Mathematically, fourth is still possible but it won't happen and if you really did think it was going to you before the match yesterday, you only fooled yourself with unrealistic optimism. Fifth however is still possible, but yesterday really was an important match as far as fifth is concerned.
But, we can take comfort in that we've got more points than last season and if only the entire game was based on points you got against other teams against the points you got last season and it didn't include this table thing they call a league, we might have actually finished in the top four. Well, actually probably not, but still, we've got more points than last season, we must be progressing.
Don't look back in anger
Yes, you might think I'm starting angry today but I'm not, I'm just trying to point out as simply as possible that it isn't about points it is about where you finish. I'm not actually angry or disappointed or even surprised.
At the start of the season I predicted fourth and it will the first time I've got it wrong in three seasons, but I also did write that I just couldn't see us finishing sixth again. I hope I am wrong this time in more ways than one.
Ultimately, I don't see us finishing sixth. I think we are either going to do better or worse than last season and as it stands today, it is too difficult a decision to be sure of so I'll happily take egg on my face at the end of the season, so I'm opting for the prediction that makes me feel better and that is that we will do better and I'm going to predict fourth.
If Liverpool beat Chelsea today I think we will finish seventh. I'll even go so far to say that if we don't beat Blackburn next week I also think we will also finish seventh. Blackburn is turning into a must win game as far as I'm concerned, but it isn't about one game or one result. It's just about dusting ourselves off and moving on.
Que Sera, Sera
We've had a decent season. We've had a cup final and we reached the semi-final of the other cup. We've had some great moments and some hard moments and while we might not progress in the true sense of the word when talking about the game, we have next season to look forward to.
We will go into this summer full of optimism of what might happen and next season we will hope that Stewart Downing comes good, that we hold on to a player or two and that our esteemed owner makes available the funds necessary to really challenge for a top four place.
In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't matter that we didn't win silverware this season. It really doesn't matter whatever happens, because we will all be here next season and the one after that.
No rumours today. No sadness or regret. No anger or disappointment. No need to try and figure out why we were beaten. None of that today, we have next season to look forward to now. So, I leave you with a video and a song and a nod of the head to next season and beyond.
Video of the Day
This one just seems appropriate somehow for today. {rokbox title=|Aston Villa Blog Video of the Day :: We have next season soon| text=|Click here to watch|size=|960 745| album=|demo|}http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbWULu5_nXI&autoplay=1{/rokbox}.