Aston Villa sunk to new depths with a home loss to Bolton last night. They are now right in the relegation mire.
Yesterday we said that Villa fans should want a draw at home to Bolton rather than a win- They couldn’t even get that.
The reason we put that argument across, was that surely it would be better for the club to scrape relegation by the skin of their teeth than have a false gloss applied to their poor season.
Surely the bare minimum would see Alex McLeish sacked- a decision most supporters believe needs to happen for the club to progress.
Any ‘McLeish believers’ may be reconsidering after last night’s desperate showing, a total embarrassment for all concerned with the club, summed up by the much maligned David Ngog scoring Bolton’s winner.
After the final whistle in his post-match interview Alex McLeish looked like a broken man, one waiting the inevitable guillotine of relegation.
Of course it is not quite that simple, Villa’s fate is still in their hands, but more than likely it will come down to a last day throw of the dice.
McLeish was relegated on the final day last year with Birmingham, even though they seemed most unlikely to do down, and an encore is being prepared this time with Villa.
Discounting already relegated Wolves, the foot of the table looks like this-
Villa P35 36 points
QPR P35 34 points
Wigan P35 34 points
Bolton P34 33 points
Blackburn P35 32 points
Now it looks like it may be too much for Blackburn to make it, especially considering they play both Spurs and Chelsea, but the third relegation spot is very much ‘up for grabs’.
When you consider Bolton have a game in hand, they can go level on points with Villa if they were to win it.
Aston Villa’s final three games are, West Brom (a), Spurs (h) and Norwich (a).
It is very conceivable that Villa will lose their next two, at the Hawthorns, and against a determined Spurs side who McLeish’s men will hope do not resurrect their slump.
If they lose these two, it is highly conceivable Villa will be in the bottom three by the final day, needing a win against Norwich.
Even this would only take them to 39 points, one shy of the magic 40, but it may just be enough.
Norwich have nothing to play for, and showed signs of a late season dip in form, losing 6-1 at home to Manchester City and 2-1 to Blackburn in their final game.
It is likely to come down to this, Villa will need a win. Fans will just hope McLeish doesn’t play for a draw.
Are Villa doomed to relegation?
image: © ell brown
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