4 years ago

[Chico Hamilton III]

We should have released a DVD of this. December 12 2009

Sport
Villa ambush United Jonathan Northcroft Football correspondent at Old Trafford
934 words
13 December 2009
The Sunday TimesEnglish
© 2009 Times Newspapers Ltd. All rights reserved
MAN UTD 0
ASTON VILLA 1
Agbonlahor 21
IN the worlds of music and fashion, styles from the 1980s have been voguish for some time. Football has taken longer to catch on but now it seems gripped by retro-chic. The Premier League is becoming like the old First Division, a competition where anyone could beat anyone and big clubs routinely tripped up. Here, after Everton had surprised Chelsea and Wolves had shocked Tottenham, came the ultimate revivalist result — Aston Villa winning at Old Trafford for the first time since 1983.
Martin O'Neill's side are suddenly third and who could begrudge those heights to competitors who resist as redoubtably as Richard Dunne, Carlos Cuellar, Stiliyan Petrov and Brad Friedel. Villa built this, their first league victory over United in 27 games, on the back of that stubborn quartet, weathering the welter of pressure United exerted after going behind to the excellent goal in the 20th minute that Ashley Young and Gabriel Agbonlahor concocted between them. Agbonlahor converted Young's cross with a header and when Nemanja Vidic looked set to equalise by similar means in the 80th minute it was a winger, Stuart Downing, who cleared off the line. That rather encapsulated Villa's sterling collective effort.
United should have been more secure with Wes Brown and Nemanja Vidic returning to the centre of their defence but the sheer standard of ball Aston Villa put into a penalty area can undo any back line. No team crosses better — whether from corners, free kicks or open play — and one golden delivery from Ashley Young completely reshaped this game.
United were in utter control during its opening phase and only bloody-minded penalty box defending by Cuellar and Dunne stopped Antonio Valencia scoring at least twice. It took 20 minutes for Villa to have enough ball to mount one of their counter-attacks; one thrust was all Ashley Young needed to find Agbonlahor for Villa's stunning goal. United were astounded to be behind but the efficiency of Villa's attacking should have been a lesson to them. Martin O'Neill's team had two further sorties in the first half and both almost resulted in goals.
Dunne's header from Downing's corner forced an important block from Evra and Tomasz Kuszczak stretched to prevent Agbonlahor's ball finding Ashley Young for a tap-in.
Wayne Rooney and Co had repeated opportunities to piece a decisive move together but could not match their opponents' simplicity. Rooney took an Evra cross past Carlos Cuellar with breathtaking technique and smacked an instinctive shot against the underside of the bar. Earlier, Rooney had embarrassed himself — and all who pretend English footballers are saintlier than the foreigners. Englishmen don't dive? Yeah, right. Having gone past Cuellar, Rooney touched the ball past Luke Young and swooned in search of a penalty.
Martin Atkinson booked him.
Rooney showed his better side again when diverting Evra's cross with a clever flick but, as the goal lay open, the ball just eluded a sliding Valencia at the far post.
Michael Owen came on at half-time , and getting a strike partner gave Rooney more scope but twice he failed to beat Friedel with lobs and Cuellar did brilliantly to block a sharp effort from 15 yards out.
Carrick volleyed close. Dimitar Berbatov came on for Park Ji-Sung to bring United's compliment of strikers to three. Villa invited such a move by Sir Alex Ferguson by sitting too deep: it was understandable they would try and defend then break via Agbonlahor, but O'Neill's men lay too far back to pressure United — and relieve the pressure on themselves — when they did regain possession.
It became a siege and when Owen slipped a nice pass to Carrick, who found Berbatov in the six-yard area an equaliser seemed certain. But the Bulgarian miskicked.
MAN UTD: Kuszczak 5, Fletcher 5, Brown 6, Vidic 5, Evra 6, Carrick 6, Anderson 5 (Gibson 68min), Valencia, Giggs 5 (Owen h-t, 5), Park 5 (Berbatov 63min), Rooney 6
ASTON VILLA: Friedel 7, L Young 7, Dunne 9, Cuellar 8, Warnock 7 (Collins 62min), A Young 7, Milner 6, Petrov 8, Downing 6 (Reo-Coker 81min), Agbonlahor 7, Heskey 5 (Carew 74min)
 

[bilsim]

I remember this like it was yesterday. I really thought that team was going to achieve something. Funny to think how quickly it all went wrong in the following year.

