as a two goal lead was overturned and short memories of 2011 were in full effect. 

McLeish was everything Houllier wasn’t, but he also wasn’t the manager Villa craved, even 11th place and a right good old go in the FA Cup couldn’t or more accurately wouldn’t win over the legion of doubters.

Stiliyan Petrov makes his 200th start in a Villa shirt (213 Appearances) to make it W86 D67 L60, 12 Goals, 12 Assists and 36 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Robbie Keane contributes his first assist in a Villa shirt on his third appearance (2 Starts) to make it W1 D1 L1, 2 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Darren Bent contributes his 20th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 36th appearance (35 Starts) to make it W15 D11 L10, 18 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Richard Dunne scores his 5th goal in a Villa shirt on his 105th appearance to make it W39 D36 L30, 5 Goals, 1 Assist and 17 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Alex McLeish's Villa record their tenth draw of the season and fall back to 12th place as a result.

Stiliyan Petrov contributes his 25th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 214th appearance (201 Starts) to make it W86 D68 L60, 12 Goals, 13 Assists and 36 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Charles N'Zogbia scores his first goal in a Villa shirt on his 21st appearance (18 Starts) and make it W6 D9 L6, 1 Goal, 2 Assists and 3 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose in the Premier League for the first time in four to make it six wins in twenty four under Alex McLeish as they fall back to 13th in the table.

Robbie Keane scores his 3rd goal in a Villa shirt on his 5th appearance (4 Starts) to make it W1 D2 L2, 3 Goals and 2 Assists so far in his Villa career.

Ciaran Clark suffers his 15th defeat in a Villa shirt on his 41st appearance (35 Starts) to make it W15 D11 L15, 5 Goals, 3 Assists and 11 Bookings. Clark has now picked up a booking every 3.73 games he has played so far in his Villa career.

Stephen Ireland swears at Alex McLeish when he was censured for failing to cut out the cross which prompted Newcastle's opening goal, 

Whilst after the game Charles N'Zogbia tweeted his displeasure at being replaced by Emile Heskey.

Villa lose a second successive match under Alex McLeish and drop to 15th in the table as a result - their lowest position of the season.

Villa record a fifth goalless game and eleventh draw under Alex McLeish to make it just six wins in twenty six Premier League games as the patience from the stands finally breaks out into open warfare on the manager.

Alex McLeish's Villa stop a run of two defeats with an eleventh draw of the season but the fans aren't happy and let the manager know it in no uncertain terms as the draw with bottom club Wigan keeps Villa in 15th place. 

Emile Heskey makes his 100th appearance in a Villa shirt (65 Starts) to make it W37 D33 L30, 14 Goals, 5 Assists, 9 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Shay Given keeps his 5th clean sheet on his 22nd appearance in a Villa shirt to make it W4 D10 L8, 31 Goals Conceded, 5 Clean Sheets and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Robbie Keane plays the last game of his 7 Games (5 Starts) of his 2 month loan from LA Galaxy, during which time he recorded W1 D3 L3, 3 goals and 1 Assist.

Off the pitch, Villa announce record losses of £54m for 2010-11 after allowing players to leave far below their true value in recent seasons.

Alex McLeish's Villa record a twelfth draw in twenty seven Premier League games this season to remain in 15th place in the table.

Carlos Cuéllar contributes his 5th assist in a Villa shirt on his 114th appearance (107 Starts) to make it W52 D30 L32, 3 Goals, 5 Assists, 16 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Alan Hutton makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (24 Starts) to make it W5 D9 L11, 2 Assists, 5 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Charles N'Zogbia makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (20 Starts) to make it W6 D11 L8, 1 Goal, 3 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Chris Herd makes his first appearance for three months to make it 17 appearances in a Villa shirt (12 Starts), W5 D5 L7, 1 Booking and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Villa win for the first time in six Premier League games to secure a seventh victory in twenty eight under Alex McLeish.

Alex McLeish's Villa secure a seventh win in twenty eight Premier League matches through a 93' injury time goal from Andreas Weimann and were now unbeaten in three. 

Villa remain in 15th place with ten games to play and sat on the exact same points total as they had at the same stage in 2010-11 under Gérard Houllier.

