Analysis: Aston Villa dig deep for unashamedly ugly but vital win

Staring down the barrel of defeat for a second straight Saturday, Steve Bruce’s team ripped up the script thanks to a formula of individual quality and skill backed up by a collective desire and bloody-mindedness.

Villa simply refused to be beaten, not when they twice trailed, or when, with the score level at 2-2, Frederico Venancio’s header sparked an almighty goalmouth scramble in which the ball somehow failed to cross the line through a sea of flailing bodies.

This was an unashamedly scrappy, ugly win, yet the kind on which successful promotion campaigns are undoubtedly built.

The roar which greeted the final whistle from the 4,600-strong away following was drowned out by the jeers of home supporters, who directed their ire in the direction of referee Neil Swarbrick, the official deemed guilty of several perceived slights against the hosts.

It is fair to assume the boos also contained a hint of bewilderment at how exactly their team had been left empty-handed.

There were periods of this game, most notably in the latter stages of the first half, when Wednesday battered Villa. Twice they hit the post, while visiting keeper Sam Johnstone pulled off at least three key saves.

But despite being bruised by the punches, Villa were able to dodge the knockout blow before rallying in the final rounds to win the fight themselves.

Though the victory might not have been enough to overhaul second-placed Cardiff, its effect on transforming both the mood and outlook should not be downplayed.

From a week in which they had been some distance off their best, Bruce’s team still managed to wrestle four points. With talisman Jack Grealish now hopefully returning for games against struggling QPR and Sunderland, Villa’s sights remain very much fixed on what is above them, rather than the chasing pack. The absence of both Grealish and top scorer Albert Adomah has been keenly felt but on Saturday others stepped up to fill the void, none more so than Robert Snodgrass.

The Scot had himself endured a strange week. Out-of-sorts at Fulham, he had been forced out of last Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Preston at half-time due to illness.

At Hillsborough he once more appeared fighting fit, helping Villa deliver another potentially season-defining moment in the Steel City, less than a month after his 90th-minute winner five miles down the road at Bramall Lane.

It was from Snodgrass’s dipping, vicious cross that Glenn Whelan headed his first goal since November 2011 to drag Villa level for a second time. Then, after Conor Hourihane had powered the visitors ahead with another sumptuous finish, it was Snodgrass who won and converted the stoppage time penalty to seal the deal.

Elsewhere, Lewis Grabban enjoyed a fine full debut, netting for the second time in as many games.

His 21st-minute goal brought Villa level after Sean Clare had broken the deadlock. Wednesday had the better of it for a good while after and Lucas Joao’s header, in first-half stoppage time, looked to have put them in control. But Villa, as their promotion rivals must surely now know, do not crack easily.