Analysis: Deficit remains yet belief is soaring at Aston Villa after thumping win over Wolves

Yet if Steve Bruce’s team do not now possess the belief they can erase the gap and chase down Cardiff, they probably never will.

A 4-1 hammering of regional rivals and long-time Championship leaders Wolves was the perfect result delivered at the perfect time and every bit the statement Villa winger Robert Snodgrass later claimed it to be.

It was a victory to send confidence soaring, a result unlike any other achieved to this point of the season or perhaps, in Villa’s case, for several seasons.

Sheffield United, Blues, Sheffield Wednesday – Bruce’s men have enjoyed their share of emotional wins in recent weeks.

None came close to matching this dismantling of a team many had heralded the finest to ever grace the second tier.

The way Villa performed and – even more importantly – how they handled the occasion bodes well for a run-in certain to contain several more high-pressure games.

Bruce’s decision to pack his squad with experienced heads has been questioned by some and often been the subject of jibes from rival supporters.

Yet the benefit of having Snodgrass, Mile Jedinak and, of course, John Terry, in the ranks has now become clear for all to see. On Saturday, Villa simply possessed too much savvy and know-how for younger opponents who froze in the spotlight.

The contrast from October’s humbling at Molineux, when Wolves were by far and away the dominant force, could not have been starker. Back then, in the early months of the season, Villa felt like a work in progress. Now, entering the business end of the campaign, they appear very much the finished article.

The blossoming of Jack Grealish toward the kind of player he always promised to be has undoubtedly been the final piece in the jigsaw.

His return to the starting XI after nearly a month out with a calf injury could not have come at a better time for Bruce and Villa. Any concerns it might take the 22-year-old time to get up to speed were quickly erased by a confident first-half showing, while in the second half he pulled the strings as Wolves were put to the sword.

Grealish is the player who does more than any other to elevate Villa as a team to the next level. On Saturday, Snodgrass was the only man wearing claret and blue who did enough to deny him the man-of-the-match accolades.

The Scot chalked up his 12th assist of the season with a vicious free-kick from which James Chester restored the home side’s advantage just before the hour mark.

More importantly, his non-stop running epitomised Villa’s desire on a night when they knew only a win would do.

Top scorer Albert Adomah, another player who has recently returned from injury, set the ball rolling with an eighth-minute opener.

The winger also provided the cross which allowed Lewis Grabban to continue his scoring streak by netting for the fourth consecutive match. Grabban, who has proved an inspired loan signing, also more than justified Bruce’s decision to select him ahead of Scott Hogan up front with some impressive hold-up play.

Wolves have quite rightly been regarded as the best team in the Championship to this point of the season. Only a quick glance at the table is required to confirm that.

Yet having now recorded 10 wins in their last 12 games, Villa can surely lay claim to being the strongest team at the moment.

The problem, of course, is so can Cardiff and Fulham – the latter having beaten Preston on Saturday to claim their 12th win in 15 games.

It is set up perfectly for a thrilling finale and the relentless nature of the division means there is never any time to sit back and admire your handiwork, no matter how impressive.

Within half-an-hour of Saturday’s final whistle, Bruce was already demanding his team refocus quickly for tomorrow’s visit of QPR.

That game, against weaker opposition in a much less febrile atmosphere, will provide a very different kind of test.

At the moment, however, it is difficult to see Villa coming unstuck. With Grealish and Adomah back fit, they again look a team capable of reeling off several victories and after Saturday – their third straight win – it feels as though they are on a roll again.

All they can do is keep winning and hope it is their rivals who blink first.