# 2009–10 Aston Villa F.C. season

The 2009–10 Premier League season was Aston Villa's 135th season in English football. It was the club's 99th season in the top-flight and their 22nd consecutive season in the top flight of English football, the Premier League. They were managed by Martin O'Neill – in his fourth season since replacing David O'Leary. The 2009–10 season was Villa's second consecutive spell in European competition for the club, and the first in the newly formatted UEFA Europa League.
This term marked the first for the club without long-term player and former captain Gareth Barry following his £12 million move to Manchester City on 2 June 2009. Barry had been at the club since 1997.
The Birmingham Derby made a return to the Premier League after local rivals Birmingham City were promoted to the top tier. Villa won the first of two fixtures 1–0 at St Andrew's on 13 September 2009 with Gabriel Agbonlahor scoring the winning goal. Villa also won the return fixture at Villa Park 1–0 on 25 April 2010, thanks to a James Milner penalty. Villa also played games against newly promoted Wolves from nearby Wolverhampton, resulting in a 1–1 draw at Molineux and a 2–2 draw at Villa Park.
The club progressed to the final of the League Cup during this season, eliminating Cardiff City, Sunderland, Portsmouth and Blackburn Rovers along the way. However, Aston Villa were beaten 2–1 by Manchester United in the final at Wembley Stadium on 28 February 2010. Villa's other domestic cup venture also took the club to Wembley in the FA Cup, where they were defeated 3–0 by Chelsea in the semi-final. Aston Villa finished 6th in the Premier League for the 3rd year in a row, with 2 points more than previous season, they also qualified for the Europa League for the 3rd year running.

## Kit

| Kit Supplier | Sponsor |
| Nike | Acorns* |
*Villa passed up sponsorship for the 2008-09 season and instead displayed the children's hospice charity, Acorns.

## Transfers
### Transferred in

| Date | Pos | Player | From | Fee |
| 20 June 2009 | AM | Samir Carruthers | Arsenal | Free transfer |
| 16 July 2009 | LM | Stewart Downing | Middlesbrough | £12,000,000 |
| 4 August 2009 | CM | Fabian Delph | Leeds United | £6,000,000 |
| 7 August 2009 | RB | Habib Beye | Newcastle United | £2,500,000 |
| 13 August 2009 | GK | Andy Marshall | Coventry City | Free transfer |
| 27 August 2009 | LB | Stephen Warnock | Blackburn Rovers | £7,000,000 |
| 1 September 2009 | CB | James Collins | West Ham United | £5,000,000 |
| 1 September 2009 | CB | Richard Dunne | Manchester City | £6,000,000 |
| | | | | £38,500,000 |
Record (equal)

### Loaned in

| Date | Pos | Player | From | Loan End |

### Transferred out

| Date | Pos | Player | To | Fee |
| 1 July 2009 | CM | Gareth Barry | Manchester City | £12,000,000 |
| 1 July 2009 | GK | Stuart Taylor | Manchester City | Free transfer |
| 1 July 2009 | CB | Martin Laursen | Retired | — |
| 21 July 2009 | CF | Sam Williams | Yeovil Town | Free transfer |
| 25 July 2009 | CB | Zat Knight | Bolton Wanderers | £4,000,000 |
| 26 January 2010 | CM | Craig Gardner | Birmingham City | £3,000,000 |
| | | | | £19,600,000 |

### Loaned out

| Date | Pos | Player | To | Loan End |
| 5 August 2009 | GK | David Bevan | Ilkeston Town | 5 September 2009 |
| 18 September 2009 | CB | Shane Lowry | Plymouth Argyle | 1 January 2010 |
| 26 September 2009 | CF | Marlon Harewood | Newcastle United | 31 December 2009 |
| 26 October 2009 | CB | Nathan Baker | Lincoln City | 1 January 2010 |
| 26 October 2009 | CF | James Collins | Darlington | 22 January 2010 |
| 26 October 2009 | RB | Eric Lichaj | Lincoln City | 1 January 2010 |
| 7 November 2009 | CM | Isaiah Osbourne | Middlesbrough | 5 January 2010 |
| 19 November 2009 | CM | Jonathan Hogg | Darlington | 2 January 2010 |
| 24 November 2009 | LB | Nicky Shorey | Nottingham Forest | 26 January 2010 |
| 26 November 2009 | CM | Barry Bannan | Blackpool | 31 May 2010 |
| 26 November 2009 | CM | Chris Herd | Lincoln City | 26 December 2009 |
| 5 December 2009 | GK | David Bevan | Solihull Moors | 5 January 2010 |
| 30 January 2010 | CB | Shane Lowry | Leeds United | 31 May 2010 |
| 1 February 2010 | LB | Nicky Shorey | Fulham | 31 May 2010 |
| 26 March 2010 | RB | Eric Lichaj | Leyton Orient | 31 May 2010 |

