Aston Villa boss Dean Smith refusing to hit the panic button

Villa host fellow strugglers Norwich on Boxing Day aiming to arrest an alarming four-match losing streak which has seen them tumble into the relegation zone.

But while the run has heightened fears among supporters of an immediate return to the Championship, boss Smith has stressed the need for cool heads.

He said: “I have said to the players there are no panic stations, no crisis meetings.

“We have lost four games. We have not performed as well as we should have done in those games.

“But it is not too long ago we were walking off the field at Old Trafford disappointed with a point when we should have won all three.

“After that we have gone to a Chelsea team who were at the top of their game on the night and lost by a goal.

“From then the performances against Leicester, Sheffield United and Southampton have not been good enough. The players are well aware of where we are sat and what we have to do to perform.”

While Smith is under no illusions as to his team’s need to improve their form quickly, the boss believes the bigger picture is also important.

Villa are expected to be active in the January window, though it is thought they have limited funds to spend having spent £127million last summer following promotion.

“We have always been in a battle. Sometimes you have to take stock,” said Smith.

“We are third bottom in the Premier League, in the semi-final of a major cup competition. Sat here last year we were a mid-table Championship team.

“We have come a long way in a short space of time and had a big turnaround in the summer. We still need additions in January as well.

“We are still working hard and battling on a lot of fronts. That will continue. Our competitive edge has to be there in whatever game we play in, whether we are in the bottom three or the top three.”

Though scrutiny continues to fall on record signing Wesley, who has now failed to score for 10 top flight matches, Smith’s chief concern is at the other end of the pitch.

Villa have conceded at least two goals in eight of their last nine league fixtures, including seven in their last two home matches.

“The goals we’ve conceded is a concern,” said Smith. “The performance against Southampton wasn’t great. There was nothing in the game and then we made poor mistakes for the goals which was disappointing.

“Our reaction to that wasn’t as good as it should’ve been and we’ve spoken at length about that in training.

“The only way you can put that right is by going out on the training ground and working hard, which they have been doing, but for whatever reason in the last two or three games we haven’t replicated that on to the pitch. That’s what we have to do for Norwich now.”