Breakdown, Preview and Predictions for Aston Villa's 2012-13 Season

Aston Villa had a frustrating season in 2011-12 and the team's supporters have their fingers crossed that the club will do better in the upcoming campaign.

Villa has not been relegated since the 1987-88 season, but a sputtering offense left them just two points ahead of Bolton, who did not survive.

The club is certainly facing a difficult period and they are not safe from the bottom three spots this year. The dangers that could lead to their first relegation in over two decades will be covered in detail as they are next up in my series of English Premier League previews.

Here is all the buzz surrounding Villa's 2012-13 season.

Transfers In, Transfers out

Transfers In	Transfers Out
Brad Guzan	Carlos Jimenez Cuellar
Matthew Lowton	James Collins
Karim El Ahmadi	Connor Taylor
Brett Holman
Ron Vlaar

Key Additions

Ron Vlaar

Aston Villa decided to let first-choice center back James Collins leave for West Ham United, but they had already replaced him with Vlaar. The 27-year-old came over from the Dutch side Feyenoord Rotterdam.

He started two games for the Netherlands in Euro 2012 and is a solid presence at the heart of the back line. Villa will need wonderful performances from him as they often struggle to score.

Karim El Ahmadi

El Ahmadi is a solid signing for new manager Paul Lambert and he will be a presence in the center of the pitch. The 27-year-old excels in the defensive midfielder role and is an excellent passer.

The Moroccan will help Villa defensively, but he will not contribute to the attack. While he is effective in his position, the team may have done better by searching for more offensive-minded players.

Key Departures

James Collins

The center back started 31 matches for the Lions last season and had a decent season. He is reliable and disciplined but does not stand out in any single area.

Collins has been replaced by Vlaar, and Villa is ultimately better off with the Dutchman.

Carlos Jimenez Cuellar

Cuellar is a versatile defender who can play both in the center and on the outside. He was not a first-choice back, but he is an excellent option off the bench.

His ability to play multiple positions reliably would have been valuable for Lambert this season. Losing him is not a huge blow, but the team certainly would have benefited by still having Cuellar on the roster.

Biggest Matches and Full Schedule

The full Aston Villa schedule is available via the team's website. Here are the must-see matches.

vs. West Bromwich Albion, Sunday, September 30

Due to the close proximity of West Bromwich and Birmingham, this rivalry has intensified throughout these two clubs' long histories.

West Brom got the better of Villa last season, beating them 2-1 in the first meeting. The two sides played to a scoreless draw later in the year.

This matchup will be heated as always, and the two teams will be fighting for points, trying to separate themselves from the teams in the bottom half of the table.

vs. Manchester United, Saturday, November 10

Aston Villa have a proud history, although their recent results have not reflected that. A victory over Manchester United, however, is something that would be a major boost to morale.

The confidence gained from a a positive results against United would be extremely beneficial considering the next two matches for Villa. They will play Manchester City and Arsenal next.

This stretch of games pits the Lions against the top three teams in the Premiership from a season ago in consecutive outings. Any points gained in this series will be important.

at Norwich City, Saturday, May 4

At this point in the season, it is not out of the question that the Lions will be fighting to avoid relegation. That will make Paul Lambert's return to Carrow Road an intriguing affair.

Lambert helped Norwich have a surprisingly successful season last year, and Villa supporters are hoping he can pull off the same magic in Birmingham. 

He may need a few tricks at this point in the season, as a victory over his old side could save his new team from relegation.

Key Players

Darren Bent

Bent was the team's leading scorer last season, despite notching just nine goals.

Villa severely struggled offensively scoring just 37 goals, which was second-worst in the Premiership. The team will need an improved performance from Bent.

He is a pure striker and a talented goal scorer, but he needs to find the net more often, or he might be headed to yet another team. 

Stephen Ireland

Ireland is another player who will need to increase his production after recording just one goal and three assists last season.

Villa did not do much to add to the attack in the transfer marker, so Paul Lambert must get the best possible performances out of the players he has. If he put Ireland in positions to create goals, the Lions will improve significantly.

He hustles and contributes defensively better than most attack-minded players, but his primary responsibility is to create goals and he needs to do that much more often.

Ron Vlaar

The newcomer will be forced to play an important role immediately for the team. It is unlikely that Villa's attack will improve significantly and the team will have to rely on its defense to earn points.

First-choice center back Richard Dunne could miss up to two months of the season with an injury, and Vlaar will have to anchor and orchestrate the back line.

He will need to hit the ground running from the very start of his Premiership career if Villa is to improve upon last season. 

Strengths

Coaching

Aston Villa's most noteworthy addition was undoubtedly Paul Lambert. The Scot helped Norwich rise to the Premiership and post a surprising 12th-place finish.

He was an excellent choice to replace Alex McLeish, who did not endear himself to the team's supporters.

Lambert will help the team become more cohesive and play together. His tactics and intelligent decisions with the lineups will help lead to a few more wins at Villa Park.

His presence will be the single biggest difference this season.

Physicality

Villa did not have the necessary components to play aesthetically pleasing football last season and were forced to bruise their way through to earn points.

Lambert will try to avoid heavy-handed tactics, but there are some parts of this quality that he can harness.

The Lions won 13.5 balls in the air each game, which was the second-highest total in the league. This is largely due to their size and physical play.

However, the team was given 70 yellow cards last season, also the second-highest total in the EPL. If Lambert can control his team's aggression, he can use it to help his side win matches.

Note: statistics courtesy of Whoscored.com.

Weaknesses

Creating Chances

As has been touched upon already, Aston Villa's attack was atrocious this past season. They were only able to put away 37 goals, and another paltry total like that could see them down to the Championship.

On average, Villa took just 11.5 shots per game this past season and put only 3.6 on target. Stoke was the only team to fare worse in those categories.

They were simply lost once they moved into their opponents' half of the field. Alarmingly, the team's management did not make significant moves to improve in the transfer market.

Brett Holman is the only attack-minded player who was brought in and he scored just four goals in 25 Dutch league appearances last season. Paul Lambert will not have much to work with this season in the offensive third of the field.

Keeping the Ball

Aston Villa is excellent at winning the ball, but terrible at keeping it. The team's proficiency in the air has been noted, and they also led the Premiership with 19.5 interceptions per game.

However, they held on to the ball just 43.4 percent of the time and completed only 73 percent of their passes. Both marks ranked in the bottom four of the league.

Lambert has his work cut out for him in getting this team to pass intelligently. They did not prove last season that they had the capacity to make the right decision with the ball.

If the new coach can get his players to find each other more effectively, Villa has a chance to be a decent team. If not, they will be in for another disappointing season. 

Note: all statistics courtesy of Whoscored.com.

Prediction for 2012-13

Wins: 11

Draws: 10

Losses: 17

Points: 43

Place: 15th

Aston Villa won just seven league matches last season, which was less than every team but Wolverhampton. With Paul Lambert managing, that will not happen again.

His presence will be good for a few extra wins, but the team has not made the necessary additions to the squad to make a drastic improvement.

Lambert will keep the Lions safe from relegation, but he will not be able to do much more than that. Expect this to be another disappointing season for the team with the attack failing to generate many opportunities. 

Still, after last season's scare that almost saw the team drop a division, this result will not give supporters too much to gripe about.