19 August 2006 - Not The Housewarming Present They Would have Liked

On 19 August 2006, Arsenal played their first competitive game at the new Emirates Stadium, drawing 1-1 with Aston Villa.

Built over a three-year period with a construction cost of £390 million, the stadium replaced Arsenal's previous home, Highbury, and expanded the club's match-day capacity from 38,000 to over 60,300. A slightly less-than-capacity crowd of 60,023 turned up for the the first competitive game there on the Premier League's opening weekend, with Aston Villa as the guests of honor.

It was a close contest, remaining scoreless through the first half, but Villa managed to break the deadlock early in the second when captain Olof Mellberg headed home from a 53rd-minute corner kick.

Corner kicks became the theme of the day. Arsenal substitute Theo Walcott came on in the 73rd minute and, eleven minutes later, sent in a cross that dropped at the feet of midfielder Gilberto Silva, who prodded it home to earn a share of the points.

17 April 1897 - Aston Villa Makes A Move

On 17 April 1897, Aston Villa opened Villa Park as league and FA Cup champions, having already secured the Double.

Their new home, originally named Aston Lower Grounds, was their third one, following Aston Park (1874-76) and Perry Barr (1876-97). It was formerly part of the Aston Hall estate of  Lord Thomas Holte, built on the location that used to be the kitchen garden, which had subsequently been converted into an amusement park and all-purpose sports ground. Villa signed a long-term lease to rent the ground for an annual fee of £300, then commissioned the construction of stands with a capacity of 40,000 people.

Construction was still ongoing when Villa played their first match there, a 3-0 win over Blackburn Rovers. It was a meaningless match for the hosts, who had already secured their second straight league title (and third overall) and had won the FA Cup. They didn't lose a game there until a defeat to Sheffield United in January 1898. Since then, Villa has won four more league titles there (1899, 1900, 1910, 1981).

The record attendance there is 76,588, set during a sixth-round FA Cup match against Derby County, while the record as an all-seater is 42,788, set during a league game against Liverpool in 2009.

27 January 2011 - Surely The Loss Was Punishment Enough

On 27 January 2011, the Premier League fined Blackpool £25,000 for fielding a weakened team against Aston Villa earlier that season.

The match in question was played on 10 November. Blackpool, playing in their first top-flight season since 1971, had risen to 11th in the table after a win over West Brom and a draw with Everton over the previous week. With upcoming games against West Ham and Wolves, who occupied the table's last two spots, Blackpool manager Ian Holloway (pictured) made ten changes to his side for the Villa match, resting key players.

Holloway acknowledged that the line-up was not his strongest, but defended his decision, saying "We've got four games in twelve days and the lads I've played every week are struggling to keep up the level." Even with the changes, Blackpool nearly got a result, but fell 3-2 (they then got a win and a draw in their next two games).

Afterward, the Premier League accused Blackpool of deliberately fielding a weakened side in contravention of league rules. An offended Holloway threatened to resign in the league levied any fine against his team.

Nevertheless, on 27 January, the Premier League announced its decision to fine the club £25,000. Blackpool chairman Karl Oyston labeled the decision "unjust" and said they would appeal, but they ultimately decided against it. Holloway remained with the club, who finished the season in nineteenth and were relegated.

11 September 1895 - The Theft Of The FA Cup

On 11 September 1895, the FA Cup, which had been won by Aston Villa the previous season, was stolen from a Birmingham shop window. It has never been recovered.

Established in 1871, the FA Cup is the world's oldest association football competition. Since its beginning, the winner has taken possession of the cup itself, nicknamed "the Little Tin Idol," holding onto it until another team wins the tournament. In 1895, the winners were Aston Villa, who beat West Bromwich Albion in the final, 1-0. To share the accomplishment with their supporters, Villa (pictured with the cup) displayed the cup in the shop window of a local football equipment seller named William Shillcock.

But when Mr. Shillcock arrived at work on the morning of 11 September, he discovered that his shop had been robbed. Not only did the thieves steal a small amount of money, they also took the cup.

Although a £10 reward was offered for information leading to the cup's recovery, it was never located. The FA eventually fined Villa £25 to replace it. (The new trophy was used until 1910 and is currently located in the National Football Museum in Preston.)

In 1958, an 83-year old former criminal named Harry Burge confessed to the theft, saying he melted the cup down to make counterfeit coins. Despite his admission, however, he could provide no evidence linking him to the crime and went unpunished.

19 August 1995 - To Be Fair, He Never Claimed To Be A Psychic

On 19 August 1995, pundit Martin Hansen criticized Manchester United's season-opening loss to Aston Villa, stating "you can't win anything with kids." United proved him wrong, however, going on to win a league and FA Cup double.

United had ended the previous season without a trophy, the first time that had happened since 1989. And, before the start of the 1995-96 season, they sold three key players--Paul Ince, Mark Hughes, and Andrei Kanchelskis--without bringing in replacements, preferring instead to rely on rising young players like David Beckham, Paul Scholes, and Gary Neville, all of whom were just 20 years old when the new season started.

Playing before a crowd of 34,655 at Villa Park, the hosts jumped to a comfortable 3-0 lead with goals from Ian Taylor (14'), Mark Draper (27'), and Dwight Yorke (36') before Beckham scored a consolation goal in the 82nd minute to end the day 3-1 to Villa.

Speaking later on Match of the Day, Hansen made his now-famous pronouncement, adding that "the trick to winning the championship is having strength and depth, and they just haven't got it." But United followed that loss with a ten-game unbeaten streak that included eight wins and pushed them up to second in the table. By March, they claimed the top spot and held it for the remainder of the season, then won the FA Cup final over Liverpool.

7 August 1999 - What's Black, White, And Red All Over?

On 7 August 1999, Alan Shearer marked his 100th appearance for Newcastle by receiving the first red card of his career.

The striker joined Newcastle, his hometown club, in 1996 after five seasons at Southampton and four at Blackburn Rovers (with whom he won the Premier League in 1995) and had made 99 appearances for the club prior to the start of the 1999-2000 season. He had acquired the nickname "Mary Poppins" for his squeaky-clean public image, due in large part to the fact that he had never been sent off.

That changed in 1999. Newcastle were hosting Aston Villa in the season opener and the match remained scoreless deep into the second half. In the 70th minute, Shearer, who was already on a yellow card, battled Villa's Colin Calderwood for the ball, leaving the defender on the ground. Referee Uriah Rennie ruled that Shearer was guilty of "excessive use of the elbows" and showed the striker a second yellow, ejecting him from the match. Villa went on to win 0-1 with a 75th-minute goal from Julian Joachim.

Just over two years later, Shearer received a second red in a match against Charlton, but it was later rescinded.

21 July 1960 - Trevor Fords The North Sea

On 21 July 1960, striker Trevor Ford returned to Great Britain after serving a three-year ban related to an illegal payment scheme.

A Welsh international considered by many to be one of the greatest forwards of his era, Ford once set a British transfer record for his position when Sunderland paid £30,000 to sign him from Aston Villa in 1950. He justified the expense by scoring 67 times in 108 league appearances. After three and a half seasons, he moved to Cardiff for a club-record £29,500.

After retiring in 1956, he published his autobiography, I Lead the Attack, in which he claimed to have been involved in an illegal payment scheme while at Sunderland. The Football League pressed him for details and his refusal to provide any information led them to ban him from the league.

He came out of retirement in 1957, but had to go overseas due to the ban. He signed with PSV Eindhoven and stayed there until the Football League lifted the ban in 1960. Upon his return, he signed with Division Three side Newport County, though he made only eight appearances and scored only three goals before ending his league career after the season.