Game #4736
Aston Villa
Saturday, 30 November 2002
Lost
15th (-4)
Last 5: 🟩 🟩 🟨 🟩 🟥
Premier League
Attendance: 38,090
Arsenal
Highbury
Villa lose for the first time in six Premier League games as they fall back to fifteenth in the table.
Arsenal
3-1
Aston Villa
Assist(s) | Ulises De La Cruz | 64’ |
KEY MAN
Thomas Hitzlsperger, smashed home
PREVIOUS MATCH
NEXT MATCH
MATCH TIMELINE
Saturday, 30 November 2002
🥅 | 17’ Goal, 0-1, (Arsenal), Robert Pirés
🕒 | HT Arsenal 1-0 Aston Villa
🔁 | 46’ Sub off, Lee Hendrie, Sub on, Ulises de la Cruz
🥅 | 49’ Goal, 0-2, (Arsenal), Thierry Henry
🟨 | 60’ Booking, Thomas Hitzlsperger
⚽ | 64’ Goal, 1-2, Thomas Hitzlsperger, Assist by Ulises de la Cruz
🥅 | 82’ Goal, 1-3, (Arsenal, pen), Thierry Henry
🟨 | 84’ Booking, Ian Taylor
🟨 | 90’ Booking, Dion Dublin
🕒 | FT Arsenal 3-1 Aston Villa
ON THIS DAY
Villa's mini revival suffers a setback at leaders Arsenal to drop back to 15th place.
Aston Villa
European Cup / Champions League: 🏆
UEFA Cup Winners Cup: ❌
League Champions: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆
League Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
Last Trophy: 1995-96
Arsenal
European Cup / Champions League: ❌
UEFA Cup Winners Cup: 🏆
League Champions: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 🏆🏆🏆
League Cup Winners: 🏆🏆
Last Trophy: 2001-02
FIXTURE HISTORY
Arsenal
Previous 5 vs. Arsenal: 🟨 🟥 🟨 🟥 🟥
FIXTURE DETAILS
Season | 2002-03 |
Matchday | #22 |
League Game | #16 |
Manager Game | #35 |
Saturday, 30 November 2002
MATCH SUMMARY
Manager: Graham Taylor | 🏴 | Worksop, 2002-2003
Referee: Graham Barber | 🏴 | Tring, 1994-2004
Kick off: 3.00pm
HT Score: 🟥 0-1
FT Score: 🟥 1-3
FT Result: 🟥 Lost
Last 5: 🟩 🟩 🟨 🟩 🟥
MANAGERIAL RECORD
Graham Taylor | 🏴 |
GAMES | WINS | DRAWS | LOSSES | POINTS PER GAME
🕒 35 | 🟩 | 11 🟨 | 9 🟥 15 | 1.20
Career Form:
Bottom 8
Graham Taylor | 🏴 |
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Graham Barber | 🏴 | Tring, 1994-2004
Previous 5: 🟨 🟥 🟨 🟩 🟥
Last Match: 🟥 6 April 2002, Villa 1-2 Middlesbrough, Riverside Stadium.
Cards: 🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨
Graham Barber
CARDS
Villa
🟨 🟨 🟨
Arsenal
🟨 🟨
TEAM NEWS
Ronny Johnsen replaces Gareth Barry.
TEAM STATS
Starting XI Average Age
| 28.11 |
Oldest Player |
M Ian Taylor | 🏴 | 34.51 |
Youngest Player |
M Thomas Hitzlsperger | 🇩🇪 | 20.67 |
MANAGER
MANAGER
Graham Taylor | 🏴 |
Arsène Wenger | 🇫🇷 |
Aston Villa
GK Peter Enckelman | 🇫🇮 |
LB Steve Staunton | 🇮🇪 |
CB Olof Mellberg | 🇸🇪 |
CB Ronny Johnsen | 🇳🇴 |
RB Jlloyd Samuel | 🏴 |
M Ian Taylor | 🏴 | 🟨 |
M Lee Hendrie | 🏴 | 🔁 |
M Thomas Hitzlsperger | 🇩🇪 | 🟨 | ⚽ |
M Öyvind Leonhardsen | 🇳🇴 |
CF Dion Dublin | 🏴 | 🟨 |
F Darius Vassell | 🏴 |
Arsenal
GK Rami Shaaban | 🇸🇪 |
LB Giovanni van Bronckhorst | 🇳🇱 |
CB Pascal Cygan | 🇫🇷 |
CB Sol Campbell | 🏴 |
CB Kolo Touré | 🇨🇮 | 🔁 |
RB Oleg Luzhniy | 🇺🇦 | (🟨)
M Patrick Viera | 🇫🇷 |
M Gilberto Silva | 🇧🇷 |
W Robert Pirés | 🇫🇷 | ⚽ | 🔁 |
CF Thierry Henry | 🇫🇷 | ⚽ | ⚽ |
F Dennis Bergkamp | 🇳🇱 | 🔁 |
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 RB Ulises de la Cruz | 🇪🇨 | 🔥 | for M Lee Hendrie | 🏴 | 46’ |
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 | CB Kolo Touré | 🇨🇮 | (CB Martin Keown (ex) | 🏴 |)
🔁 | W Robert Pirés | 🇫🇷 | (M Freddie Ljungberg | 🇸🇪 |)
🔁 | F Dennis Bergkamp | 🇳🇱 | (F Sylvain Wiltord | 🇫🇷 |)
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
GK Stefan Postma | 🇳🇱 |
M Mark Kinsella | 🇮🇪 |
CF Juan Pablo Ángel | 🇨🇴 |
F Marcus Allbäck | 🇸🇪 |
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
GK Stuart Taylor | 🏴 |
CF Francis Jeffers | 🏴 |
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 5/11
Homegrown: 4/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 7/16
Homegrown: 4/16
MATCHDAY SQUAD
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 1/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 4/16
MATCHDAY SQUAD
UNAVAILABLE
Not reported
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
MATCH STATS
Not reported
TABLE
PROGRAMME
MATCHDAY QUOTES
“The penalty killed off the possibility of us coming back to get a draw.”
Graham Taylor.
*BBC Sport*
Saturday, 30 November, 2002
*Rampant Henry sinks Villa*
Thierry Henry completed a dream week with two more goals as Arsenal moved four points clear at the Premiership summit.
Henry followed up his midweek hat-trick against Roma with two second-half strikes to add to an early opener from Robert Pires.
The Gunners were forced to weather a late storm after Thomas Hitzlsperger smashed home for Villa.
But a Henry penalty eight minutes from time put the pressure firmly on title rivals Liverpool and Manchester United.
Arsene Wenger rested Freddie Ljungberg and Sylvain Wiltord after their Champions League exertions in Rome, and Ashley Cole missed out with an ankle injury.
But the trio’s absence made little impact.
It took Pires just 17 minutes to mark his first Premiership start since March with a goal, running on to Dennis Bergkamp’s defence-splitting pass and firing through Peter Enckelman’s legs.
Kolo Toure looked to have doubled the lead on 34 minutes with a tap-in after Henry’s shot bounced back off the post, but his effort was ruled offside.
Despite having scored just once on their travels this season, Villa still posed a threat.
Darius Vassell tested keeper Rami Shabaan with an early shot and Oyvind Leonhardsen headed Olof Mellberg’s cross over the bar.
Dion Dublin saw an effort trickle just past the post after Hitzlsperger’s cross caused panic in the Arsenal area.
Villa boss Graham Taylor replaced Lee Hendrie with Ulises de la Cruz at half-time, switching to a 3-5-2 formation.
But the visitors paid dearly for giving away a free-kick in the danger zone just four minutes after the restart.
Henry stepped up from the same sort of range he had scored from in Rome, and again curled the ball into the top corner.
But Villa refused to give up, and Hitzlsperger set up a nervy final 26 minutes with a superb rising drive from 25 yards.
De La Cruz fired straight at Shabaan as Arsenal began to stutter.
But Henry sealed the win after Steve Staunton brought down substitute Ljungberg in the area, coolly chipping the ball over Enckelman for his fifth goal of the week.
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. With thanks to Trinity Mirror. Digitised by Findmypast Newspaper Archive Limited. All rights reserved. Source: British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)