Bruce refuses to quit as Preston fightback fuels crowd protest
It was difficult not to feel sympathy for Villa manager Steve Bruce after a night of extraordinary drama seemed to leave him clinging to his job – and brought a hint that he might go against his instincts and quit if the poisonous atmosphere around Villa Park persists.
Villa were in complete control with a 2-0 half-time lead through goals by Jonathan Kodjia and Tammy Abraham but then a debatable penalty accompanied by a highly questionable red card for skipper James Chester handed Preston a lifeline before goals from substitutes Paul Gallagher and Louis Moult turned the game on its head.
Yannick Bolasie came off the bench to level the scores at 3-3 and Villa then had the chance to take all the points after all, only for Glenn Whelan to miss a penalty five minutes into added time.
It was a brave effort by Bruce’s 10 men but still could not placate some Villa fans who, for the fifth match in a row, called for the veteran manager’s dismissal amid unsavoury scenes. Even before the match kicked off, one spectator threw a cabbage in Bruce’s direction.
Afterwards, Bruce could not conceal his anger towards behaviour of that kind, although it was matched by his fury towards referee Darren England over his decision to send off Chester, whose foul on striker Lukas Nmecha – clearly accidental – should have warranted no more than a yellow card under current guidelines.
“The decision to send him off is a disgrace,” Bruce said. “I know the rules. James was making an honest attempt to play the ball and did play the ball. I’ve watched it back on video and I think even to give a penalty was harsh. The sending-off was ridiculous.
“It’s not in my nature to quit, it is something I would never do. I will be in tomorrow, I’ll roll my sleeves up and get on with the job. Only if I felt the atmosphere was really affecting individuals in the team would I consider anything else.”
He made it clear he has little time for the fans now routinely calling for his head. “What is really disappointing is that it started after we lost at Sheffield United,” he said. “I know that we have not got the results we wanted but it started after only five games. It is not an excuse, there can be no excuses. But we have not had much luck and a lot of decisions have gone against us.
“Tonight was another example. I can’t remember a game in which we were so much in control as we were in the first half. We were cruising.”
Indeed they were after Kodjia had headed home an Ahmed Elmohamady cross and Abraham had squeezed home a second from a tight angle. But after the penalty handed Preston a lifeline, seized by substitute Daniel Johnson, Gallagher beat goalkeeper Mark Bunn – recalled after first-choice Orjan Nyland was dropped – and Moult headed home from a corner.
Bolasie saved a point by scrambling home from close range but Whelan’s penalty miss left Bruce feeling he had been beaten anyway.
Aston Villa (4-1-4-1) Bunn; Elmohamady, Tuanzebe, Chester, Hutton; Bjarnason; Kodjia (Bolasie 74), Hourihane (Whelan 83), Mcginn, Grealish; Abraham (Bree 56). Subs Nyland (g), Hogan, El Ghazi, Adomah. Booked Grealish, Mcginn. Sent off Chester. Preston North End (4-4-2) Maxwell; Fisher (Moult 83), Huntington, Davies, Hughes; Browne, Pearson, Ledson (Johnson h-t), Barkhuizen (Gallagher 77); Nmecha, Robinson. Subs Rudd (g), Earl, Clarke, Burke. Booked Davies, Pearson, Moult, Johnson.
Referee Darren England (South Yorkshire).