to Brown that put Pittsburgh in front with 42 seconds left. It was

Aston Villas relegation was confirmed when they lost 1-0 at Manchester United on Saturday, but the Premier League obituary could have been written in December, and drafted years ago. It was seven years ago last week that Villas new-found success under the ownership of Randy Lerner showed its first signs of falling apart at the seams. Then-manager Martin ONeill, criticised for playing a second-string side in Villas UEFA Cup round-of-32 second leg at CSKA Moscow, hosted a dinner in front of the 295 fans who had travelled to Russia to see a 2-0 defeat, justifying his decision to all but give up on the tie with the score at 1-1 on aggregate. Aston Villa brought a third-string side to CSKA Moscow in the UEFA Cup A three-course dinner was washed down by five drink vouchers at a reported cost of £15,000 to the club, a thank you and sorry to the fans as they reminisced with ONeill and others about past European success.The evening was more or less viewed positively, but the damage had been done weeks before. Ask Villa fans where it started to go wrong as they taste relegation for the first time in Premier League history, and many will point to the final months of the 2008/09 season.It was Villas first appearance at this stage of European competition for 11 years, and the decision not to take the likes of James Milner, Ashley Young, Gareth Barry, Stiliyan Petrov and Gabriel Agbonlahor to Moscow left a sour taste in fans mouths. But the story is more complex than one result.A win over Stoke at Villa Park three days after the Moscow tie would have stretched their fourth-place lead over Arsenal to eight points with 11 games remaining. It was a must-win for ONeill to justify the selection in Russia, but Villa threw away a two-goal lead, conceding twice in the final three minutes. The Villa Park crowd have seen only two home wins in the league this season The players and fans were deflated, and Villa went on to take just 10 points out of a possible 33 in the Premier League, finishing 10 points behind Arsenal in sixth. But to fully understand the impact of the swing-and-miss 2008/09 season, Villa fans will take you back to the start of Lerners tenure two years previous.It is my belief and the basis for my bid that Aston Villa can compete at the highest level within the Premiership and in Europe, said Lerner after the Americans £62.6m takeover from Doug Ellis in 2006.The Holte End sang USA, USA during the good days, and kept faith in ONeill and Lerner during the bad. The owner even had the Villa crest tattooed on his ankle, and a new £8m training ground was built to improve the clubs academy. Randy Lerner ploughed millions into the club, but pulled the plug on spending when Villa missed out on the top four Villa were once again an attractive option, but they initially spent modestly, signing John Carew, Petrov and Young before an 11th-place finish in ONeills first season in 2006/07. Proud history, bright future was the motto on free scarves handed out on the final home game of the season, and that claim was correct for the short term at least.They finished sixth in 2007/08, and the foundations were there for the fourth-place push Lerner had promised. He opened his wallet further, and as spending went up, so did expectation.ONeills transfer pool didnt stretch further than the UK as Villa spent nearly £50m in the summer of 2008. Milner (£12m), Curtis Davies (£8m), Carlos Cuellar (£7.8m), Steven Sidwell (£5m), Luke Young (£5m), Nicky Shorey (£4m), Emile Heskey (£3.5m) and Brad Friedel (£2.5m) arrived, while only £3m went out of the door. The fees and wages spent would come back to hurt the club. Martin ONeill was in charge at Villa until 2010, leaving five days before the start of the season Villa recovered from their 2008/09 disappointment to threaten again in 2009/10, and continued to spend in the market. Another £40m worth of talent came in, but the result was similar; a sixth-place finish as Villa lost in the League Cup final and FA Cup semi-final.Barry started a worrying trend by leaving Villa in the summer of 2009 for Manchester City, whose spending left ONeill, Lerner and co trailing behind.Lerners media appearances were few and far between, but he was quick to assure fans that both ONeill and star player Milner were going nowhere despite strong rumours of unrest. Eric Black reflects on Aston Villas relegation, which was sealed with a 1-0 defeat at Manchester United on Saturday I am not worried about losing James Milner, he said in May 2010, before adding: Martin will be back next year managing. It has already been settled.Milner was soon to follow Barry out of the door to City, after a long-running transfer saga which left ONeill frustrated. The Northern Irishman wanted another go at fourth-place to match Citys spending, but Lerner had one hand on the plugs chain and spending was halted.Villa had yet to make a senior summer signing when ONeill