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Season 2015-16
Aston Villa (a) Premier League


In association 
with NUFC.com

 
 


Date:
Saturday 7th May 2016, 3.00pm

Venue:
 Villa Park

Conditions: Agonising

Admission: £41 (£41 in 2014/15)

Programme:
£3.50
 



   

Aston Villa

Newcastle United

0 - 0

 

Teams

Goals

Half time: Villans 0 Magpies 0

Full time: Villans 0 Magpies
0

We Said

 

Rafa:

"I think that we didn’t play well; maybe because of too much anxiety, which made the players tense. We could not do what we wanted.

"In the second half there was a better reaction, the team created some chances and at least we were there close to the box, pushing and pushing.

"When they have so many people behind the ball defending you cannot find a chance. You need to score, but you know they can be dangerous on the counter-attack. If you give the ball away you lose confidence, and when you are under pressure you make mistakes.

"Our situation is bad and simple. We have to wait and after, try to win, but we do not know what they will do. Obviously it depends on them more than us, but we will have to fight to get three points and see what happens.

"At Real Madrid we did what we had to do, and stayed high, but they changed things, and then I accepted this challenge.

"For me, it was an opportunity to come back to the Premier League, and try to show everyone that we could do well. I had the confidence in the potential of the club and the players, and we were fighting until today that it could be different. 

"If Jack Colback scored, or Aleksandar Mitrovic scored, we would still be talking about how we have a chance - so we have to believe Everton will do a good game
(at the mackems on Wednesday).

”I can watch it, but to be fair it will not change anything. Maybe I will try to enjoy with our staff, and then prepare the training session for the day after. 

"The only thing that you can do is be sure that if you play against Tottenham and you have a chance to stay up you have to win.”

They Said


Eric Black said:

"I think last week we edged closer. We spoke all week about the supporters, because next season this club is going to need them, and at Watford with the performance I thought we edged towards them and again today I think we took another step.

"The supporters today were breathtaking and I think the players responded, played for the jersey and worked tirelessly.

"We had to try to get the supporters back on side before the end of this season, for the start of next season, because the atmosphere they create is pretty close to the 12th man. We need them and I think the players deserve credit for taking these little steps back towards them under difficult conditions.

"The hope is that some of these supporters come back with slightly more optimism than they would have done going away with several home defeats. It's a very small step but it's a start,
(we have) got to build something."
 

Stats


Failing to find the net in our closing away game meant that 2015/16 was Newcastle's worst ever Premier League season in terms of goals scored, with 12 one less than 1997/98's total of 13.  

The Magpies also set a new low Premier League away points tally, with our nine point return worse than the previous low of 12 that came during 2008/09.

The Magpies now haven't lost to Villa in ten games since a 0-1 reverse at Villa Park in April 2011. Since then we've won five and drawn the other five meetings.

Aston Villa managed to avoid the defeat that would would have set a new club record of twelve successive league reverses.

Toon @ Villa Park - Premier League era:

2015/16 drew 0-0
2014/15 drew 0-0
2013/14 won 2-1 Ben Arfa, Gouffran
2012/13 won 2-1 Cisse, Cabaye
2011/12 drew 1-1 Best
2010/11 lost 0-1
2008/09 lost 0-1
2007/08 lost 1-4 Owen
2006/07 lost 0-2
2005/06 won 2-1 Ameobi, N'Zogbia
2004/05 lost 2-4 Kluivert, O'Brien
2003/04 drew 0-0
2002/03 won 1-0 Shearer
2001/02 drew 1-1 Shearer
2000/01 drew 1-1 Solano
2000/01 lost 1-0 (FAC)
1999/00 won 1-0 Ferguson
1998/99 lost 0-1
1997/98 won 1-0 Batty
1996/97 drew 2-2 Shearer, Clark
1995/96 drew 1-1 Ferdinand
1994/95 won 2-0 Lee, Cole
1993/94 won 2-0 Allen (pen), Cole

Full record against Villa:

  P W D L F A
SJP 77 48 15 14 162 90
VP 77 20 20 37 80 136
League 154 68 35 51 242 226
SJP(FA) 2 1 1 0 5 3
PB/VP/W/CP 5 1 0 4 3 15
SJP(LC) 0 0 0 0 0 0
VP 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cup 7 2 1 4 8 18
Tot 161 70 36 55 250 244


Only once in 22 seasons of Premier League football have United won their final away game - that solitary success was at QPR in May 2013, a 2-1 victory.

Final away game results - Premier League:

2015/16 drew 0-0 at Aston Villa
2014/15 lost 1-2 at QPR
2013/14 lost 1-2 at Liverpool
2012/13 won 2-1 at QPR
2011/12 lost 1-3 at Everton
2010/11 drew 2-2 at Chelsea
2008/09 lost 0-1 at Aston Villa
2007/08 lost 1-3 at Everton
2006/07 drew 1-1 at Watford
2005/06 drew 0-0 at Birmingham
2004/05 lost 0-2 at Everton
2003/04 drew 1-1 at Liverpool
2002/03 drew 2-2 at West Bromwich Albion
2001/02 lost 1-3 at Southampton
2000/01 lost 0-3 at Liverpool
1999/00 drew 0-0 at Derby
1998/99 lost 0-2 at Leicester
1997/98 lost 0-1 at Blackburn
1996/97 drew 0-0 at Manchester United
1995/96 drew 1-1 at Forest
1994/95 lost 0-1 at Blackburn
1993/94 lost 0-2 at Sheffield United

PS: In years to come, it may be asked why Charles N'Zogbia didn't feature against his old side. Certainly not injured, the Frenchman has been technically available since November 2015 but not selected. It's not just us with more dead wood than you can shake a stick at. 
 

Waffle

 

2016

2009


The Championship void may not have opened up totally as it did here seven years ago, but an abject display reminiscent of our 2009 surrender left the 2016 side teetering on the edge of demotion.

Events on wearside meanwhile compounded United's misery, with the mackems now having the opportunity to demote us by beating a flat-lining Everton side at their own midden on Wednesday.

We may not have lost and the clean sheet took our unbeaten run to five games, but the mood here at full time in all other respects echoed that similarly sunny afternoon at Villa Park - the only thing missing was a stray boot diverting a soft shot into our own net.

Something close to salvation lay in our own hands here but we inexplicably allowed it to ebb away, as our all-too familiar shortcomings recurred. Calling us inept suggests we did things wrong; in truth we did very little at all - it's a mystery quite how we managed to fill in 96 aimless and artless minutes. 

That it came against one of the poorest ever top flight teams added insult to injury, as our meek approach meant we failed to lay a glove on whipping boys beaten in each of their last 11 games.

Villa have tumbled out of the Premier League with a paltry points tally akin to Derby County and the mackems in previous seasons - but their demise does at least remove some of the worst fans and stewards we've encountered for a good while. Sadly though, our own ineptitude means that we'll be back here next season, by which time their attention-seeking fans will doubtless have devised new ways to embarrass themselves - and police themselves if Villa's threatened job cuts materialise....

Revelling in our demise again for reasons that are still anything but clear to us, Villa's pathetic beach ball and balloon protest hampered United's endeavours to win this game, stewards making laughable attempts to clear them away one at a time - having earlier retrieved said inflatables from the playing surface and returned them into the crowd. Why not just burst the damn things? Or even bother to clear the playing surface at half time?

Rafa's side have no excuses though for this colossal letdown that left a vibrant away support totally deflated well before full time - having witnessed a truly woeful display during which we barely mustered a shot against the leakiest defence in the league. 

The first 45 minutes were as forgettable and wasteful as any half we've managed away from home this season, regardless of who was in the dugout. Only the players and manager know why we adopted such a cautious approach in the mother of all must-win games against woeful opponents.

