Some people are going to suggest that that is it for Villa after yesterday. Some are going to be giving up, after believing that there was a chance. The clever ones will know that it was game over the day Alex McLeish took over, but yesterday was unfortunate.
We would have won yesterday had the game been played in the spirit it was meant to be played and not influenced by a bent linesman. I call him bent, because how could he have seen something that didn't happen?
He ruined the game yesterday and it isn't the first time we've seen glory hunting linesmen spoil a game for us.
Yesterday was nothing. We were cheated. Defeat doesn't count - the manager gets a pass. Had he offered the linesman more money, maybe that wouldn't have happened. There is nothing from yesterday to start getting het up over - the clever ones have done that and are now in the waiting period, having almost giving up.
You might think that condescending, but it isn't, it is just the way it is. The chances are nothing will happen under this manager and yesterday pretty much summed it up. The only real positives from the match had nothing to do with him.
Chris Herd, cheated by the referee and Barry Bannan were the stars. Gabby quite literally created the goal for us and nothing about this manager inspired yesterday. He stood on the touchline chewing his gum and showing interest, but it was the Academy that played well yesterday and that will happen more and more, as long as they get games.
In summary - we lost because we had a player sent off but even with eleven players on the pitch we didn't have a shot on target - the goal came from a penalty and apart from a Bannan chance, we didn't get close. It was nice that we passed a little with eleven players, but that is about it.
The manager gets a pass - but it is just time now. He doesn't have long and when just over 34,000 turn up for the biggest home game of the season, you don't need to be a genius to figure it out.
Man of the match
No man of the match vote this week, I'm giving it to Chris Herd. Even though he wasn't on long, he made a solid impression. There you go - expect him to be dropped now.