2013–14 Aston Villa F.C. season

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Aston Villa 2013–14 season: a quick, easy-to-understand summary

Overview
- This was Aston Villa’s 22nd season in the Premier League and their 103rd in existence. Paul Lambert was the manager in his second year.
- Villa finished 15th in the Premier League, their second season in a row in 15th place.
- It was the last season they went through without a single red card.

Season in brief
- The campaign started brightly with a 3–1 win at Arsenal on 17 August, a opening-day victory Villa hadn’t seen in 13 years.
- After a promising start, form declined, especially at home, and Lambert faced criticism for his cautious, counter-attacking approach.
- In January 2014, Villa were knocked out of the FA Cup by lower-league Sheffield United, continuing a pattern of struggling in the competition against lesser teams. Earlier in January they had a thrilling 4–3 win in the Midlands derby against West Bromwich Albion.
- A number of new players joined Villa before and during the season, including Aleksandar Tonev, Jores Okore, Leandro Bacuna, Nicklas Helenius, Antonio Luna and Jed Steer. Benteke signed a new four-year contract after briefly requesting a transfer.
- The club also faced significant injuries. Jores Okore suffered a ruptured ACL, Benteke had a hip flexor problem, and in April Benteke then tore his Achilles tendon, ruling him out for the rest of the season and the World Cup.
- In April, the club announced internal issues with staff; assistant manager Ian Culverhouse and head of football operations Gary Karsa were suspended pending an investigation, with Gordon Cowans and Shay Given stepping in as interim co-assistant managers.
- The season ended with a strong but brief fight to stay clear of relegation danger. Villa were ultimately safe, finishing 15th, but the run-in included heavy defeats and a disappointing finish.
- The club’s owner, Randy Lerner, announced on 12 May 2014 that he intended to sell the club.

Top scorer
- Christian Benteke was both Villa’s top scorer in the league with 10 goals and the overall top scorer with 11 in all competitions.

End of season notes
- The 2013–14 season was a consolidation year in the league but left plenty of issues to address, including a heavy injury list, inconsistent performance, and the looming sale of the club. The campaign closed with a 3–0 defeat to Tottenham on the final day.