O'Neill fields virtual second-string side

Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill fielded a virtual second-string side for the UEFA Cup group clash away to Hamburg.

O’Neill included only three of the starting line-up from the 4-2 weekend win over Bolton in defenders Carlos Cuellar and Luke Young and midfielder Steve Sidwell.

Gabriel Agbonlahor, Ashley Young, Martin Laursen, Gareth Barry and James Milner had not even made the trip to Germany to face Martin Jol’s side.

And the Villa bench included four reserve-team players in Barry Bannan, Ciaran Clark, Christopher Herd and Shane Lowry.

Villa would have to be wary of the in-form attacking duo of Mladen Petric and Ivica Olic in their club’s final game before the winter break.

Hamburg: Rost, Boateng, Reinhardt, Mathijsen, Aogo, Trochowski, Jarolim, Benjamin, Jansen, Petric, Olic. Subs: Hesl, Guerrero, Demel, Pitroipa, Thiago Neves, Ben-Hatira, Torun.

Aston Villa: Guzan, Luke Young, Cuellar, Knight, Shorey, Gardner, Sidwell, Reo-Coker, Salifou, Harewood, Delfouneso. Subs: Friedel, Davies, Petrov, Clark, Herd, Bannan, Lowry.

Referee: Aleksei Nikolayev (Russia)