Game #4776
Sunday, 23 November 2003
Attendance: 33,140
Lost
Premier League
18th (-1)
Tottenham Hotspur
Last 5: 🟨 🟩 🟨 🟥 🟥
White Hart Lane
Villa's concerning form under David O'Leary continues as they lose for the second successive game in a sequence of seven winless Premier League games to leave them 16th in the table with just two wins in thirteen.
Tottenham Hotspur
2-1
Aston Villa
Assist(s) | Peter Whittingham | 66’ |
KEY MAN
Marcus Allbäck heads Villa into the lead but they lose once again to leave David O'Leary with two wins in his first thirteen Premier League games in charge, Sunday, 23 November 2003.
RELATED MATCHES
MATCH TIMELINE
🟨 | 39’ Booking, Lee Hendrie
🕒 | HT Tottenham Hotspur 0-0 Aston Villa
⚽ | 66’ Goal, 1-0, Marcus Allbäck, Assist by Peter Whittingham
🥅 | 78’ Goal, 1-1, (Tottenham Hotspur), Rohan Ricketts
🔁 | 80’ Sub off, Mark Delaney, Sub on, Dion Dublin
🥅 | 81’ Goal, 1-2, (Tottenham Hotspur), Robbie Keane
🔁 | 87’ Sub off, Lee Hendrie, Sub on, Stefan Moore
🕒 | FT Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Aston Villa
ON THIS DAY
Villa's season descends further into the mire as David O'Leary sees his side lose a second successive game and record a seventh game without a win. As a result, Villa fall to 18th in the table - their lowest position of the season - and into the relegation places as they are in real danger of out under-performing even the torrid 2002-03 campaign. Villa were desperately in need of inspiration but there was simply no-one of that calibre available in a largely workmanlike squad if talisman Juan Pablo Ángel was not firing.
Aston Villa
European Cup / Champions League: 🏆
UEFA Cup / Europa League: ❌
UEFA Cup Winners Cup: ❌
League Champions: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
League Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
Last Trophy: 1995-96
Tottenham Hotspur
European Cup / Champions League: ❌
UEFA Cup / Europa League: 🏆🏆
UEFA Cup Winners Cup: 🏆
League Champions: 🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
League Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆
Last Trophy: 1998-99
FIXTURE HISTORY
Previous 5 vs. Spurs: 🟨 🟨 🟨 🟥 🟥
FIXTURE DETAILS
Season | 2003-04 |
Matchday | #15 |
League Game | #13 |
Manager Game | #15 |
Sunday, 23 November 2003
MATCH SUMMARY
Manager: David O’Leary | 🇮🇪 | Stoke Newington, 2003-2006
Referee: Jeff Winter | 🏴 | Middlesbrough, 1992-2004
Kick off: 4.05pm
HT Score: 🟨 0-0
FT Score: 🟥 1-2
FT Result: 🟥 Lost
Last 5: 🟨 🟩 🟨 🟥 🟥
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Jeff Winter | 🏴 | Middlesbrough, 1992-2004
Previous 5: 🟥 🟩 🟥 🟨 🟥
Last Match: 🟥 27 September 2003, Villa 0-1 Chelsea, Stamford Bridge.
Cards: 🟨
CARDS
Villa
🟨
Tottenham Hotspur
None
TEAM NEWS
Thomas Hitzlsperger and Darius Vassell replace Gavin McCann (suspension) and Juan Pablo Ángel.
TEAM STATS
Starting XI Average Age
| 25.67 |
Oldest Player |
CB Ronny Johnsen | 🇳🇴 | 34.48 |
Youngest Player |
W Peter Whittingham | 🏴 | 19.22 |
MANAGER
David O'Leary | 🇮🇪 |
MANAGER
Chris Hughton | 🇮🇪 |
Aston Villa
GK Thomas Sörensen | 🇩🇰 |
CB Ronny Johnsen | 🇳🇴 |
CB Olof Mellberg | 🇸🇪 |
RB Jlloyd Samuel | 🏴 |
RB Mark Delaney | 🏴 | 🔁 |
M Gareth Barry | 🏴 |
M Lee Hendrie | 🏴 | 🟨 | 🔁 |
M Thomas Hitzlsperger | 🇩🇪 |
W Peter Whittingham | 🏴 | 🔥 |
F Marcus Allbäck | 🇸🇪 | ⚽ |
F Darius Vassell | 🏴 |
Tottenham Hotspur
GK Kasey Keller | 🇺🇸 |
LB Mauricio Taricco | 🇦🇷 |
LB Paul Konchesky | 🏴 | 🔁 |
CB Ledley King | 🏴 |
CB Anthony Gardner | 🏴 |
CB Dean Richards | 🏴 |
RB Stephen Carr | 🇮🇪 |
M Stéphane Dalmat | 🇫🇷 |
W Darren Anderton | 🏴 |
CF Hélder Postiga | 🇵🇹 | 🔁 |
CF Robbie Keane | 🇮🇪 | ⚽ |
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 CF Dion Dublin | 🏴 | for RB Mark Delaney | 🏴 | 80’ |
🔁 CF Stefan Moore | 🏴 | for M Lee Hendrie | 🏴 | 87’ |
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 | LB Paul Konchesky | 🏴 | (M Rohan Ricketts | 🏴 | ⚽ |)
🔁 | CF Hélder Postiga | 🇵🇹 | (CF Bobby Zamora | 🏴 |)
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
GK Stefan Postma | 🇳🇱 |
CB Liam Ridgewell | 🏴 |
M Mark Kinsella | 🇮🇪 |
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
GK Rob Burch | 🏴 |
CB Gary Doherty | 🇮🇪 |
M Gustavo Poyet | 🇺🇾 |
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 6/11
Homegrown: 6/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 9/16
Homegrown: 8/16
MATCHDAY SQUAD
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 5/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 8/16
MATCHDAY SQUAD
UNAVAILABLE
Not recorded
UNAVAILABLE
Not Recorded
Player Abbreviations:
GK : Goalkeeper
LB, RB, FB : Left Back, Right Back, Full Back
CB, D : Centre Back, Defender
M, W : Midfielder. Winger
F, CF : Forward, Centre Forward
🟢 : Debut 🔴 : Final Game
Symbols:
⚽ | Goal
🔥 | Assist
🔁 | Substitution
🟨 | Booking
🟥 | Sending off
🆘 | Poor refereeing performance
DEBUT APPEARANCES
FINAL APPEARANCES
MATCH STATS
Not recorded
TABLE

PROGRAMME



MATCHDAY QUOTES
“We gifted Tottenham the win.”
David O’Leary.
*BBC Sport*
Sunday, 23 November, 2003
*Spurs stun Villa*
Spurs scored two goals in three minutes as David Pleat’s side came from behind to beat Aston Villa.
Marcus Allback scored his first league goal of the season to give Villa the lead only to then concede possession to set up Spurs’ equaliser.
Under no pressure Allback’s sloppy pass allowed Spurs to break forward and when the ball reached substitute Rohan Ricketts, the former Arsenal midfielder found the net with a shot through a posse of players.
On 81 minutes Robbie Keane jinked his way past Ronnie Johnsen and fired his shot past Thomas Sorensen.
The early stages of the game - dull and uninspiring - gave no clue to that exciting climax.
Stephane Dalmat shone in midfield for Spurs as did Keane in attack, but the rest of Spurs team struggled to replicate that duo’s invention, notably Helder Postiga, who has still yet to score a goal since arriving at White Hart Lane in the summer.
Keane’s innovative forward play created Spurs’ first chance, the Republic of Ireland international’s clever flick sending Postiga clear, only for the Portuguese striker to hesitate, allowing Jlloyd Samuel to snuff out the danger.
Soon afterwards Olof Mellberg’s poor clearance presented Spurs with another chance, though Paul Konchesky wasted the opportunity, delivering a poor cross.
Konchesky improved his delivery when he next roamed down the left, but Darren Anderton sent his header over the bar.
Having weathered the storm, Villa began to probe forward and Thomas Hitzlsperger sent a low shot narrowly wide.
Spurs regrouped and Mellberg slid in to block a Postiga effort, while Sorensen pushed away Mauricio Taricco’s curling shot.
Darius Vassell was finding things equally tough in the Villa attack.
Like Postiga without a league goal this season, Vassell spurned a glorious opportunity when he turned his shot round the corner from Mark Delaney’s pass.
Allback was to show a more ruthless streak when he drifted away from his marker to guide Peter Whittingham’s clever pass past Keller.
But Allback turned from hero to villain as he played his part in Spurs’ equaliser and then Keane’s opportunism conjured up an important win for Pleat, who had seen his side lose their previous two league games.