Game #4167
Aston Villa
Wednesday, 21 August 1991
Lost
9th (-7)
Last 5: 🟥 🟩 🟨 🟩 🟥
Division One
Attendance: 39,995
Manchester United
Villa Park
Aston Villa
0-1
Manchester United
Assist(s) | None
MATCH SUMMARY
Villa suffer a narrow defeat to Manchester United in Ron Atkinson's first home game as manager,
KEY MAN
Steve Staunton, stylish display.
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Copyright Historical Football Kits and reproduced by kind permission.
MATCH TIMELINE
Wednesday, 21 August 1991
🥅 | 38’ Goal, 0-1, (Manchester United, pen), Steve Bruce
🕒 | HT Aston Villa 0-1 Manchester United
🔁 | 79’ Sub off, Paul Mortimer, Sub on, Ian Olney
🕒 | FT Aston Villa 0-1 Manchester United
ON THIS DAY
Villa suffer their first defeat under Ron Atkinson as future Villa boss (2016-18) Steve Bruce scores the winner from the penalty spot. Meanwhile, Derek Mountfield made his final appearance for Villa aged 28 before moving on to Wolverhampton Wanderers in November 1991 for a fee of £150,000. Mountfield had played for Villa between 1988-89 and 1991-92 making 120 appearances and scoring 17 goals. Mountfield had been part of the legendary defensive group of Paul McGrath, Kent Nielsen and Derek who are fondly remembered by all who saw them in claret and blue.
Aston Villa
European Cup / Champions League: 🏆
League Champions: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆
League Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆
Last Trophy: 1981-82
Manchester United
European Cup / Champions League: 🏆
UEFA Cup Winners Cup: 🏆
League Champions: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆
League Cup Winners: ❌
Last Trophy: 1990-91
FIXTURE HISTORY
Manchester United
Previous 5 vs. United: 🟨 🟩 🟥 🟨 🟨
FIXTURE DETAILS
Season | 1991-92 |
Matchday | #2 |
League Match | #2 |
Manager Game | #2 |
Wednesday, 21 August 1991
MATCH SUMMARY
Manager: Ron Atkinson | 🏴 | Liverpool, 1991-1994
Referee: Keith Cooper | 🏴 | Pontypridd, 1982-1996
HT Score: 🟥 0-1
FT Result: 🟥 Lost
FT Score: 🟥 0-1
Last 5: 🟥 🟩 🟨 🟩 🟥
MANAGERIAL RECORD
Ron Atkinson | 🏴 |
GAMES | WINS | DRAWS | LOSSES | POINTS PER GAME
🕒 2 | 🟩 | 1 🟨 | 0 🟥 1 | 1.50
Villa Career Form:
Top 8
ALL THE MATCHES LED BY:
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Keith Cooper | 🏴 | Pontypridd, 1982-1996
Previous 5: 🟥 🟥 🟩 🟨
Last Match: 🟨 19 August 1989, Villa 1-1 Forest, City Ground.
Incidents: 🟨 🟨
ALL THE MATCHES REFEREED BY:
CARDS
Villa
None
Manchester United
🟨 🟨
TEAM NEWS
Gary Penrice replaces Dalian Atkinson.
