Aston Villa are still in the fight to qualify for European football this season after an astonishing recovery under Unai Emery.
The campaign started very poorly under Steven Gerrard but his replacement has done a brilliant job to get the confidence back at Villa Park.
It’ll be tough, but finishing in the top seven is still a real possibility for the Villans, especially after beating Tottenham Hotspur. But when was the last time they went to Europe?
Well, there were actually three successive seasons in which Villa qualified, but two of them ended rather abruptly.
The 2009/10 and 2010/11 campaigns saw Villa finish high enough to get into the UEFA Europa League Play-Off Round, but they failed at the first hurdle both times.
Not even making it to the group stage, Villans supporters were denied an opportunity to enjoy a proper European tour.
But it wasn’t always like that, as they did manage to get a lot further in the 2008/09 season as Martin O’Neill guided his side to the UEFA Cup Round of 32.
Here are 22 photos from that memorable campaign, including images of players as well as fans at matches at both Villa Park and on the nearby continent.
13. Martin Laursen opens the scoring for Villa
The centre back rose above the challenge of Kenneth Vermeer. | Getty Images
14. Fighting in the fog
Nicky Shorey battles with Tomas Necid of Slavia Prague, also in the group stage. | AFP via Getty Images
15. Surrounding the Slavia Prague players - a 1-0 victory
There was no chance of the opposition getting the ball. | AFP via Getty Images
16. Losing 2-1 Zilina but battling hard
Ashley Young is brought down. | Getty Images