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O’Neill: Were Not in Good Form!
Martin O’Neill has stated that Aston Villa are far from being in good form, despite sitting 6th on the Premier League table, 8 points behind surprise leaders Middlesbrough. Aston Villa have had an up and down season, starting off with 0 wins in 5 matches. The club finally winning their first match of the season beating Lincoln City in the 1st round of the Carling Cup. Later that week securing their first win in the Premier League against Tottenham.

Unable to build up a run of wins Villa fans were stunned when the club lost to Burnley in the 2nd round of the Carling Cup. The loss left O’Neill’s future at the club in doubt, but wins against an in form Middlesbrough, West Ham and Blackburn seemed to settle any thoughts Chairman Randy Lerner had of firing O’Neill, and this was rewarded in December, when O’Neill rallied his troops to consecutive big wins, beating Arsenal 1-0 and the following week thumping a struggling Liverpool squad 3-0.

With the hopes of a top four finish resting on his shoulders, O’Neill is said to be working hard at preparing his squad for the ride home. A clash with 2nd place Chelsea next week will be key in Villa’s chances of finishing in the top four. A win will see them sit in 4th place, a loss could mean falling down to a bottom half position, with the ladder jam packed with teams ready to pounce on any mistake. Adding to this is injuries to Luke Young and Nicky Shorey both expected to be out for another couple of months, O'Neill will use the transfer window to find suitable replacements for both players.

Aston Villa Results
Wednesday 13th August << West Brom >> Draw 1-1
Saturday 16th August << Liverpool >> Loss 2-1
Saturday 23rd August << Chelsea >> Loss 1-0
Saturday 30th August << Man United >> Loss 1-0
Saturday 6th September << Newcastle United >> Draw 1-1
Tuesday 9th September << Lincoln City >> Win 2-0
Saturday 13th September << Tottenham Hotspur >> Win 3-0
Saturday 20th September << Portsmouth >> Loss 1-0
Saturday 27th September << Wigan >> Win 3-0
Saturday 4th October << Bolton >> Loss 1-0
Saturday 11th October << Fulham >> Win 1-0
Tuesday 14th October << Burnley >> Loss 1-0
Saturday 18th October << Middlesbrough >> Win 2-0
Saturday 25th October << Hull City >> Draw 1-1
Saturday 1st November << Sunderland >> Draw 0-0
Saturday 8th November << Stoke City >> Win 5-0
Saturday 15th November << Man City >> Loss 2-1
Saturday 22nd November << West Ham >> Win 1-0
Saturday 29th November << Blackburn >> Win 1-0
Saturday 6th December << Everton >> Loss 2-0
Saturday 20th December << Arsenal >> Win 1-0
Saturday 27th December << Liverpool>> Win 3-0
Wednesday 31st December << Sunderland >> Loss 2-0

League Table
1. Middlesbrough 39pts
2. Chelsea 35pts
3. Man United 34pts
4. Everton 34pts
5. Man City 33pts
6. Aston Villa 31pts
7. Tottenham 30pts
8. West Ham 30pts
9. Newcastle 30pts
10. Blackburn 29pts
11. Arsenal 29pts
12. Bolton 28pts
13. Liverpool 26pts
14. West Brom 26pts
15. Portsmouth 24pts
16. Wigan 21pts
17. Fulham 20pts
18. Sunderland 19pts
19. Stoke City 18pts
20. Hull City 17pts