After two seasons of disappointment, it was a little surprising that Aston Villa again opted to stick with Paul Lambert ahead of this season. The Scot brought Roy Keane is as his assistant and strengthened his squad with players of plenty of Premier League experience - but matters on the field changed very little. Scoring goals was a major problem. At the half way point the Lions were five points clear for the drop zone, but a five nil hammering in February by Arsenal, followed closely by a a defeat to strugglers Hull City, left Villa in the drop zone. Tim Sherwood took over shortly afterwards and oversaw a change in fortunes. First and foremost he encouraged Villa to get forward more often and all of a sudden Christian Benteke was back in the goals. Wins against Everton and West Ham in May secured their survival - they finished the season three points clear of the relegation zone, and were then hammered in the FA Cup Final by Arsenal by four goals to nil.
