Bizarre end to two years at Aston Villa helm for Steve Bruce
Steve Bruce certainly did not go quietly. His final match at the Villa helm was unbelievable.
A cabbage was thrown towards him before the game even started, writes Joe Edwards.
And then there were six goals, one of them a last-gasp leveller from Yannick Bolasie.
Preston tucked away a penalty – awarded after a foul from Villa skipper James Chester which saw him sent off.
Villa missed one of their own in stoppage time that would have won it – veteran Glenn Whelan stepping up to the spot, despite scoring just one goal in the past seven seasons, and putting the ball right into the grateful gloves of Chris Maxwell.
This was an enthralling encounter for the neutral.
But in the eyes of Villa fans, the performance was utterly shambolic. They unravelled.
Cabbage-gate aside, the clash started so well for Bruce and his then team.
But, in hindsight, their 2-0 lead at the break – through strikes from Jonathan Kodjia and Tammy Abraham – was not really down to the fact they had played particularly well.
It was because basement boys Preston were just that bad.
Alex Neil’s charges seemed devoid of any confidence but, after a presumably fiery team talk at the break, put a bit of pressure on in the second half – and Villa completely crumbled.
They pressed the panic button and Daniel Johnson scored from the spot to start the fightback, with Paul Gallagher and Louis Moult then firing past left-field inclusion Mark Bunn.
Villa came away with a point thanks to Bolasie and would have had three had it not been for Whelan fluffing his lines.
But the showing was not anywhere near good enough for a club that wants promotion. The frustration – chants of ‘We want Bruce out’ flooding Villa Park – was undeniable. Bruce had to go.