### Overall transfer activity
## First team squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 1 | GK | USA | Brad Friedel |
| 2 | DF | ENG | Luke Young |
| 3 | DF | NED | Wilfred Bouma |
| 4 | MF | ENG | Steve Sidwell |
| 5 | DF | IRL | Richard Dunne |
| 6 | MF | ENG | Stewart Downing |
| 7 | MF | ENG | Ashley Young |
| 8 | MF | ENG | James Milner |
| 10 | FW | NOR | John Carew |
| 11 | FW | ENG | Gabriel Agbonlahor |
| 12 | MF | ENG | Marc Albrighton |
| 14 | FW | ENG | Nathan Delfouneso |
| 15 | DF | ENG | Curtis Davies |
| 16 | MF | ENG | Fabian Delph |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 18 | FW | ENG | Emile Heskey |
| 19 | MF | BUL | Stiliyan Petrov (captain) |
| 20 | MF | ENG | Nigel Reo-Coker |
| 21 | DF | ENG | Nicky Shorey |
| 22 | GK | USA | Brad Guzan |
| 23 | DF | SEN | Habib Beye |
| 24 | DF | ESP | Carlos Cuéllar |
| 25 | DF | ENG | Stephen Warnock |
| 26 | MF | ENG | Craig Gardner |
| 29 | DF | WAL | James Collins |
| 33 | GK | ENG | Andy Marshall |
| 45 | MF | AUS | Shane Lowry |
| 47 | DF | ENG | Ciaran Clark |

### Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Marlon Harewood (on loan to Newcastle United) |
| 21 | DF | ENG | Nicky Shorey (on loan to Nottingham Forest and Fulham) |
| 26 | MF | ENG | Craig Gardner (to Birmingham City) |
| 27 | MF | ENG | Isaiah Osbourne (on loan to Middlesbrough) |
| 44 | DF | USA | Eric Lichaj (on loan to Lincoln City and Leyton Orient) |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 45 | MF | AUS | Shane Lowry (on loan to Plymouth and Leeds United) |
| 46 | MF | SCO | Barry Bannan (on loan to Blackpool) |
| 48 | DF | ENG | Nathan Baker (on loan to Lincoln City) |
| 49 | MF | AUS | Chris Herd (on loan to Lincoln City) |
| 50 | MF | ENG | Jonathan Hogg (on loan to Darlington) |

## Reserve squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Marlon Harewood |
| 17 | MF | TOG | Moustapha Salifou |
| 27 | MF | ENG | Isaiah Osbourne |
| 42 | FW | AUT | Andreas Weimann |
| 43 | GK | ENG | Elliott Parish |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 44 | DF | USA | Eric Lichaj |
| 46 | MF | SCO | Barry Bannan |
| 48 | DF | ENG | Nathan Baker |
| 49 | MF | AUS | Chris Herd |
| 50 | MF | ENG | Jonathan Hogg |

## Kit changes

The club once again dismissed sponsorship payments to allow Acorns as a charitable sponsor. A new away kit was unveiled on 24 May 2009 and inspired by the England national football team. It features a white and gray halved style with pinstripes and a navy accent, intended to pay tribute to the 67 Villa players that have appeared for the country while at the club. The blue and black away kit of 2008–09 also became this season's third kit. The new home kit was unveiled the day before the first clash of the Peace Cup 2009, which was against Málaga on Saturday 25 July.

## Premier League
### Final league position

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 38 | 21 | 7 | 10 | 67 | 41 | +26 | 70 | Qualification for the Champions League play-off round |
| 5 | Manchester City | 38 | 18 | 13 | 7 | 73 | 45 | +28 | 67 | Qualification for the Europa League play-off round |
| 6 | Aston Villa | 38 | 17 | 13 | 8 | 52 | 39 | +13 | 64 | Qualification for the Europa League play-off round |
| 7 | Liverpool | 38 | 18 | 9 | 11 | 61 | 35 | +26 | 63 | Qualification for the Europa League third qualifying round |
| 8 | Everton | 38 | 16 | 13 | 9 | 60 | 49 | +11 | 61 | |
* ↑ Since Manchester United won the League Cup and then qualified for the Champions League, their spot in the Europa League was passed down to the 6th-placed team. The 6th-placed Aston Villa was coincidentally also the League Cup runners-up.
* ↑ Originally Portsmouth qualified for the third qualifying round of the Europa League as the FA Cup runners-up, replacing the winners, Champions League-qualified Chelsea. However, they failed to apply for a UEFA licence. Therefore, Liverpool as the best placed team not qualified for the European competitions took their place.