James Collins makes his 100th appearance in a Villa shirt (95 Starts) to make it W38 D36 L26, 5 Goals and 16 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Andreas Weimann scores his 1st goal in a Villa shirt on his 9th appearance (0 Starts) to make it W5 D3 L1, 1 Goal and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Alan Hutton makes his 25th start in a Villa shirt (26 Appearances) to make it W6 D9 L11, 2 Assists, 5 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Villa lose for the first time in four to leave them with seven wins in twenty nine Premier League games under Alex McLeish but the result, the season and the struggles under the manager are rendered completely irrelevant with news that Villa's beloved captain Stiliyan Petrov is suffering from leukaemia.

By the time Villa lined up the following Saturday for their match vs. 5th placed Chelsea Petrov’s diagnosis had been confirmed. Saturday, 24 March 2012 however was the date that marked legendary Villa midfielder Petrov’ final appearance for Villa. Thankfully Petrov would ultimately recover from his illness but his football career was ended at the age of 32. Petrov had made 219 appearances (206 Starts) over his 6 seasons with Villa and beyond just his playing achievements represented everything good about football. Petrov left a record behind of W87 D69 L63, 12 Goals, 13 Assists and 39 Bookings.

Gabriel Agbonlahor suffers his 75th defeat in a Villa shirt on his 245th appearance (222 Starts) to make it W95 D75 L75, 62 Goals, 31 Assists and 25 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Stephen Ireland makes his 25th start in a Villa shirt (35 Appearances) and has now gone 8 games without a goal involvement, and 31st in total to record W8 D11 L16, 1 Goal, 2 Assists and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Off the pitch Charles N'Zogbia and Alex McLeish kiss and make up after an unseemly and unecessary spat add further woe to Villa's season.

Villa suffer consecutive defeats to make it seven wins in thirty Premier League games under Alex McLeish but the out-pouring of love for Stiliyan Petrov eclipses any on pitch troubles.

Alex McLeish's Villa suffer a second successive defeat as an injury ravaged side - with nine first team players absent - respond from two goals down to equalise only for fifth placed Chelsea to score two late goals. 

After 30 games of a challenging Premier League campaign, Villa remained in 15th place, five points clear of the relegation places. A year previously, under Gérard Houllier, Villa had sat 14th, just a single point clear of the relegation places.

Marc Albrighton contributes his 20th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 68th appearance (41 Starts) to make it W22 D20 L26, 9 Goals, 11 Assists, 8 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Andreas Weimann makes his 1st start in a Villa shirt on his 11th appearance to make it W5 D3 L3, 1 Goal and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Eric Lichaj contributes his first assist in a Villa shirt on his 11th appearance (8 Starts) to make it W5 D2 L4, 2 Goals, 1 Assist and 3 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Barry Bannan suffers his 20th defeat in a Villa shirt on his 47th appearance (24 Starts) to make it W14 D13 L20, 2 Goals, 3 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Alex McLeish's Villa face a third successive game against a top 6 side and come away with a creditable and hard fought draw to remain in 15th six points clear of the relegation places with seven games left to play. 

Villa put in their strongest performance since New Years' eve as they are held to a thirteenth draw of the season after a late Liverpool equaliser at Anfield. Villa climb to 15th in the table but are now left with just seven wins in thirty one Premier League games under Alex McLeish as relegation remains entirely possible.

Samir Carruthers makes his Villa debut aged 19 after graduating from the youth team to become the 882nd player to play for Villa in first team League or Cup football.

Chris Herd scores his first goal in a Villa shirt on his 21st appearance (16 Starts) to make it W6 D6 L9, 1 Goal, 2 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Shay Given concedes his 40th goal in a Villa shirt on his 27th appearance at a rate of 1.40 League Goals per Game to make it W5 D12 L10, 40 Goals Conceded, 6 Clean Sheets and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Barry Bannan makes his 25th start in a Villa shirt (48 Appearances) to make it W14 D14 L20, 2 Goals, 4 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Stephen Ireland has now gone 10 games without a goal involvement, and 33rd in total on his 37th appearance in a Villa shirt (27 Starts) to make it W8 D12 L17, 1 Goal, 2 Assists and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa draw for the second successive game to make it fourteen stalemates for the season and just seven wins in thirty two Premier League games under Alex McLeish.

Villa are now without a home win in five months.

