NEW MANAGER, SAME PROBLEM
STEVE BRUCE endured a miserable debut as Aston Villa blew another lead to leave themselves clinging to a derby-day draw.
Bruce was appointed to stiffen up a side who have shipped 11 points from winning positions this season, costing Roberto Di Matteo his job and leaving Villa in the bottom three at kick-off.
And the former Birmingham boss could only watch in dismay as Jonathan Kodjia’s early penalty was cancelled out by a spot-kick from Helder Costa.
The full scale of his task then became apparent as Villa collapsed, hanging on for an undeserved point as Wolves squandered chance after chance.
“That’s why I’m sitting here,” he admitted. “There’s a lot of work to be done. The attitude, the blocks and saves, you couldn’t fault. But we tired badly and that was alarming. I can see now why they concede so late.
“The hardest job I’ve ever had in management is getting over a relegation. We’ve only won four games in 55, which affects your mentality. We’ve got good players here, who are finding the weight of expectation difficult. It’s my job to find a solution.”
If Villa have lacked guts this season, inspiration hasn’t been far behind. For all the expensive talent at their disposal, chances let alone goals – have trickled rather than flowed.
It was fitting, then, that at the dawn of a new era, their two leading lights burst into life. Neither £12m signing Ross McCormack nor home-grown hero Jack Grealish have so far lived up to their billing, yet the pair cut Wolves to ribbons in the first half hour.
Their first combination proved most incisive, McCormack slipping a cute ball into Grealish who, with road running out, tumbled under pressure from Dominic Iorfa. Contact was minimal, but referee David Coote awarded a spot-kick and Jonathan Kodjia wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth.
Moments later, the duo linked up again, McCormack’s clever backheel almost presenting Grealish a shot at goal. If this burgeoning understanding blossoms, Villa are in business.
But unless Bruce teaches Villa to hang on to a lead, the former