### Results
#### Results by matchday

| Matchday | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 |
| Ground | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H |
| Result | L | W | W | W | W | L | D | W | D | D | L | W | D | D | W | W | W | W | L | L | D | D | W | D | D | W | D | W | D | D | L | W | D | W | W | W | L | L |
| Position | 16 | 12 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 |

## Cup matches
### FA Cup

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 02/01/2010 | R3 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 3–1 | 25,453 | Delfouneso, Cuéllar, Carew (pen.) |
| 23 January 2010 | R4 | Brighton and Hove Albion | H | 3–2 | 39,725 | Delfouneso, A. Young, Delph |
| 14 February 2010 | R5 | Crystal Palace | A | 2–2 | 20,486 | Collins, Petrov |
| 24 February 2010 | R5 (R) | Crystal Palace | H | 3–1 | 31,874 | Agbonlahor, Carew (2 pen.) |
| 07/03/2010 | R6 | Reading | A | 4–2 | 23,175 | A. Young, Carew (3, 1 pen.) |
| 10/04/2010 | SF | Chelsea | N | 0–3 | 85,472 | |

### League Cup

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 23 September 2009 | R3 | Cardiff City | H | 1–0 | 22,527 | Agbonlahor |
| 27 October 2009 | R4 | Sunderland | A | 0–0 | 27,666 | (Pens: Carew, Collins, A. Young) |
| 0–0 after extra time – Aston Villa won 3–1 on penalties |||||||
| 01/12/2009 | QF | Portsmouth | A | 4–2 | 17,034 | Milner, Heskey, Downing, A. Young |
| 14 January 2010 | SF (1) | Blackburn Rovers | A | 1–0 | 18,595 | Milner |
| 20 January 2010 | SF (2) | Blackburn Rovers | H | 6–4 | 40,406 | Warnock, Milner (pen.), Nzonzi (o.g.), Agbonlahor, Heskey, A. Young |
| Aston Villa won 7–4 on aggregate |||||||
| 28 February 2010 | F | Manchester United | N | 1–2 | 88,596 | Milner (pen.) |

### UEFA Europa League

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 20 August 2009 | Play-off Round (1) | Rapid Vienna | A | 0–1 | 17,600 | |
| 27 August 2009 | Play-off Round (2) | Rapid Vienna | H | 2–1 | 22,563 | Milner (pen.), Carew |
| 2–2 on aggregate; Rapid Vienna won on away goals |||||||

## Friendly matches

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 18 July 2009 | Peterborough United | A | 3–0 | | Weimann, Davies, Sidwell |
| 21 July 2009 | Colchester United | A | 2–2 | | Sidwell, McGurk |
| 04/08/2009 | Oxford United | A | 0–2 | 12,000 | | |
| 08/08/2009 | Fiorentina | H | 1–0 | 22,915 | | Heskey |

### Peace Cup

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 25 July 2009 | Group C | Málaga | A | 0–1 | 4,000 | | |
| 29 July 2009 | Group C | Atlante | N | 3–1 | 1,000 | | Albrighton, Carew, A. Young |
| 31 July 2009 | Semi-Final | Porto | N | 2–1 | 26,000 | | Heskey, Sidwell |
| 02/08/2009 | Final | Juventus | N | 0–0 | | (Pens: Bannan, Lowry, A. Young, Cuéllar) |
| 0–0 after extra time – Aston Villa won 4–3 on penalties |||||||

## Goalscorers

| Name | Premier League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europa League | Total |
| John Carew | 10 | 6 | | 1 | 17 |
| Gabriel Agbonlahor | 13 | 1 | 2 | | 16 |
| James Milner | 7 | | 4 | 1 | 12 |
| Ashley Young | 5 | 2 | 2 | | 9 |
| Emile Heskey | 3 | | 2 | | 5 |
| Richard Dunne | 3 | | | | 3 |
| Carlos Cuéllar | 2 | 1 | | | 3 |
| Stewart Downing | 2 | | 1 | | 3 |
| Nathan Delfouneso | 1 | 2 | | | 3 |
| James Collins | 1 | 1 | | | 2 |
| Curtis Davies | 1 | | | | 1 |
| Fabian Delph | | 1 | | | 1 |
| Stiliyan Petrov | | 1 | | | 1 |
| Stephen Warnock | | | 1 | | 1 |
| Opposition own goals | 4 | | 1 | | 5 |
| Total Goals | 52 | 15 | 13 | 2 | 82 |

## Appearances

| Name | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Start | Sub. | Total |
| Ashley Young | 37 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 50 | 0 | 50 |
| James Milner | 36 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 48 | 1 | 49 |
| Carlos Cuéllar | 38 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 48 | 0 | 48 |
| Stilyan Petrov | 38 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 47 | 0 | 48 |
| Gabriel Agbonlahor | 36 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 43 | 3 | 46 |
| Richard Dunne | 35 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 44 | 0 | 44 |
| Brad Friedel | 38 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 42 |
| John Carew | 33 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 27 | 15 | 42 |
| Emile Heskey | 31 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 26 | 16 | 42 |
| Stephen Warnock | 31 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 42 |
| James Collins | 30 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 39 | 1 | 40 |
| Stewart Downing | 23 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 33 | 2 | 35 |
| Steve Sidwell | 25 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 14 | 19 | 33 |
| Luke Young | 16 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 20 |
| Fabian Delph | 8 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 5 | 15 |
| Nigel Reo-Coker | 10 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 4 | 13 |
| Nathan Delfouneso | 9 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 13 |
| Habib Beye | 6 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 1 | 11 |
| Brad Guzan | 0 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Marc Albrighton | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| Nicky Shorey | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Curtis Davies | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| Craig Gardner | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Shane Lowry | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Ciaran Clark | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |