# 2003–04 Aston Villa F.C. season

During the 2003–04 English football season, Aston Villa competed in the Premier League. Former Leeds United manager David O'Leary was appointed Villa manager in the summer of 2003.
Under O'Leary, Villa made a very sluggish start to the campaign and found themselves in the relegation zone after winning just two of their first 13 league fixtures. They were still in the bottom three in mid-December before O'Leary galvanized them and they gradually climbed the table. Villa had a fantastic second half of the season and, with two matches remaining, had a chance of qualifying for the Champions League. After extending their unbeaten run to eight games by drawing at Southampton, defeat against Manchester United at Villa Park consigned them to sixth place. The Villains finished five points short of a Champions League place and were edged out of a UEFA Cup spot on goal difference by Newcastle United.
Nevertheless, it was still a great achievement by O'Leary, who appeared to get the best out of the likes of Gareth Barry, Lee Hendrie, Jlloyd Samuel and 16-goal Juan Pablo Ángel. The Colombian was the club's leading scorer, while Darius Vassell bagged 9 goals to cement his place in England's Euro 2004 squad. Thomas Sørensen and Gavin McCann both had excellent seasons after moving from Sunderland, while Nolberto Solano quickly became a fans' favourite after his mid-season move from Newcastle.
Among the men to represent Villa for the last time during 2003–04 was Dion Dublin, who netted 48 goals in 155 league games. O'Leary's side reached the last four of the Football League Cup by knocking out Wycombe Wanderers, Leicester City, Crystal Palace and Chelsea. The semi-final first leg, at Bolton, ended in a disappointing 5–2 defeat. Villa Park goals by Thomas Hitzlsperger and Samuel were not quite enough to prevent the Trotters from clinching a place in the final. Manchester United came from behind to knock Villa out of the FA Cup in a third round tie at Villa Park. Despite narrowly missing out on qualifying for Europe, the mood around Villa Park was extremely positive in the summer of 2004. With the likes of Liam Ridgewell, Steven Davis, Peter Whittingham and the Moore brothers (Stefan and Luke) forcing open the first team door, David O'Leary had an abundance of young talent at his disposal.

## Kit

| Kit Supplier | Sponsor |
| Diadora | Rover / MG* |
*Rover sponsored the home shirts, MG sponsored the away

## Transfers
### Transferred in

| Date | Pos | Player | From | Fee |
| 24 July 2003 | CM | Gavin McCann | Sunderland | £2,250,000 |
| 8 August 2003 | GK | Thomas Sørensen | Sunderland | £2,250,000 |
| 29 January 2004 | RM | Nolberto Solano | Newcastle United | £1,500,000 |
| | | | | £6,000,000 |

### Loaned in

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

### Transferred out

| Date | Pos | Player | To | Fee |
| 1 July 2003 | AM | Øyvind Leonhardsen | - | Released |
| 1 July 2003 | CM | John McGrath | Doncaster Rovers | Free transfer |
| 1 July 2003 | LB | Steve Staunton | Coventry City | Free transfer |
| 1 July 2003 | CM | Ian Taylor | Derby County | Free transfer |
| 1 July 2003 | LB | Alan Wright | Middlesbrough | Free transfer |
| 23 October 2003 | CB | Alpay Özalan | Incheon United | Free transfer |
| 13 December 2003 | GK | Boaz Myhill | Hull City | £50,000 |
| 23 December 2003 | LB | Danny Jackman | Stockport County | £70,000 |
| 6 January 2004 | GK | Peter Enckelman | Blackburn Rovers | £150,000 |
| 15 January 2004 | CM | Mark Kinsella | West Bromwich Albion | Free transfer |
| 21 January 2004 | CF | Boško Balaban | Club Brugge | Free transfer |
| 31 January 2004 | CM | Mustapha Hadji | Espanyol | Free transfer |
| 25 March 2004 | CB | Jonathan Bewers | Notts County | Free transfer |
| | | | | £270,000 |