Gabriel Agbonlahor makes his 225th start in a Villa shirt (248 Appearances) to make it W95 D77 L76, 62 Goals, 31 Assists and 25 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Stephen Ireland contributes his first goal involvement in 11 games on his 38th appearance in a Villa shirt (28 Starts) to make it W8 D13 L17, 1 Goal, 3 Assists and 2 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Alex McLeish's Villa face a fourth game against a top 6 side in five matches as they face off against Ashley Young equipped League leaders Manchester United. The defeat - their first in three - leaves Villa in 15th six points clear of the relegation places with five games left to play.

Villa suffer a heavy defeat to end a run of successive draws as Alex McLeish calls for "three home Cup finals" to avoid relegation after posting just seven wins in thirty three Premier League games under his leadership.

James Collins makes his 100th start in a Villa shirt (105 Appearances) to make it W38 D38 L29, 6 Goals and 18 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Barry Bannan makes his 50th appearance in a Villa shirt (27 Starts) to make it W14 D15 L21, 2 Goals, 4 Assists and 5 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Gary Gardner collects his first booking in a Villa shirt on his 14th appearance (5 Starts) to make it W4 D4 L6, 0 Goals, 0 Assists and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Villa record a sixth goalless game and fifteenth draw under Alex McLeish to make it  seven wins in thirty four Premier League games as Villa sit 15th in the table six points clear of relegation with four to play as Martin O'Neill makes his first appearance at Villa Park since his moonlight flit in August 2010. 

Gabriel Agbonlahor makes his 250th appearance in a Villa shirt (227 Starts) to make it W95 D78 L77, 62 Goals, 31 Assists and 25 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

With relegation just a disappointing mathematical possibility the game before, Alex McLeish contrives to lose to Bolton at Villa Park to leave Villa just three points above the drop with three to play and in the worst form in the League - without a win in seven - and with only seven wins in thirty five this season. 

Even under Houllier in 2010-11 Villa were 6 points clear with 35 games played and in 13th place with 41 points.

Charles N'Zogbia contributes his 5th goal involvement in a Villa shirt on his 30th appearance (23 Starts) to make it W7 D13 L10, 1 Goal, 4 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Eric Lichaj collects his 5th booking in a Villa shirt on his 16th appearance (13 Starts) at a rate of 1 card for every 3.2 games he has played to make it W5 D5 L6, 2 Goals, 1 Assist and 5 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Villa record a seventh goalless game under Alex McLeish to make it seven wins in thirty six Premier League games.

Villa are now winless in the last 8 games under Alex McLeish.

Villa record their 16th draw in 36 matches under Alex McLeish.

Villa remain 15th, three points clear of the drop zone but with a vastly superior goal difference to the clubs around them. Relegation therefore looks unlikely but at least another point is needed to make certain. 

Samir Carruthers makes his final appearance for Villa aged 19 before moving on to MK Dons in August 2014 for a fee of £225,000. Carruthers had made a total of 3 substitute appearances for Villa all of which came in March and April 2012 leaving with a record of W0 D2 L1 and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.

Chris Herd makes his 25th appearance in a Villa shirt (20 Starts) to make it W6 D9 L10, 1 Goal, 2 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Emile Heskey collects his 10th booking in a Villa shirt on his 108th appearance (69 Starts) to make it W37 D37 L34, 14 Goals, 5 Assists, 10 Bookings and 1 Red Card so far in his Villa career.

Alex McLeish's Villa draw for the seventeenth time in 37 Premier League games but it is enough to ensure that, despite dropping to 16th in the table, Villa secure top flight football for 2012-13 with a game to spare, just as they had done in 2010-11.

Villa set an unwanted club record with only four wins all term.

A victory at Norwich next weekend will not prevent Villa recording their lowest points tally in 20 years as members of the Premier League.

Stephen Warnock makes his 100th appearance in a Villa shirt (99 Starts) to make it W35 D33 L32, 3 Goals, 8 Assists and 17 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Charles N'Zogbia contributes his 5th assist on his 25th start in a Villa shirt (32 Appearances) to make it W7 D15 L10, 1 Goal, 5 Assists and 4 Bookings so far in his Villa career.

Off the field, James Collins, Chris Herd and Fabian Delph are punished for a nightclub 'fracas' following the end of season awards event.