[PeterWithesShin]

Priceless.

[Pete3206]

[nigel]

No, it's the sort of thing the Albion do

[l_mckay]

Remember going to this game was just waiting for a last minute goal to spoil to whole day as it did the season before. Can't see us winning up there again anytime soon even if they are a poor team right now

[Kingthing]

Walked into a packed local in Kingston, full of plastics, 5 of us Villa fans jumping around like loons. As the final whistle went we stood under the massive screen directing them all, like traffic Police, to the exit.

[SoccerHQ]

Great day. Felt like we were never going to beat them again although I was reasonably confident before the game we'd get something given the defence they had out.

Maybe a good omen we're playing then this weekend then, we'll see.

[supertom]

Great day. And we got a point at VP that season too. I think sadly because of that, by the time we met them in the League Cup there was just this niggling feeling that we couldn't possibly play Utd 3 times in a season without losing. I'd have traded the Old trafford win for a Wembley win in a heartbeat.

Again, as in previous years under O Neill we were insconsed in that top 4, but couldn't sustain it through the run in.

[SoccerHQ]

Great day. And we got a point at VP that season too. I think sadly because of that, by the time we met them in the League Cup there was just this niggling feeling that we couldn't possibly play Utd 3 times in a season without losing. I'd have traded the Old trafford win for a Wembley win in a heartbeat.

Again, as in previous years under O Neill we were insconsed in that top 4, but couldn't sustain it through the run in.

I think that game at VP which was two weeks before the cup final, tipped the balance pyschologically back into United's favour. It was 1-1 and they had Nani sent off after 20 minutes yet they dominated the rest of the game.

I actuallly thought 09/10 was our best chance of getting top 4. 07/08 was fun with some memorable games but we were always a level below the top teams that year, 08/09 we blew a great chance but there was always this nagging doubt Arsenal would come back but yeah 09/10 with Liverpool falling outside and Man. City not quite ready to finish there, we really should've done better when you look at some of the results in the run in. Drawing within 4 days at home to Wolves and then Sunderland killed it for me. Crap VP home form, who'd have thought it eh?!

[Ads]

It was a great away day. I remember the last ten minutes were like standing in terracing, with loads of people on the stairs in aisle, moving backwards and forwards with the ebb and flow.

[ADVILLAFAN]

Kicked a wooden panel in the pub as I thought Berbatov had equalised in the last minute. The panel came loose and flew off and hit a woman standing by the bar. She was a Brummie Manure fan and said "I don't know why you're so excited, you knew you were going to win" Yeah right!!

Remember going home singing Villa songs on the way and a man walking his dog came up and we ended up hugging about it!

[martin@ardenley]

Went as a guest of my sons employer at the time, seats were rubbish and we were in an area full of Chinese who spent most of their time taking pictures of one another or anything that was red.

Must say the away support was excellent that night.

[ez]

We scored in the 21st minute and held on? Wow. It was a five o'clock kick off and I went to the works do that night. Met a couple of man utd fans I worked with and just shrugged at them as if it was no big deal.

[Pat McMahon]

It was my birthday and had been out on a date in Shanghai. Had a bit of an argument when we got in and were toing  and froing in my living room. The lady in question stormed off and I turned the tv on to see we were winning 1-0. I figured I had brought the Villa luck so spent the next 49 minutes pacing round the living room till the final whistle.