### Loaned out

| Date | Pos | Player | To | Loan End |
| 6 August 2003 | GK | Boaz Myhill | Macclesfield Town | 6 September 2003 |
| 1 September 2003 | AM | Hassan Kachloul | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 31 May 2004 |
| 4 September 2003 | CF | Peter Crouch | Norwich City | 7 December 2003 |
| 7 November 2003 | GK | Peter Enckelman | Blackburn Rovers | 31 December 2003 |
| 15 November 2003 | LB | Rob Edwards | Crystal Palace | 21 December 2003 |
| 21 November 2003 | GK | Boaz Myhill | Stockport County | 11 December 2003 |
| 11 December 2003 | CF | Peter Hynes | Doncaster Rovers | 10 January 2004 |
| 12 December 2003 | CF | Luke Moore | Wycombe Wanderers | 12 January 2004 |
| 8 January 2004 | LB | Rob Edwards | Derby County | 31 May 2004 |
| 23 January 2004 | CF | Peter Hynes | Cheltenham Town | 23 February 2004 |
| 13 March 2004 | GK | Wayne Henderson | Tamworth | 23 March 2004 |
| 19 April 2004 | GK | Wayne Henderson | Wycombe Wanderers | 31 May 2004 |

### Overall transfer activity
## Final league table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 4 | Liverpool | 38 | 16 | 12 | 10 | 55 | 37 | +18 | 60 | Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round |
| 5 | Newcastle United | 38 | 13 | 17 | 8 | 52 | 40 | +12 | 56 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 6 | Aston Villa | 38 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 48 | 44 | +4 | 56 | |
| 7 | Charlton Athletic | 38 | 14 | 11 | 13 | 51 | 51 | 0 | 53 | |
| 8 | Bolton Wanderers | 38 | 14 | 11 | 13 | 48 | 56 | −8 | 53 | |
* ↑ Since Manchester United qualified for the Champions League, their place in the UEFA Cup as 2003–04 FA Cup winners went to First Division club Millwall, who were the FA Cup runners-up.

## Players
### First-team squad

    Squad at end of 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 |
| 1 | GK | DEN | Thomas Sørensen |
| 2 | DF | WAL | Mark Delaney |
| 3 | DF | ENG | Jlloyd Samuel |
| 4 | DF | SWE | Olof Mellberg |
| 6 | MF | ENG | Gareth Barry |
| 7 | MF | ENG | Lee Hendrie |
| 8 | MF | ENG | Gavin McCann |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Dion Dublin |
| 10 | FW | ENG | Darius Vassell |
| 11 | MF | PER | Nolberto Solano |
| 12 | MF | GER | Thomas Hitzlsperger |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 13 | GK | NED | Stefan Postma |
| 14 | FW | SWE | Marcus Allbäck |
| 15 | DF | ECU | Ulises de la Cruz |
| 16 | FW | ENG | Peter Crouch |
| 17 | MF | ENG | Peter Whittingham |
| 18 | FW | COL | Juan Pablo Ángel |
| 23 | FW | ENG | Stefan Moore |
| 24 | DF | ENG | Liam Ridgewell |
| 27 | DF | NOR | Ronny Johnsen |
| 31 | FW | ENG | Luke Moore |

### 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 |
| 5 | DF | TUR | Alpay Özalan (to Incheon United) |
| 19 | FW | CRO | Boško Balaban (to Club Brugge) |
| 20 | MF | MAR | Mustapha Hadji (to Espanyol) |
| 25 | GK | FIN | Peter Enckelman (to Blackburn Rovers) |
| 26 | MF | IRL | Mark Kinsella (to West Bromwich Albion) |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 28 | DF | ENG | Danny Jackman (to Stockport County) |
| — | GK | WAL | Boaz Myhill (to Hull City) |
| — | DF | ENG | Jon Bewers (to Notts County) |
| — | DF | ENG | Ryan Amoo (to Northampton Town) |

## Reserve squad

    The following players did not appear for the first team this season, and spent most of the season playing for the reserves.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 21 | MF | NIR | Steven Davis |
| 22 | MF | MAR | Hassan Kachloul (on loan to Wolverhampton Wanderers) |
| 29 | DF | WAL | Rob Edwards |
| 30 | MF | ENG | Stephen Cooke |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 39 | GK | IRL | Wayne Henderson |
| — | MF | SCO | Colin Marshall (on loan to Clyde) |
| — | FW | IRL | Peter Hynes (on loan to Doncaster Rovers and Cheltenham Town) |

## Youth squad

    The following players did not appear for the first team this season, and spent most of the season playing for the youth team, but may have also appeared for the reserves.