Villa end a most difficult season with just seven wins in thirty eight Premier League games as Alex McLeish's tenure ends exactly as many predicted but no one wanted.

Villa end the campaign without a win in ten games under Alex McLeish.

Villa end the season on their lowest points tally since another unpopular Scot, Billy McNeill, took Villa down in 1986-87. 

McLeish had masterminded 14 losses and 18 draws in a 38 game season. 

The irony however was that up until April 2012 McLeish’s record was actually better than that of his predecessor however the last eight games of the campaign - having lost skipper Stiliyan Petrov - were simply torrid and a respectable 15th, in a more competitive League than 2010-11 and with the same points gained as under Gérard Houllier, became 16th, no win in eight and once again an escape from relegation on the penultimate game of the season. 

Nobody would chose to be in a second successive relegation fight of course, however, from an objective point of view up until April the campaign had been an improvement. A manager who, in total contrast to his predecessor, wanted to be there - however much a huge swathe of fans understandably didn’t, oversaw a partial rebuild and galvanisation of a squad recovering from the destruction of the previous manager. That Villa had to deal with a huge injury list not only in numbers but also in influence and quality was just another reason to have cut some slack. 

But equally the football was often poor and overtly negative even in the better days and the manager’s provenance was never forgiven. It was right to part ways of course but the season itself deserves an objective re-evaluation away from the knee-jerk reaction to an unpopular appointment. 

The final eight games were inexcusably bad, and a season of standing still became a season of unwanted broken records of failure. However, taken as a whole, what had come immediately before and what would soon be upon Villa was immeasurably worse. 

Off the field an increasing culture of disconnection grew between the leadership of the club and the fan base and had led to two successive appointments of the wrong managers, at the wrong time, for the wrong club. The Villa hierarchy then simply couldn’t get a third successive managerial appointment wrong and a significant chunk of Villa fans had already made clear their favoured candidate sat in the opposition dug-out. 

Centre back Richard Dunne makes his final appearance for Villa aged 32 before moving on to Queens Park Rangers on a free transfer in July 2013. Dunne would miss the entire 2012-13 season through injury having made 111 appearances and leaving with a record of W39 D39 L33, 5 Goals, 1 Assist and 19 Bookings.

Centre back James Collins makes his final appearance for Villa aged 28 before returning to West Ham United for £2,880,000 in August 2012. Collins made 108 appearances (102 Starts) during his 3 seasons with Villa but would be sold by Paul Lambert on his arrival as Villa’s new boss despite a record of W38 D40 L30, 6 Goals and 18 Bookings and without a suitable replacement coming in. 

Centre back Carlos Cuéllar makes his final appearance for Villa aged 30 before moving on to Sunderland on a free transfer in July 2012. Cuéllar made 121 appearances (114 Starts) during his 4 seasons with Villa but would be sold by Paul Lambert on his arrival as Villa’s new boss despite a record of W53 D33 L35, 3 Goals, 5 Assists, 16 Bookings and 1 Red Card and without a suitable replacement coming in. 

Centre forward Emile Heskey makes his final appearance for Villa aged 34 before retiring from football. Heskey made 110 appearances but only 71 starts during his 4 seasons with Villa but would be sold by Paul Lambert on his arrival as Villa’s new boss. Heskey had contributed 19 goal involvements across his first 54 starts (83 Appearances) up to August 2011 but thereafter things dried up and Heskey was left without a goal in 27 games and without an assist in 47 to leave with a record of W37 D38 L35, 14 Goals, 5 Assists, 10 Bookings and 1 Red Card.

Right back Stephen Warnock makes 100th start and his 101st and final appearance for Villa aged 30 before moving on to Leeds United on a free transfer in January 2013. Warnock was a solid player who served Villa well over his 3 seasons and 101 appearances, however he was treated abominably by Gérard Houllier and later by Paul Lambert both of whom ostracised Warnock from first team consideration and considerably weakened the defensive options of the team. Warnock would depart with a record of W35 D33 L33, 3 Goals, 8 Assists and 17 Bookings.

Shay Given concedes his 50th goal in a Villa shirt on his 34th appearance at a rate of 1.41 League Goals per Game to make it W5 D16 L13, 50 Goals Conceded, 8 Clean Sheets and 1 Booking so far in his Villa career.