Game #4967
Saturday, 15 March 2008
Attendance: 20,388
Lost
Premier League
6th (-)
Portsmouth
Last 5: 🟩 🟩 🟨 🟨 🟥
Fratton Park
Villa lose for only the second time in fifteen Premier League games as mega-spenders Portsmouth beat them for the second time this season and climb above them in the table.
Portsmouth
2-0
Aston Villa
Assist(s) | None
KEY MAN
Villa contemplate their second defeat in fifteen Premier League games as luck deserts them at Fratton Park, Saturday, 15 March 2008.
PREVIOUS MATCH
NEXT MATCH
MATCH TIMELINE
🥅 | 12’ Goal, 0-1, (Portsmouth), Jermaine Defoe
🥅 | 38’ Goal, 0-2, (Portsmouth), Nigel Reo-Coker o.g.
🕒 | HT Portsmouth 2-0 Aston Villa
🔁 | 57’ Sub off, Shaun Maloney, Sub on, Marlon Harewood
🟨 | 64’ Booking, Olof Mellberg
🔁 | 79’ Sub off, Wilfred Bouma, Sub on, Moustapha Salifou
🟥 | 81’ Sending off, (Portsmouth), Sulley Muntari
🟨 | 89’ Booking, Olof Mellberg
🟥 | 89’ Sending off, Olof Mellberg
🕒 | FT Portsmouth 2-0 Aston Villa
ON THIS DAY
Villa lose for only the second time in thirteen Premier League games as they again can't get to grips with a combination of a tiny, ramshackle ground, a bloke with a bell and some very, very highly remunerated players. As a result Villa fall back to seventh in the table with eight to play.
Aston Villa
European Cup / Champions League: 🏆
League Champions: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
League Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
Last Trophy: 1995-96
Portsmouth
European Cup / Champions League: ❌
League Champions: 🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆
League Cup Winners: ❌
Last Trophy: 1949-50
FIXTURE HISTORY
Portsmouth
Previous 5 vs. Portsmouth: 🟨 🟩 🟨 🟨 🟥
FIXTURE DETAILS
Season | 2007-08 |
Matchday | #33 |
League Game | #30 |
Manager Game | #75 |
Saturday, 15 March 2008
MATCH SUMMARY
Manager: Martin O’Neill | 🇬🇧 | County Londonderry, 2006-2010
Referee: Chris Foy | 🏴 | St. Helens, 1996-2015
Kick off: 3.00pm
HT Score: 🟥 0-2
FT Score: 🟥 0-2
FT Result: 🟥 Lost
Last 5: 🟩 🟩 🟨 🟨 🟥
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Chris Foy | 🏴 | St. Helens, 1996-2015
Previous 5: 🟥 🟨 🟩 🟥 🟥
Last Match: 🟥 3 Feb 08, Villa 1-2 Fulham (a)
Cards: 🟥 🟥 🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨
CARDS
TEAM NEWS
Olof Mellberg replaces Craig Gardner.
TEAM STATS
Starting XI Average Age
| 26.42 |
Oldest Player |
CB Martin Laursen | 🇩🇰 | 31.07 |
Youngest Player |
F Gabriel Agbonlahor | 🏴 | 21.44 |
MANAGER
MANAGER
Martin O'Neill | 🇬🇧 |
Harry Redknapp | 🏴 |
Aston Villa
GK Scott Carson | 🏴 |
RB Wilfred Bouma | 🇳🇱 | 🔁 |
CB Olof Mellberg | 🇸🇪 | 🟨 | 🟨 | 🟥 |
CB Martin Laursen | 🇩🇰 |
CB Zat Knight | 🏴 |
M Gareth Barry | 🏴 |
M Shaun Maloney | 🏴 | 🔁 |
M Nigel Reo-Coker | 🏴 |
W Ashley Young | 🏴 |
CF John Carew | 🇳🇴 |
F Gabriel Agbonlahor | 🏴 |
Portsmouth
GK David James (ex) | 🏴 |
RB Laurén | 🇲🇱 | 🟨 |
RB Glen Johnson | 🏴 |
CB Hermann Hreiðarsson | 🇮🇸 |
CB Sylvain Distin | 🇫🇷 |
M Lassana Diarra | 🇫🇷 |
M Papa Bouba Diop | 🇸🇳 | 🟨 |
M Sulley Muntari | 🇪🇨 | 🟨 | 🟨 | 🟥 |
M Niko Kranjčar | 🇭🇷 |
CF Milan Baroš (ex) | 🇨🇿 | 🔁 |
CF Jermain Defoe | 🏴 | ⚽ | 🔁 |
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 CF Marlon Harewood | 🏴 | for M Shaun Maloney | 🏴 | 57’ |
🔁 M Moustapha Salifou | 🇹🇬 | for RB Wilfred Bouma | 🇳🇱 | 79’ |
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 | CF Milan Baroš (ex) | 🇨🇿 | (CF Nwankwo Kanu | 🇳🇬 |)
🔁 | CF Jermain Defoe | 🏴 | ⚽ | (W John Utaka | 🇳🇬 |)
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
GK Stuart Taylor | 🏴 |
M Stiliyan Petrov | 🇧🇬 |
M Isaiah Osbourne | 🏴 |
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
GK Jamie Ashdown | 🏴 |
CB Lucien Aubey | 🇨🇬 |
M Pedro Mendes | 🇵🇹 |
