Premier League 2005-06 | Villa in the 2000s

Season #117

| 2005-06 |

Games #4889 - #4933 |

2005-06 Club Summary

President | John Alderson

Chairman | Herbert Douglas Ellis

Manager | David O'Leary

Secretary | Steve Stride

2005-06 Season Summary

2005-06 Premier League Table

| 14 | Middlesbrough | P38 | W12 | D9 | L17 | F48 | A58 | GD-10 | Pts 45 |
| 15 | Manchester City | P38 | W13 | D4 | L21 | F43 | A48 | GD-5 | Pts 43 |
| 16 | Aston Villa | P38 | W10 | D12 | L16 | F42 | A55 | GD-13 | Pts 42 |
| 17 | Portsmouth | P38 | W10 | D8 | L20 | F37 | A62 | GD-25 | Pts 38 |
| 18 | Birmingham City | P38 | W8 | D10 | L20 | F28 | A50 | GD-22 | Pts 34 |

2005-06 Results

| 1 | 13 Aug | h | Bolton Wanderers | D | 2-2 | Match Report

| 2 | 20 Aug | a | Manchester United | L | 0-1 | Match Report

| 3 | 23 Aug | a | Portsmouth | D | 1-1 | Match Report

| 4 | 27 Aug | h | Blackburn Rovers | W | 1-0 | Match Report

| 5 | 12 Sep | a | West Ham United | L | 0-4 | Match Report

| 6 | 17 Sep | h | Tottenham Hotspur | D | 1-1 | Match Report

| 7 | 20 Sep | a | Wycombe Wanderers (LC R2) | W | 8-3 | Match Report

| 8 | 24 Sep | a | Chelsea | L | 1-2 | Match Report

| 9 | 2 Oct | h | Middlesbrough | L | 2-3 | Match Report

| 10 | 16 Oct | a | Birmingham City | W | 1-0 | Match Report

| 11 | 22 Oct | h | Wigan Athletic | L | 0-2 | Match Report

| 12 | 25 Oct | h | Burnley (LC R3) | W | 1-0 | Match Report

| 13 | 31 Oct | a | Manchester City | L | 1-3 | Match Report

| 14 | 5 Nov | h | Liverpool | L | 0-2 | Match Report

| 15 | 19 Nov | a | Sunderland | W | 3-1 | Match Report

| 16 | 26 Nov | h | Charlton Athletic | W | 1-0 | Match Report

| 17 | 29 Nov | a | Doncaster Rovers (LC R4) | L | 0-3 | Match Report

| 18 | 3 Dec | a | Newcastle United | D | 1-1 | Match Report

| 19 | 10 Dec | a | Bolton Wanderers | D | 1-1 | Match Report

| 20 | 17 Dec | a | Manchester United | L | 0-2 | Match Report

| 21 | 26 Dec | h | Everton | W | 4-0 | Match Report

| 22 | 28 Dec | a | Fulham | D | 3-3 | Match Report

| 23 | 31 Dec | h | Arsenal | D | 0-0 | Match Report

| 24 | 2 Jan | a | West Bromwich Albion | W | 2-1 | Match Report

| 25 | 7 Jan | a | Hull City (FAC R3) | W | 1-0 | Match Report

| 26 | 14 Jan | h | West Ham United | L | 1-2 | Match Report

| 27 | 21 Jan | a | Tottenham Hotspur | D | 0-0 | Match Report

| 28 | 28 Jan | h | Port Vale (FAC R4) | W | 3-1 | Match Report

| 29 | 1 Feb | h | Chelsea | D | 1-1 | Match Report

| 30 | 4 Feb | a | Middlesbrough | W | 4-0 | Match Report

| 31 | 11 Feb | h | Newcastle United | L | 1-2 | Match Report

| 32 | 19 Feb | h | Manchester City (FAC R5) | D | 1-1 | Match Report

| 33 | 25 Feb | a | Charlton Athletic | D | 0-0 | Match Report

| 34 | 4 Mar | h | Portsmouth | W | 1-0 | Match Report

| 35 | 11 Mar | a | Blackburn Rovers | L | 0-2 | Match Report

| 36 | 14 Mar | a | Manchester City (FAC R5 Replay) | L | 1-2 | Match Report

| 37 | 18 Mar | a | Everton | L | 1-4 | Match Report

| 38 | 25 Mar | h | Fulham | D | 0-0 | Match Report

| 39 | 1 Apr | a | Arsenal | L | 0-5 | Match Report

| 40 | 9 Apr | h | West Bromwich Albion | D | 0-0 | Match Report

| 41 | 16 Apr | h | Birmingham City | W | 3-1 | Match Report

| 42 | 18 Apr | a | Wigan Athletic | L | 2-3 | Match Report

| 43 | 25 Apr | h | Manchester City | L | 0-1 | Match Report

| 44 | 29 Apr | a | Liverpool | L | 1-3 | Match Report