### Under-19s

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | GK | ENG | Antoni Pecora |
| — | GK | ENG | Andrew Yarnold |
| — | GK | FIN | Jon Masalin |
| — | DF | ENG | Stuart Bridges |
| — | DF | ENG | Gary Cahill |
| — | DF | ENG | Scott Cormell |
| — | DF | ENG | Lee Grant |
| — | DF | ENG | Nick Green |
| — | DF | ENG | James O'Connor |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | DF | IRL | Kevin Mulcahy |
| — | MF | ENG | Neil Kilkenny (on trial from Arsenal) |
| — | MF | ENG | Kyle Nix |
| — | MF | IRL | Stephen Foley-Sheridan |
| — | FW | SCO | Alan Brazil (on loan to Coleraine) |
| — | FW | NIR | Jamie Ward |
| — | FW | FIN | Mika Ääritalo |
| — | FW | CIV | Amadou Kouman |
| — | MF | | John Grady |

### Under-17s

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | GK | ENG | Jake Meredith |
| — | GK | AUT | Bobby Olejnik |
| — | DF | ENG | Ashley Edkins |
| — | DF | ENG | Paul Green |
| — | DF | ENG | Michael Tuohy |
| — | DF | IRL | Stephen O'Halloran |
| — | DF | DEN | Magnus Troest |
| — | MF | ENG | Morgan Evans |
| — | MF | ENG | Craig Gardner |
| — | MF | ENG | Nigel Julien (on trial) |
| — | MF | ENG | Dan McDonald |
| — | MF | ENG | Michael Noakes |
| — | MF | ENG | Isaiah Osbourne |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | MF | ENG | Charlie Reeves |
| — | MF | ENG | Jay Sztybel |
| — | MF | BEL | Christian Tshimanga Kabeya |
| — | FW | ENG | Gabriel Agbonlahor |
| — | FW | ENG | Scott Bridges |
| — | FW | ENG | Shane Paul |
| — | FW | ENG | Sam Williams |
| — | DF | | Seyi Morgan |
| — | DF | | Matt Saunders |
| — | MF | | Luke Sampson |
| — | | | Abdiligan Abshir |
| — | | | Ross Hughes |

## Other players

    The following players did not play for any Aston Villa team this 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 |
| — | GK | IRL | Lee Boyle |
| — | DF | IRL | Pierre Ennis (to Dublin City) |
| — | DF | FRA | Youness Bengelloun (on trial from Paris Saint-Germain) |
| — | DF | ISR | Tal Ben Haim (on trial from Maccabi Tel Aviv) |
| — | MF | ENG | Ishmel Demontagnac |
| — | MF | ENG | Daryl Taylor |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | MF | IRL | Kenneth Browne |
| — | MF | MLT | André Schembri (on trial from Hibernians) |
| — | MF | COL | Freddy Grisales (on trial from Atlético Nacional) |
| — | GK | | Matthew Allen |
| — | MF | | Rowan Caney |