TEAM STATS
Starting XI Average Age
| 28.12 |
Oldest Player |
CF Cyrille Regis | 🏴 | 33.55 |
Youngest Player |
CF Dwight Yorke | 🇹🇹 | 19.81 |
MANAGER
Ron Atkinson | 🏴 |
Aston Villa
GK Nigel Spink | 🏴 |
LB Steve Staunton | 🇮🇪 |
CB Derek Mountfield | 🏴 |
CB Shaun Teale | 🏴 |
CB Paul McGrath | 🇮🇪 |
M Gordon Cowans | 🏴 |
M Paul Mortimer | 🏴 | 🔁 |
M Kevin Richardson | 🏴 |
CF Cyrille Regis | 🏴 |
CF Dwight Yorke | 🇹🇹 |
CF Gary Penrice | 🏴 |
MANAGER
Alex Ferguson | 🏴 |
Manchester United
GK Peter Schmeichel | 🇩🇰 |
LB Mal Donaghy | 🇬🇧 |
LB Clayton Blackmore | 🏴 |
LB Denis Irwin | 🇮🇪 |
CB Steve Bruce | 🏴 | ⚽ |
RB Paul Parker | 🏴 |
M Paul Ince | 🏴 | 🟨 |
M Bryan Robson | 🏴 |
W Andrey Kanchelskis | 🇷🇺 |
CF Brian McClair | 🏴 | 🟨 |
CF Mark Hughes | 🏴 |
Not necessarily indicative of the actual matchday formation
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 CF Ian Olney | 🏴 | for M Paul Mortimer | 🏴 | 79’ |
SUBSTITUTES
No Substitutions Made
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
CB Ugo Ehiogu | 🏴 |
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
CB Gary Pallister | 🏴 |
W Ryan Giggs | 🏴 |
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 8/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 10/13
MATCHDAY SQUAD
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 8/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 10/13
MATCHDAY SQUAD
UNAVAILABLE
Not recorded
UNAVAILABLE
Not Recorded
Player Positions:
GK : Goalkeeper
CB, D, B : Centre Back, Defender, Back
FB, LB, RB, WH : Full Back, Left Back, Right Back, Wing Back, Wing Half
M, CH, LH, RH : Midfielder, Centre Half, Left Half, Right Half
W, OL, OR : Winger, Outside Left, Outside Right
F, IF, IL, IR : Forward, Inside Forward, Inside Left, Inside Right, Second Striker, False 9
CF : Centre Forward
Match Symbols:
⚽ | Goal
🔥 | Assist
🔁 | Substitution
🟨 | Booking
🟥 | Sending off
🆘 | Poor refereeing performance
🟢 : Debut 🔴 : Final Game
DEBUT APPEARANCES
FINAL APPEARANCES
🔴 CB Derek Mountfield | 🏴 |
MATCH STATS
Not recorded
LEAGUE TABLE
MATCHDAY PROGRAMME
MATCHDAY QUOTES
"Atkinson would appear to have the necessary components. His task now is assembling them into a smooth-running machine."
*Birmingham Evening Mail*
Thursday, 22 August 1991
BIG RON'S UNFINISHED SYMPHONY
ON the night big-time show-biz returned to Villa Park, the leading performers were struck by stage fright.
After Saturday's appetising overture at Hillsborough, Ron Atkinson's men were sadly out of tune in the second movement of their own New World symphony.
This was more like the unfinished symphony, very much a movement-by-numbers desperately trying to merge into a real music.
Yet the preliminaries had been so promising. Atkinson was presented with a Barclays Special award to mark his achievements with Wednesday last season, and at kick-off time the chant “Villa, Villa" echoed with greater volume than it has for nearly a decade.
By the end, though, the subdued atmosphere of acceptance on the Holte End reflected how Villa had played
The current Old Trafford unit has been four or five years in the making, and how it showed against a home side who are barely even on first name terms at the moment.
On paper, the teams were ultimately separated only by Steve Bruce's penalty following Gordon Cowans’ trip on Bryan Robson.
With Robson and Paul Ince clear winners of the midfield battle against Cowans and Kevin Richardson, United were deliberate and purposeful, while Villa sadly lacked direction.
If the expectancy level was much too high in the wake of opening day euphoria, however, it should be remembered that Atkinson's team is only at the embryo stage - and there were several promising signs. - Shaun Teale, with the exception of the initial slip which led to United's penalty, never put a foot wrong;
Steve Staunton turned in a stylish display at left-back; Gary Penrice looked sharp and menacing. And veteran Cyrille Regis, who expected to be no more than a squad player when he signed on a free transfer, has quickly established himself as Villa's most dangerous forward.
His magnificent 23rd minute header from a Cowans corner smacked unluckily against a post, and almost immediately his deflected drive was turned over an inviting goal by Dwight Yorke.
That unfortunately was the home side's only real spell of sustained pressure. Atkinson would appear to have the necessary components. His task now is assembling them into a smooth-running machine. On his own admission, they are far from the finished article. Too many of us overlooked that fact after Saturday's amazing recovery.
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. With thanks to Reach PLC. Digitised by Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited. All rights reserved. Source: British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)