| 45 | 7 May | h | Sunderland | W | 2-1 | Match Report

2005-06 Season Review

After too many false dawns and false hopes the end of the Ellis regime was nigh. Ironically Ellis' final campaign saw Villa actually bring in new players that complemented the quality of the likes of Laursen and Mellberg in the squad. Finally Juan Pablo Ángel had a quality strike partner in the form of the talented but erratic Milan Baroš and Villa raided Newcastle to snap up the talented James Milner on loan with a view to a permanent transfer at season end.

Combined with the signing of Wilfred Bouma and the emergence of fresh young talent like Gary Cahill and Gabby Agbonlahor - Villa had the look of a club regaining a sense of ambition after 4 listless seasons since John Gregory left.

In truth this was a typical Ellis strategy, starve the club of timely investment and only open the purse strings garnered from the Premier League riches when his personal position came under threat. As a result the squad remained disjointed without a consistent level of quality, something that was exacerbated by the loss of one of the brightest players of the last 18 months as Nobby Solano returned to Newcastle.

On the pitch the addition of higher quality to the squad benefited some performances but it wasn't enough to paper over the cracks of the O'Leary/Ellis regime and by season end after a poor 16th placed finish both an unpopular manager and Chairman had gone.

Bright future, proud history.

Saturday, 22 October 2005 vs Wigan Athletic

Saturday, 11 February 2006 vs Newcastle United

Tuesday, 25 April 2006 vs Manchester City

Saturday, 27 August 2005 vs Blackburn Rovers

Saturday, 17 December 2005 vs Manchester United

Saturday, 26 November 2005 vs Charlton Athletic

Saturday, 17 September 2005 vs Tottenham Hotspur

Sunday, 9 April 2006 vs West Bromwich Albion

Sunday, 19 February 2006 vs Manchester City

Sunday, 16 April 2006 vs Birmingham City

Saturday, 13 August 2005 vs Bolton Wanderers

Saturday, 14 January 2006 vs West Ham United

2005-06 Season Statistics

Games | 45 |

Won | 14 | 31% |
Drew | 13 | 29% |
Lost | 18 | 40% |

Unbeaten | 27 | 60% |

Goals Scored | 57 | 1.27 Goals per game |
Goals Conceded | 65 | 1.44 Goals per game |
Clean Sheets | 13 | 29% |

Average Home Attendance | 33,149 |

Longest winning run | 2 Games |

Games without a win | 6 Games |

2005-06 Squad Changes

Incoming | 10 |

#784 Aaron Hughes | Newcastle United | £1,350,000 | Jul 05 | 25 |

#785 Kevin Phillips | Southampton | £1,350,000 | Jul 05 | 32 |

#788 Wilfred Bouma | PSV Eindhoven | £4,230,000 | Jul 05 | 27 |

#786 Milan Baroš | Liverpool | £7,960,000 | Aug 05 | 23 |

Ougoing | 8 |

#730 Darius Vassell | Manchester City | £3,240,000 | Jul 05 | 25 |

Wayne Henderson | Brighton & Hove Albion | £45,000 | Jul 05 | 21 |

#777 Nolberto Solano | Newcastle United | £2,030,000 | Jan 06 | 31 |

2005-06 Squad Changes

Debut Appearances | 11 |

Final Appearances | 5 |

2005-06 Squad Statistics

Squad Size | 28 | (+4) |
Average Age | 25.6 | (+1.1) |

Average 1st XI Age | 25.63 | -0.55 |

Youngest 1st XI | 24.31 | Everton (a) | -0.90 |

Oldest 1st XI | 27.37 | Bolton Wanderers (h) | +0.23 |

Youngest Player(s) | 19 |

Craig Gardner | 25-Nov-1986

Oldest Player(s) | 32 |

Kevin Phillips | 25-Jun-1973

2005-06 Scorers

Goals Scored | 57 | League Goals | 42 | FA Cup Goals | 6 | League Cup Goals | 9 |