## Statistics
### Appearances and goals

    As of end of season
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Premiership | Premiership | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||||
| 1 | GK | DEN | Thomas Sørensen | 45 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 13 | GK | NED | Stefan Postma | 2 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Defenders ||||||||||||
| 2 | DF | WAL | Mark Delaney | 30 | 0 | 23+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | TRI | Jlloyd Samuel | 45 | 3 | 38 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| 4 | DF | SWE | Olof Mellberg | 39 | 1 | 33 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 15 | DF | ECU | Ulises de la Cruz | 32 | 0 | 20+8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 24 | DF | ENG | Liam Ridgewell | 13 | 0 | 5+6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 |
| 27 | DF | NOR | Ronny Johnsen | 27 | 1 | 21+2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||||
| 6 | MF | ENG | Gareth Barry | 43 | 4 | 36 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | ENG | Lee Hendrie | 37 | 2 | 32 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | ENG | Gavin McCann | 35 | 2 | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 |
| 11 | MF | PER | Nolberto Solano | 10 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | MF | GER | Thomas Hitzlsperger | 38 | 5 | 22+10 | 3 | 0+1 | 0 | 2+3 | 2 |
| 17 | MF | ENG | Peter Whittingham | 39 | 1 | 20+12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4+2 | 1 |
| Forwards ||||||||||||
| 9 | FW | ENG | Dion Dublin | 28 | 3 | 12+11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4+1 | 0 |
| 10 | FW | ENG | Darius Vassell | 39 | 10 | 26+6 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 5+1 | 1 |
| 14 | FW | SWE | Marcus Allbäck | 19 | 1 | 7+8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1+3 | 0 |
| 16 | FW | ENG | Peter Crouch | 18 | 4 | 6+10 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 18 | FW | COL | Juan Pablo Ángel | 39 | 23 | 33 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 7 |
| 23 | FW | ENG | Stefan Moore | 12 | 1 | 2+6 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 | 1+2 | 0 |
| 31 | FW | ENG | Luke Moore | 7 | 0 | 0+7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Players transferred or loaned out during the season ||||||||||||
| 5 | DF | TUR | Alpay Özalan | 6 | 1 | 4+2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | MAR | Mustapha Hadji | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | MF | IRL | Mark Kinsella | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Last updated: 31 June 2004 Source: Competitions

## Pre-season

| Date | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F – A | Scorers | Competition |
| 22 July 2003 | FC TPS Turku | A | 3 – 0 | Ángel (2), Vassell | Friendly |
| 24 July 2003 | Pitea | A | 8 – 0 | Allbäck (3), Crouch (3), Alpay, Hendrie | Friendly |
| 26 July 2003 | Umea | A | 4 – 0 | Vassell, Hendrie, Hitzlsperger, McCann | Friendly |
| 28 July 2003 | Bodens BK | A | 4 – 2 | Mellberg, Vassell, Makumbu (og), Crouch | Friendly |
| 1 August 2003 | Walsall | A | 1 – 2 | Vassell | Friendly |
| 2 August 2003 | Tamworth | A | 4 – 1 | Kachloul (2), Cooke, Crouch | Friendly |
| 5 August 2003 | Scunthorpe | A | 5 – 0 | Allbäck (3), Ángel, De la Cruz | Friendly |
| 9 August 2003 | Leeds | N | 2 – 2 | Kachloul, Hitzlsperger (Aston Villa win 4–2 on pens) | Friendly, Dublin Cup |
| 10 August 2003 | St Patricks | N | 6 – 0 | Ángel (3), Allbäck, Whittingham, Hitzlsperger | Friendly, Dublin Cup |

