There were debuts for Nigel Reo-Coker, Zat Knight, Scott Carson, Marlon Harewood, Curtis Davies, Moustapha Salifou and Wayne Routledge.

The home shirt followed the club's usual template of a claret body and blue arms, with a white "AVFC" banner and printed lion featured on the hem and back of the collar respectively.

Gibraltar-based betting firm 32Red continued their sponsorship of the club, however with the contract in its last year, Villa are expected to announce another deal for the forthcoming 2008–09 season.

Following the transfer of prolific striker Juan Pablo Ángel to New York Red Bulls in April, several Villa first-teamers followed the Colombian out of the door in the summer of 2007.

McCann was joined by Jlloyd Samuel – who had spent much of the previous season on the bench for the Midlanders – at Bolton, signing on a free transfer when his contract expired on 1 July.

Other moves saw midfielder Lee Hendrie end his 14-year association with the club in a free transfer to Sheffield United, Phil Bardsley returned to Manchester United after a 13-game loan stint at the club, whilst Stephen Henderson, Bobby Olejnik, Mark Delaney, Scott Bridges and Eric Djemba-Djemba all left Villa Park.

Villa clinched their first transfer on 5 July with the £8.5 million signing of midfield battler Nigel Reo-Coker from West Ham United.

Other deals saw Austrian youngsters Andreas Weimann and Dominik Hofbauer sign, as well as Eric Lichaj, Harry Forrester and Togolese international Moustapha Salifou.

The biggest news, however, was that Swedish international defender Olof Mellberg, was to join Italian giants Juventus on a free transfer at the end of the season.

Unlike the summer transfer window, Aston Villa were extremely quiet in the winter equivalent, purchasing just one senior player in Wayne Routledge (£1.25 million) from Tottenham Hotspur.