shocked everyone by leaving the club five days before the start of the 2010/11 season, and despite his replacement Gerard Houllier showing glimpses of a promising project, he left at the end of the season with health issues after a ninth-place finish. Villas 2008/09 season saw them challenging for a top-four spot Lerner and the boards decision-making was then heavily criticised as Villa appointed Birmingham City manager Alex McLeish, despite the spray-painted bed sheets and protests from supporters pleading with the club not to appoint the man who relegated their bitter rivals from three miles down the road.A new approach to transfers followed as Villas books were splattered in red. Young and Stewart Downing left, and the transfer policy was made clear to McLeish from day one.Lerner and the board simply asked if we could reduce the wages to get to a certain level but remain competitive within the league, McLeish told Sky Sports. I knew right away it was going to be a tough task. Alex McLeish was brought in to reduce the wage bill Villa survived, just, in 16th place, and after a final day defeat at Paul Lamberts Norwich, the travelling support were calling for the man in the opposition dugout to save them.McLeish was sacked, Lambert arrived, but it merely delayed the inevitable. His first transfer window was promising, bringing in Christian Benteke, Ron Vlaar and Ashley Westwood, among others, for £25m. Benteke was a masterstroke, and his goals, along with the rise and rise of Fabian Delph, kept Villa in the Premier League for two more seasons.I have come to know well that fates are fickle in the business of English football, and I feel that I have pushed mine well past the limit, said Lerner in May 2014 upon announcing the club was up for sale.Fans felt Lerner had outstayed his welcome, but the club continued to outstay theirs in the Premier League as Villa remained unsold. Tim Sherwood kept Villa up and got them to an FA Cup final, but was sacked in the autumn They were heading for relegation last February before Lambert was replaced by Tim Sherwood, whose short-term invigoration saved the club and led them to an FA Cup final.Villa failed to turn up against Arsenal at Wembley, and the current campaign was played out in similar fashion.It needs investment, Lambert had pleaded 12 months earlier, but Villa had to sell to buy. Benteke and Delph left for £40m, 11 senior players arrived for over £50m, but never gelled.Sherwood was sacked, and Frenchman Remi Garde was chosen as the sacrificial lamb when managers with survival and Premier League experience seemed a brighter option. Remi Garde was sacked in March after winning just two Premier League games He failed to make a team out of the misfits, and Jamie Carraghers comments after Villas 6-0 defeat by Liverpool in February summed it up.I always think when teams go down theres always two or three players where other managers in the Premier League will try and take them.I cant imagine one Premier League manager looking at that team and thinking theres one player there hed want to take into his squad. Thats how poor they are.That brings us to today. A relegation that has been five years in the making sees the Premier League lose one of their seven ever-present clubs. Villa must now rebuild in the Championship, but no new manager has been appointed Fans will have a glimmer of hope that stability upstairs can aid a clean restart and rebuild after some staffing shake-ups in recent months, but the current squad needs an injection of intelligence, fight and second-tier experience. That goes for the new manager, too.The feeling around Villa Park is that fans have been starved of a team to support for the last nine months. Fans are struggling to identify with current players, and affiliation more or less stops at the club crest.That crest was altered last week, the word Prepared removed for a new design. Preparation for the Championship starts now as fans pray for a team they can love once again. Aston Villa supporters hold protesting banners during their dismal 2015/16 campaign Air Max Outlet Italia . 24 Baylor in a Big 12 clash between teams trending in opposite directions. Andrew Wiggins made 10-of-12 from the foul line and scored 17 for Kansas (14-4, 5-0 Big 12), which capped a stretch of four straight games against ranked opponents unscathed. Scarpe Air Max In Offerta . -- Vincent Lecavalier got everything but the desired result in his return to Tampa Bay. http://www.italiaairmax.it/ . Laudrup revealed Thursday he was notified of his dismissal in "the briefest of letters which gave no reasons why such hasty and final action was deemed necessary. Air Max Vendita Online . The players spoke Jan. 13 during a Major League Baseball Players Association conference call after Rodriguez sued the union and Major League Baseball to overturn an arbitrators decision suspending him for the 2014 season and post-season. Air Max Italia . Arsenal failed to take full advantage