Game #4995
Aston Villa
Thursday, 6 November 2008
Won
Group F
Last 5: 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟥 🟩
UEFA Cup Group F Game 2
Attendance: 20,232
SK Slavia Prague
Stadion Eden, Praha
Villa make it two wins from two in UEFA Cup Group F as they take another step towards progression to the Round of 32.
SK Slavia Prague
0-1
Aston Villa
Assist(s) | Steve Sidwell | 26' |
KEY MAN
Ashley Young helps Villa to victory as they become the first English club to travel to the Eden Arena, Thursday, 6 November 2008.
PREVIOUS MATCH
NEXT MATCH
MATCH TIMELINE
Thursday, 6 November 2008
⚽ | 26’ Goal, 1-0, John Carew, Assist by Steve Sidwell
🟨 | 31’ Booking, Craig Gardner
🕒 | HT SK Slavia Prague 0-1 Aston Villa
🟨 | 64’ Booking, Steve Sidwell
🟨 | 85’ Booking, Brad Guzan
🔁 | 89’ Sub off, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Sub on, Gareth Barry
🔁 | 90’ Sub off, John Carew, Sub on, Nathan Delfouneso
🕒 | FT SK Slavia Prague 0-1 Aston Villa
ON THIS DAY
Villa bounce back from their shock defeat to lowly Newcastle last time out with a win at Slavia Prague. As a result Villa make it two wins out of two in the UEFA Cup Group stages as Martin O'Neill's personnel changes deliver on the night.
Aston Villa
European Cup / Champions League: 🏆
League Champions: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
FA Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
League Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
Last Trophy: 1995-96
SK Slavia Prague
European Cup / Champions League: ❌
Czech Champions: 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
Czech Cup Winners: 🏆🏆🏆
Last Trophy: 2007-08
FIXTURE HISTORY
SK Slavia Prague
Previous 5 vs. Slavia Prague: None
FIXTURE DETAILS
Season | 2008-09 |
Matchday | #20 |
Manager Game | #103 |
Thursday, 6 November 2008
MATCH SUMMARY
Manager: Martin O’Neill | 🇬🇧 | County Londonderry, 2006-2010
Referee: Costas Kapitanis | 🇨🇾 | Larnaca, 1996-2010
HT Score: 🟩 1-0
FT Score: 🟩 1-0
FT Result: 🟩 Won
Last 5: 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟥 🟩
MANAGERIAL RECORD
Martin O'Neill | 🇬🇧 |
GAMES | WINS | DRAWS | LOSSES | POINTS PER GAME
🕒 103 | 🟩 | 41 🟨 | 34 🟥 28 | 1.52
Career Form:
Top 8
Martin O'Neill | 🇬🇧 |
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Costas Kapitanis | 🇨🇾 | Larnaca, 1996-2010
Previous 5: None
Last Match: None
Cards: 🟨 🟨 🟨
Assistants: Frixos Petrou, Mihalis Soteriou
Costas Kapitanis
CARDS
Villa
🟨 🟨 🟨
SK Slavia Prague
None
TEAM NEWS
Martin O'Neill again makes a number of changes for the UEFA Cup with Zat Knight (first start in 7), Craig Gardner (first start in 9), Steve Sidwell (first start in 18), Moustapha Salifou (first start in 7), Curtis Davies (first start in 5) and Brad Guzan (first start in 9) replace James Milner, Luke Young, Brad Friedel, Gareth Barry, Nigel Reo-Coker and Martin Laursen.