| 11 |

Milan Baroš | Goals | 11 | League | 8 | FA Cup | 2 | League Cup | 1 |

| 8 |
Steven Davis | Goals | 8 | League | 4 | FA Cup | 2 | League Cup | 2 |
Luke Moore | Goals | 8 | League | 8 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 0 |

| 6 |
Gareth Barry | Goals | 6 | League | 3 | FA Cup | 1 | League Cup | 2 |

| 5 |
Kevin Phillips | Goals | 5 | League | 4 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 1 |

Liam Ridgewell | Goals | 5 | League | 5 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 0 |

| 4 |
Juan Pablo Ángel | Goals | 4 | League | 3 | FA Cup | 1 | League Cup | 0 |

| 3 |
James Milner | Goals | 3 | League | 1 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 2 |

| 2 |
Own Goal | Goals | 2 | League | 1 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 1 |

| 1 |
Gavin McCann | Goals | 1 | League | 1 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 0 |
Mark Delaney | Goals | 1 | League | 1 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 0 |
Lee Hendrie | Goals | 1 | League | 1 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 0 |
Gabby Agbonlahor | Goals | 1 | League | 1 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 0 |
Gary Cahill | Goals | 1 | League | 1 | FA Cup | 0 | League Cup | 0 |

2005-06 First Team Squad

#716 | 7 | Lee Hendrie | 28 |

#728 | 6 | Gareth Barry | 24 |

#740 | 2 | Mark Delaney | 29 |
#745 | 3 | Jlloyd Samuel | 24 |
#756 | 9 | Juan Pablo Ángel | 29 |
#760 | 4 | Olof Mellberg | 27 |
#767 | 31 | Ulises de la Cruz | 31 |

#772 | 21 | Liam Ridgewell | 21 |
#774 | 17 | Peter Whittingham | 20 |
#775 | 1 | Thomas Sörensen | 29 |
#776 | 8 | Gavin McCann | 27 |
#777 | 11 | Nolberto Solano | 30 | LEFT JANUARY 2006
#778 | 20 | Luke Moore | 19 |
#779 | 5 | Martin Laursen | 28 |
#781 | 12 | Steven Davis | 20 |

#782 | - | Mathieu Berson | 25 |
#783 | 24 | Eric Djemba-Djemba | 24 |
#784 | 18 | Aaron Hughes | 25 |
#785 | 20 | Kevin Phillips | 32 |
#786 | 10 | Milan Baroš | 23 |
#787 | 23 | Patrik Berger | 31 |
#788 | 16 | Wilfred Bouma | 27 |
#789 | 11 | James Milner | 19 |

#790 | 20 | Gary Cahill | 19 |
#791 | 24 | Eirik Bakke | 27 | LEFT JANUARY 2006

#792 | 13 | Stuart Taylor | 24 |
#793 | 26 | Craig Gardner | 18 |
#794 | 30 | Gabby Agbonlahor | 18 |

| - | Wayne Henderson | 21 |

2005-06 Appearances

| 43 |

| 42 |

| 41 |

| 38 |

| 37 |

| 33 |

| 32 |

| 30 |

| 27 |

| 24 |

| 21 |

| 19 |

| 16 |

| 14 |

| 9 |

| 8 |

| 4 |

| 3 |

| 2 |

| 1 |

| 0 |

2005-06 'Keepers

Thomas Sörensen | Appearances | 43 | Conceded | 56 | Ratio | 1.30 |

Stuart Taylor | Appearances | 2 | Conceded | 4 | Ratio | 2.00 |

2005-06 Managerial Record

David O’Leary’s third and final season as Villa boss saw a poor 16th place finish in the Premier League and exits from both cups to lower league opposition.

