Talisman Grealish cut a lonely, frustrated figure... he surely knows his time at Villa is over

by surprise, judging by the hasty snapshot that cleared the crossbar by some distance.

That was the best chance of a first half we have seen played time and again since Premier League proceedings got back under way earlier this month.

Of the 23 games played so far, 14 have been goalless at half-time.

Some decent defending, with Conor Coady again catching the eye, preserved this particular deadlock but a lack of creative intuition was probably more influential. It was certainly the reason that Villa never looked like getting anything from the match after Leander Dendoncker’s smart finish.

In fact, Dean Smith’s side managed to fashion just one shot on target.

No wonder Grealish cut that increasingly vexed figure as the game ground towards its inevitable conclusion.

He ended the match by having a pop at Craig Pawson, but quite how the referee had erred was not clear.

There was only Grealish moaning, another sign of his frustration.

He surely knows this Villa side is not good enough for the top flight. They might stay up if others around are worse, but that is the only hope. Next up is a trip to Anfield followed by a visit from Manchester United.

If nothing else, at least Grealish will get another close-up of the calibre of players he should be alongside.

Grealish will give his all in his final six matches, you can be assured of that. But performances and results, such as this, mean Villa fans have probably seen, in the flesh, the last of their talisman.