TEAM STATS
Starting XI Average Age
| 25.39 |
Oldest Player |
CF John Carew | 🇳🇴 | 29.19 |
Youngest Player |
M Craig Gardner | 🏴 | 21.96 |
MANAGER
MANAGER
Martin O'Neill | 🇬🇧 |
Karel Jarolím | 🇨🇿 |
Aston Villa
GK Brad Guzan | 🇺🇸 | 🟨 |
LB Nicky Shorey | 🏴 |
CB Zat Knight | 🏴 |
CB Carlos Cuéllar | 🇪🇸 |
CB Curtis Davies | 🏴 |
M Craig Gardner | 🏴 | 🟨 |
M Steve Sidwell | 🏴 | 🔥 | 🟨 |
M Moustapha Salifou | 🇹🇬 |
W Ashley Young | 🏴 |
CF John Carew | 🇳🇴 | ⚽ | 🔁 |
F Gabriel Agbonlahor | 🏴 | 🔁 |
SK Slavia Prague
GK Martin Vaniak | 🇨🇿 |
LB David Hubáček | 🇨🇿 | 🔁 |
CB Erich Brabec | 🇨🇿 |
CB Marek Suchý | 🇨🇿 |
RB Matej Krajčík | 🇷🇸 |
M Mickaël Tavares | 🇸🇳 |
M Marek Jarolím | 🇨🇿 |
M Vladimir Šmicer | 🇨🇿 | 🔁 |
M Ladislav Volešák | 🇨🇿 | 🔁 |
M Jaroslav Černý | 🇨🇿 |
CF Tomas Necid | 🇨🇿 |
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 M Gareth Barry | 🏴 | for F Gabriel Agbonlahor | 🏴 | 89’ |
🔁 F Nathan Delfouneso | 🏴 | for CF John Carew | 🇳🇴 | 90’ |
SUBSTITUTES
🔁 | LB David Hubáček | 🇨🇿 | (W Zdenek Šenkeřík | 🇨🇿 |)
🔁 | M Vladimir Šmicer | 🇨🇿 | (LB Dusan Švento | 🇷🇸 |)
🔁 | M Ladislav Volešák | 🇨🇿 | (M Tijani Belaïd | 🇹🇳 |)
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
GK Brad Friedel | 🇺🇸 |
CB Martin Laursen | 🇩🇰 |
RB Luke Young | 🏴 |
M Nigel Reo-Coker | 🏴 |
W Wayne Routledge | 🏴 |
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
GK Jakub Divis | 🇨🇿 |
CB Martin Latka | 🇨🇿 |
M Petr Janda | 🇨🇿 |
CF Goce Toleski | 🇲🇰 |
SQUAD STATS
1st XI:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 7/11
Homegrown: 2/11
Squad:
Home Nation 🏴 🏴 🏴 🇬🇧 : 12/18
Homegrown: 4/18
MATCHDAY SQUAD
SQUAD STATS
Home Nation 🇨🇿 : 10/14
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
MATCH STATS
Not recorded
TABLE
PROGRAMME
MATCHDAY QUOTES
“We were really great in the first half. Maybe we could have scored more goals.
“I think we deserved to win. I believe now that seven points will definitely get us through to the play-off stage scheduled for next spring.
“I think Guzan is a great goalkeeper in the making and I’m delighted he got his work permit, and I think he’s following in a long line of great American goalkeepers.
“I thought he was brilliant and all the things we felt we saw in him when he was in America, we’re delighted they’ve come out.”
Martin O'Neill.
*BBC Sport*
Thursday, 6 November 2008
*Aston Villa took a big step towards qualification from Uefa Cup Group F with a narrow win at Slavia Prague.*
Villa took the lead when Steve Sidwell’s shot from just outside the box was deflected in by John Carew.
Ashley Young’s free-kick hit the bar and Carew’s drive was well saved as Villa pushed on, while Brad Guzan saved well to deny Slavia’s Tomas Jarolim.
Matej Krajcik went close with an angled shot and Jarolim was again denied by Guzan as Villa just about held on.
Martin O’Neill’s men found themselves pinned back in the second half as Slavia poured forward but they withstood the pressure to claim a superb win.
With their 100% start to the competition - following the win against Ajax - Villa now sit three points clear of Hamburg at the top of the group.
And impressively, the three points in Prague were achieved by a Villa team showing wholesale changes from the one beaten by Newcastle on Monday.
With six new faces in the line-up, it was perhaps inevitable that Villa would take a little while to find their rhythm.
They might have gone behind but Guzan, in for Brad Friedel, produced a fine double save to deny Cerny and then Nedic.
It stung Villa into a response and they went close to opening the scoring when Craig Gardner’s volley brought a fine reaction save from Vaniak.
Now using the flanks and moving the ball around with greater pace, Villa began to dominate.
And they got the goal they deserved - and a fair slice of luck - when Sidwell’s effort deflected wickedly off Carew to nestle into the bottom corner.
The lead might have been added to but Young’s free-kick hit the bar and Carew’s first time shot was brilliantly beaten away by Vaniak.
And Villa almost paid for not taking their chances when Jarolim went past two defenders in the box and fired in a low shot but Guzan made another fine stop.
That should have been a warning to Villa, but it served only to inject confidence into the hosts.
A cross-shot from Krajcik fizzed past the post as Slavia raised the tempo and Guzan was again called into action to keep out Jarolim’s fierce drive.
With Villa pegged back deep in their own half, their lead was looking more and more vulnerable.
But Necid headed wide and later drove a shot off target as the equaliser continued to prove elusive.
Some desperate defending from Villa just about saw them through - and it leaves them in a strong position after two matches.
*Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill:*
“We were really great in the first half. Maybe we could have scored more goals.
“I think we deserved to win. I believe now that seven points will definitely get us through to the play-off stage scheduled for next spring.”
“I think Guzan is a great goalkeeper in the making and I’m delighted he got his work permit, and I think he’s following in a long line of great American goalkeepers.
“I thought he was brilliant and all the things we felt we saw in him when he was in America, we’re delighted they’ve come out.”
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)