The 1976–77 season was

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...

's 77th in the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

and their second consecutive season in the top division. Andy Gray and was joint winner of England's golden boot with Arsenal's Malcolm Macdonald in 1976–77. Gray's 29 goals helped Villa to a fourth-place finish and victory in the League Cup, and earned him the PFA Young Player of the Year and PFA Players' Player of the Year awards. There were debut appearances for

Gordon Smith Gordon Smith may refer to: In politics *Gordon H. Smith (born 1952), former U.S. Senator from Oregon, and current Area Authority for the LDS Church * Gordon Elsworth Smith (1918–2005), Canadian politician * Gordon Smith (academic) (1927–2009), ...

(79),

Alex Cropley Alexander James Cropley (born 16 January 1951) is a retired footballer who played as a midfielder for Hibernian, Aston Villa, Arsenal, Newcastle United and Portsmouth. Born in England, he was capped for the Scotland national team. Career Cro ...

(67)
Charlie Young (11)

Mick Buttress Mike Buttress (born 5 March 1958) is an English former footballer who played in the Football League for Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the ...

(3),

David T Hughes David Thomas Hughes (19 March 1958 – September 2023) was an English footballer who made 87 appearances in the Football League playing for Aston Villa, Lincoln City and Scunthorpe United, before moving into non-league football with Worcester ...

(4) and

Ivor Linton Ivor Linton (born 20 November 1959) is an English former professional footballer who played in the Football League for Aston Villa, Peterborough United and Birmingham City. He played as a midfielder. Career Linton was born in West Bromwich, Sta ...

(27).

Diary of the season

31 Aug 1976: No fewer than nine teams are level on four points at the top of the First Division after three matches.

lead on goal difference. Norwich City are the only team yet to register a point. 15 Dec 1976: Aston Villa beat Liverpool 5–1 in the League at

Villa Park Villa Park is a football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, England, with a seating capacity of 42,682. It has been the home of Premier League side Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witton and Aston railway stations ...

. 12 Mar 1977: The League Cup final ends in a 0–0 draw between Aston Villa and Everton at Wembley. Arsenal's 2–1 loss to Queens Park Rangers is their seventh consecutive League defeat, a club record. 16 Mar 1977: The Football League Cup final replay at

Hillsborough Hillsborough may refer to: Australia *Hillsborough, New South Wales, a suburb of Lake Macquarie Canada *Hillsborough, New Brunswick *Hillsborough Parish, New Brunswick * Hillsborough, Nova Scotia, in Inverness County *Hillsborough (electoral d ...

ends in a 1–1 draw. 13 Apr 1977: The Football League Cup final is decided at the third attempt when Aston Villa beat Everton 3–2 in the second replay at

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...

. A last minute goal from

Brian Little Brian Little (born 25 November 1953) is an English football manager and former player. As a player, Little was a striker who spent his entire career for Aston Villa in a career that spanned from 1971 to 1980. He made 247 league appearances, ...

sends the trophy to

and prevents the possibility of a first-ever major English Cup Final penalty shoot-out. 16 May 1977:

made his debut in the First Division as a 17-year-old apprentice, as a substitute in a 1–0 home victory against

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...

relegating the Potteries club. West Ham United and Queens Park Rangers win their last matches of the season to survive, and Bristol City keep their hopes alive by beating Liverpool 2–1. They go into their last match level on points with

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...

and Sunderland. Villa lost both games in the

Second City derby In English football, the Second City derby or Birmingham derby, is the local derby between the two major clubs in the city of Birmingham – Aston Villa and Birmingham City, first contested in 1879. Villa play at Villa Park while Birmingham play ...

League table

Results

''Aston Villa's score comes first''

Legend

Football League First Division

Squad

All Aston Villa players: 1977

References

Aston Villa F.C. seasons Aston Villa F.C. season {{England-season-footyclub-stub