2007–08 saw Villa progress further, finishing sixth to qualify for the Intertoto Cup. A victory against Danish side Odense BK, over two legs in the final during the summer of 2008, put Villa into European competition for the 2008–09 season for the first time in seven years. They reached the group stage of the UEFA Cup that season with relative ease, and played their first match against Dutch club Ajax at Villa Park, winning 2–1. The first major final of the Lerner era was the 2010 Football League Cup Final; Villa lost 2–1 to Manchester United at Wembley Stadium. Five days before the opening day of the 2010–11 season, O'Neill resigned as manager with immediate effect. The reserve team coach, Kevin MacDonald, took over as caretaker manager for the opening games of the season. Randy Lerner returned to England from the United States to interview potential candidates for the post. On 8 September 2010, the club announced Gérard Houllier would become the manager of Aston Villa, the first managerial appointment of Lerner's reign. On 20 April 2011, Houllier was admitted to hospital suffering from chest pains. Further tests showed he had suffered from a recurrence of a heart problem. The last games of the season saw his assistant, Gary McAllister, take over in a caretaker capacity. On 1 June 2011, the club issued a statement that Houllier had left the club by mutual consent leaving it looking for their fifth manager, including caretakers, of the year. Houllier was replaced by the former Birmingham City manager Alex McLeish on 17 June 2011, despite numerous protests from fans against his appointment. His appointment marked the first time in history that a manager had moved directly from Birmingham to Villa.