## Season results

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result F–A | Competition | Scorers | Attendance |
| 16 August 2003 | Portsmouth | A | [1–2] | Premier League | Barry (pen) 82' | 20,101 |
| 24 August 2003 | Liverpool | H | [0–0] | Premier League | | 42,573 |
| 27 August 2003 | Arsenal | A | [0–2] | Premier League | | 38,010 |
| 30 August 2003 | Leicester City | H | 3–1 | Premier League | Thatcher (og) 8', Ángel 10', 16' | 32,274 |
| 14 September 2003 | Manchester City | A | 1–4 | Premier League | Ángel 31' | 46,687 |
| 20 September 2003 | Charlton Athletic | H | [2–1] | Premier League | Alpay 37', Samuel 55' | 31,410 |
| 23 September 2003 | Wycombe Wanderers | A | 5–0 | League Cup | Whittingham 14', Ángel 31, (pen) 50', 55', Vassell (pen) 86' | 6,072 |
| 27 September 2003 | Chelsea | A | [0–1] | Premier League | | 41,182 |
| 5 October 2003 | Bolton | H | [1–1] | Premier League | Ángel 58' | 30,229 |
| 19 October 2003 | Birmingham | A | [0–0] | Premier League | | 29,546 |
| 25 October 2003 | Everton | H | [0–0] | Premier League | | 36,146 |
| 29 October 2003 | Leicester | H | 1–0 | League Cup | Hitzlsperger 75' | 26,729 |
| 1 November 2003 | Newcastle | A | 1–1 | Premier League | Dublin 11' | 51,975 |
| 8 November 2003 | Middlesbrough | H | [0–2] | Premier League | | 29,898 |
| 23 November 2003 | Tottenham | A | [1–2] | Premier League | Allbäck 66' | 33,140 |
| 29 November 2003 | Southampton | H | [1–0] | Premier League | Dublin 45' | 31,285 |
| 3 December 2003 | Crystal Palace | H | 3–0 | League Cup | Symons (og) 22', McCann 70', Ángel 79' | 24,258 |
| 6 December 2003 | Manchester United | A | 0–4 | Premier League | | 67,621 |
| 14 December 2003 | Wolves | H | 3–2 | Premier League | Ángel 21', 24', Barry 48' | 36,964 |
| 17 December 2003 | Chelsea | H | [2–1] | League Cup | Ángel 16', McCann 78' | 30,414 |
| 20 December 2003 | Blackburn Rovers | A | [2–0] | Premier League | S. Moore 62', Ángel 75' | 20,722 |
| 26 December 2003 | Leeds United | A | [0–0] | Premier League | | 38,513 |
| 28 December 2003 | Fulham | H | 3–0 | Premier League | Ángel 33', Vassell 67', 82' | 35,617 |
| 4 January 2004 | Man Utd | H | [1–2] | FA Cup | Barry 19' | 40,371 |
| 6 January 2004 | Portsmouth | H | [2–1] | Premier League | Ángel 22', Vassell 85' | 28,625 |
| 10 January 2004 | Liverpool | A | [0–1] | Premier League | | 43,771 |
| 18 January 2004 | Arsenal | H | [0–2] | Premier League | | 39,380 |
| 21 January 2004 | Bolton | A | 2–5 | League Cup | Ángel 20', 56' | 16,302 |
| 27 January 2004 | Bolton Wanderers | H | [2–0] | League Cup | Hitzlsperger 10', Samuel 88' | 36,883 |
| 31 January 2004 | Leicester City | A | 5–0 | Premier League | Vassell 50', 60', Crouch 57', 68', Dublin 64' | 31,056 |
| 07 February 2004 | Leeds United | H | [2–0] | Premier League | Ángel (pen) 45', Johnsen 59' | 39,171 |
| 11 February 2004 | Fulham | A | [2–1] | Premier League | Ángel 13', Vassell 32' | 16,153 |
| 22 February 2004 | Birmingham | H | 2–2 | Premier League | Vassell 21', Hitzlsperger 47' | 40,061 |
| 28 February 2004 | Everton | A | [0–2] | Premier League | | 39,353 |
| 14 March 2004 | Wolves | A | 4–0 | Premier League | Hitzlsperger 7', Mellberg 18', Ángel 24', 59' | 29,386 |
| 20 March 2004 | Blackburn Rovers | H | [0–2] | Premier League | | 37,532 |
| 27 March 2004 | Charlton Athletic | A | [2–1] | Premier League | Vassell 24', Samuel 54' | 26,250 |
| 4 April 2004 | Manchester City | H | [1–1] | Premier League | Ángel 21' | 37,602 |
| 10 April 2004 | Bolton Wanderers | A | [2–2] | Premier League | Crouch 18', Hendrie 53' | 26,374 |
| 12 April 2004 | Chelsea | H | 3–2 | Premier League | Vassell (pen) 39', Hitzlsperger 49', Hendrie 52' | 41,112 |
| 18 April 2004 | Newcastle United | H | [0–0] | Premier League | | 40,786 |
| 24 April 2004 | Middlesbrough | A | [2–1] | Premier League | Barry 45', Crouch 89' | 31,322 |
| 2 May 2004 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | [1–0] | Premier League | Ángel 5' | 42,573 |
| 8 May 2004 | Southampton | A | [1–1] | Premier League | Ángel (pen) 39' | 32,054 |
| 15 May 2004 | Manchester United | H | [0–2] | Premier League | | 42,573 |