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 7/11
Homegrown: 2/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 10/16
Homegrown: 3/16
MATCHDAY SQUAD
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 3/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 4/16
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
Possession F | 51%
Possession A | 49%
Shots F | 15
Shots A | 13
Shots on Target F | 5
Shots on Target A | 3
Corners F | 6
Corners A | 3
Fouls F | 15
Fouls A | 20
TABLE

PROGRAMME

MATCHDAY QUOTES
“Luck deserted us but it’s all about winning games and we’ve got to get back to that.
“We won’t give up. There are still eight games to go and if we are capable of winning most of them.
“There are plenty of twists and turns left even though the margin for error is growing less.”
Martin O’Neill.
*BBC Sport*
Saturday, 15 March 2008
*A delightful Jermain Defoe lob and a bizarre Nigel Reo-Coker own goal saw Portsmouth leapfrog Aston Villa in the Premier League table.*
Defoe neatly controlled Glen Johnson’s long ball to beat the culpable Scott Carson from the edge of the box.
And Carson was at fault for the second when the goalkeeper’s clearance ended in the back of the net via Reo-Coker.
Both teams ended the game with 10 men when Sulley Muntari and Olof Mellberg were sent off in separate incidents.
The visitors performed better than they had during the lacklustre 1-1 draw against Middlesbrough, but Portsmouth ruthlessly penalised silly errors.
Carson was caught in no-man’s land when he was beaten by Defoe, who, in front of the England manager Fabio Capello, scored his sixth goal since his January move from Tottenham.
Villa responded positively, with Ashley Young’s trickery and pace causing Pompey problems. But for all their attacking promise the visitors were toothless in attack.
John Carew, having done the hard work by beating two defenders, was guilty of missing a great opportunity 10 minutes before the break.
And Carew was to rue his profligacy when Portsmouth doubled their lead.
Carson came rushing out of his area to clear the danger posed by Muntari’s through ball. The keeper kicked the ball straight at Reo-Coker and, to everyone’s surprise, the ball bounced off the midfielder’s toes into the back of the net.
Villa should have halved the deficit immediately after the break, but Gabriel Agbonlahor failed to connect with Shaun Maloney’s cross for what would have been a simple tap-in.
Marlon Harewood came on for Maloney as Villa boss Martin O’Neill sought to out-muscle the Portsmouth defence.
But the home side stood firm despite a bombardment of free-kicks into their box.
Portsmouth should have scored a third only for Niko Kranjcar to shoot wastefully wide from a promising position.
Villa finally found the back of the net - but it was disallowed as Harewood was offside.
Minutes later and Young’s free-kick forced a fine reflex save from ex-Villa keeper David James, who was making his 161st consecutive appearance in the Premier League.
Portsmouth were then reduced to 10 men when Muntari received a second yellow for a foul on Villa substitute Moustapha Salifou.
Yet, even with a man advantage, Villa were unable to break Pompey’s defence and, three minutes before the end, Villa’s frustrations came to a boiling point when Mellberg was sent off for a second yellow card.
*Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill:*
“Luck deserted us but it’s all about winning games and we’ve got to get back to that.
“We won’t give up. There are still eight games to go and if we are capable of winning most of them.
“There are plenty of twists and turns left even though the margin for error is growing less.”