Chief culprits were those usual suspects who have shirked rather than worked: Gini Wijnaldum, Jack Colback and Papiss Cisse seemingly ambling around without a care in the world while Moussa Sissoko and Andros Townsend ran up blind alleys all afternoon. Our suspicion was that the recent good form shown by the former Spurs man resulted in his colleagues just leaving it all to him here today.

 

There weren't many in black and white who could claim they gave their all. Jamaal Lascelles and Chancel Mbemba were solid defensively but offered little at set pieces, Vurnon Anita's crosses were invariably blocked and although Paul Dummett couldn't be faulted for effort, his delivery was poor. 


Karl Darlow made the one save he needed to against his first club, but few others can look in the mirror and claim they gave it everything. So much for leaving everything on the pitch.  

Cisse's abysmal showing was thankfully ended after two shockingly careless flicks at the start of the second half and at least Aleksandar Mitrovic came on and tried. But of the Serb's three efforts at goal, none were on target and that tells its own tale as to why this season will end in relegation.

Ayoze Perez replaced Cheick Tiote who had done a reasonable job in midfield but apart from winning a few corners, his introduction was like everything else in this campaign - too little, too late.

Colback should have buried a left-footed shot two minutes after the break but fired over and then just after the hour Mitrovic should have fired hard and low but tried a lob that cleared the crossbar.

Mitrovic twice headed wide and Wijnaldum's effort in added time was blocked by Kieran Clark before Townsend was given the chance to reprise his Palace free-kick from last week. From an almost identical position his effort was hit well and on-target but never looked like beating 'keeper Bunn.

And with that, any chance of three points evaporated leaving gloating home fans to cheer the nowts apiece that prevented them officially becoming the worst Aston Villa side in their 142 year history.

Official confirmation of our own demotion is still to arrive, but even if that doesn't happen this coming Wednesday night, the prospect of United beating Spurs on Sunday seems increasingly remote, given that the Cockerels need at least a point to confirm a runner's up spot ahead of their rivals Arsenal.

Failing to beat the worst team in our league twice* is probably worthy of relegation on its own, but rank carelessness on many other occasions contributed to our fall from grace - the only consistency we've demonstrated. (* Derby's demotion with just 11 points in 2008 included four taken off us).

Shame on everyone responsible for not doing enough to prevent it happening, after having had ample warning last season and the season before.   

It's doubtful whether anyone in a position of power on Barrack Road will actually do the decent thing but one person above all others should resign - the one who courted, chased and appointed Steve McClaren. Bringing him in - and dithering when it was glaringly obvious he needed to be removed - counts as gross misconduct of the highest order. 

The system that brought the likes of Florian Thauvin, Emmanuel Riviere, Siem De Jong, Facundo Ferrerya, Henri Saivet and Seydou Doumbia arrive but play no part whatsoever also has to be challenged - and if that means the comedian's dad is pensioned off, then so be it. 

One win or two draws for big Sham's mob from their last two games will be enough to confirm our demise along with Norwich City, beaten at home to Manchester United and odds-on to join Villa.

The rail journey back to Tyneside afforded time to brood on our likely fate and future but the view from the window hardly improved the mood though, as Birmingham, Burton, Derby, Sheffield and Rotherham all slipped past.

That we'll be playing Championship football at venues of that ilk next season is a foregone conclusion: who will be at the helm rather less clear cut. Our successful promotion at the first attempt in 2010 followed a summer of confusion that left Chris Hughton to take charge by default. 

If nothing else, the Rafa situation needs resolving quickly so that reconstruction can begin - the consequences of inaction this season are abundantly clear. 

The final away game of Sir Bobby Robson and Alan Shearer's time in charge came on this ground. And try though we might, we cannot make a credible case for Benitez to stick around here following relegation. Whoever ends up replacing him has a thankless task though - both on and off the field. 

Biffa


Page last updated 07 May, 2023