In truth O’Leary's tenure had been falling apart since his first season and it was painfully inevitable that he wouldn’t survive as boss. Indeed it is doubtful he would have started a third season as Villa manager had it not been for the death throes of the Ellis regime attempting to shore up support wherever it could be found in the club.

O’Leary had achieved a win rate of 36%, losing 37% of their 131 League and Cup matches.

As a result O’Leary had returned 1.35 points per game* across his 131 games in charge of Villa. In doing so was only ahead of his predecessors Billy McNeill (1.05 in 42), Tommy Cummings (1.06 in 67), Graham Taylor Mk 2 (1.17 in 60), Tommy Doherty (1.20 in 55), Graham Turner (1.23 in 107), Dick Taylor (1.23 in 146), Villa’s first professional manager Jimmy McMullan (1.24 in 99), Jozef Vengloš (1.29 in 49) and Eric Houghton (1.31 in 250).

By contrast O'Leary was behind George Martin (1.42 in 119), Brian Little (1.51 in 154), Joe Mercer (1.51 in 282), Ron Atkinson (1.53 in 180), Tony Barton (1.56 in 137), Alex Massie (1.56 in 227) and John Gregory (1.57 in 190), Jimmy Hogan (1.59 in 124), Graham Taylor Mk 1 (1.61 in 150), Billy Smith’s 1.62 across 364 games, Vic Crowe (1.63 in 222), Ron Saunders (1.64 in 393) and George Ramsay’s performance of 1.69 across his 1,332 games.

*Rankings based on 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw in all competitions.

2005-06 Kits

2005-06 Season Results

Game #4889

FT Score | 2-2 |

Last 5 Games | DLLLD |

League Position | 7th | - |

Line Up |

Match Report

On this day 13 August 2005

Left back Aaron Hughes made his Villa debut aged 25 after joining from Newcastle United for a fee of £1,350,000 in July 2005.

Forward Kevin Phillips made his Villa debut aged 32 after joining from Southampton for a fee of £1,350,000 in July 2005.

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Game #4890

FT Score | 0-1 |

Last 5 Games | LLLDL |

League Position | 12th | -5 |

Line Up |

Substitutes |

M Eric Djemba-Djemba for FB Jlloyd Samuel | 20’ |

W Nolberto Solano for RB Ulises de la Cruz | 73’ |
F Luke Moore for W Peter Whittingham | 73’ |

Cards |

Yellow | Olof Mellberg | 12’ |

Match Report

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Game #4891

FT Score | 1-1 |

Last 5 Games | LLDLD |

League Position | 14th | -2 |

Scorers | Own Goal | 11’ |

Line Up |

Substitutes |

RB Ulises de la Cruz for F Kevin Phillips | 37’ |
F Luke Moore for CF Juan Pablo Ángel | 74’ |

Cards |

Yellow | Gareth Barry | 16’ |
Red | Nolberto Solano | 11’ |

Match Report

On this day 23 August 2005

Winger Nolberto Solano made his final appearance for Villa aged 30 before returning to Newcastle United for a fee of £2,030,000 in January 2006. Nobby had cost Villa £1,800,000 in January 2004 and made 52 appearances, scoring 10 goals in what had been a committed and productive although short Villa career.

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Game #4892

FT Score | 1-0 |

Last 5 Games | LDLDW |

League Position | 8th | +6 |

Line Up |

Substitutes |

W Patrik Berger DEBUT | for W Peter Whittingham | 69’ |

Cards |

Yellow | Olof Mellberg | 19’ |

Yellow | Milan Baroš | 90’ |

Match Report

On this day 27 August 2005

Czech international forward Milan Baroš made a goalscoring debut for Villa aged 23 after joining from Liverpool for a fee of £7,960,000 earlier this month.

Czech international winger Patrik Berger made his Villa debut aged 31 after joining from Portsmouth on a free transfer in July 2005.

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Game #4893

FT Score | 0-4 |

Last 5 Games | DLDWL |

League Position | 14th | -6 |

Line Up |

Substitutes |

CF Juan Pablo Ángel for F Kevin Phillips | 57’ |
W Patrik Berger for M Gareth Barry | 62’ |
M Lee Hendrie for M Gavin McCann | 81’ |

Cards |

Yellow | Gareth Barry | 21’ |

On this day 12 September 2005