of its main rivals stumbles on Saturday as substitute Gerard Deulofeu levelled with a hard shot from a tight angle in the 84th minute to give Everton a deserved point. Ahead of a crucial fortnight that will see them play against Napoli in the Champions League, Manchester City and Chelsea, Arsenal leads by five points ahead of Liverpool and Chelsea. PITTSBURGH -- Tony Romo will be back in uniform next Sunday when the Dallas Cowboys host the Baltimore Ravens.The leading passer in franchise history however, wont be under center. As much respect as owner Jerry Jones has for Romo, even Jones isnt going to go away from one of the hottest hands in the NFL, one that has the streaking Cowboys atop the NFC East with no signs of slowing.Its your job for now, Dak Prescott.A few more games like the 319-yard, two-touchdown performance in Sundays 35-30 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers and it may be yours for good.I think the longer he plays like this, the more we have a chance to have another win, Jones said. Everybody here wants to do one thing and thats win. And theres nobody that would introduce any other issue or any other consideration than doing what it takes to win the game.Romo included, apparently. Though Romo is practicing and fully recovered from the back injury he suffered in August, Jones plans to stick with Prescott with the Cowboys (8-1) riding an eight-game winning streak. While running back Ezekiel Elliott scored twice in the final 2 minutes of a wild fourth quarter to bring Dallas back a pair of one-point deficits, Jones was equally awed by the ease with which Prescott handled the pressure against a team desperate to right itself.Prescott went 9 for 10 over the final two Dallas drives, standing in the face of the Pittsburgh pass rush like a player whos been around for more than just a couple of months.He was outstanding, Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. Its contagious throughout our team. Guys believed in him. Everyone believed in each other.Other takeaways as Dallas matched the longest single-season winning streak in team history while the Steelers (4-5) dropped their fourth straight.ZESTY ZEKEElliott, the other Dallas rookie, found the going tough until late in the fourth quarter. Then, the NFLs leading rusher with the relentlessly churning legs buried Pittsburgh. His first touchdown, a 14-yard dash down the right sideline, put the Cowboys up 29-24. His second, a 32-yard sprint right up the middle , came on a simple play when he was just trying get the ball a little closer for kicker Dan Bailey. Instead, Elliott found nothing but a large swath of green in front of him.It parted like the Red Sea, Elliott said. All I had to do was run.FOR YOU, DADDallas wide receiveer Dez Bryant caught six passes for 114 yards and a score , his most productive game of the season.ddddddddddddBryants breakout came just a day after the death of his father, MacArthur Hatton. Bryant chose to play and paid tribute by pointing to the sky after his pretty 50-yard touchdown grab.I dont know how you being to understand how someone can perform at that level dealing with such an emotional thing in their life, Garrett said. He was locked in. He was very passionate throughout the ball game.ACCOUNTING ISSUES?Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger passed for 408 yards and three scores to move into 10th on the NFLs all-time list for career touchdown passes (292), slipping by Hall of Famers Johnny Unitas and Warren Moon. Yet it wasnt enough to lift Pittsburgh to its first victory in more than a month.Roethlisberger said the Steelers were undisciplined and not accountable. When asked what he meant by accountable, Roethlisberger didnt exactly provide specifics on where his team was lacking.Just a feel, he said.MARINO 2.0Roethlisberger channeled Hall of Famer Dan Marino late in the fourth quarter, faking a spike and instead lobbing a 15-yard scoring pass to Brown that put Pittsburgh in front with 42 seconds left. It was reminiscent of Marinos famous play against the New York Jets in 1994 . However, the exception is the Dolphins won and the Steelers didnt.(Offensive coordinator) Todd (Haley) was in my head yelling `Dont waste a down, Roethlisberger said. But I knew what we were doing, so Im glad it worked.UP NEXTCowboys: Will go for their ninth straight victory on Sunday against the Ravens. Dallas has never won nine consecutive games in one season in the franchises 57-year history. There have been a lot of great teams and championship teams that have come through in the last 57 years, Garrett said. Thats certainly something to comment on. Its been a good streak for us.Steelers: On the surface, a trip to 0-10 Cleveland would be the perfect elixir. Yet, Pittsburgh has struggled on the road this season. The Steelers are 1/3 away from Heinz Field this season, the lone victory coming in the season opener against Washington.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '