Where do Villa go from here?
The before and after couldn't have been starker in contrast. An hour before Tuesday's game, Villa Park sizzled with anticipation and optimism; Wembley within reach, the home crowd tense but excitable, cautiously confident the Premier League club would rub out Bradford's first-leg advantage and hungry, desperately hungry to see it happen.
After: disbelief and dejection. Defeat over two legs to a Bradford side which reside in League Two, a Bradford side which has now made history by becoming the first fourth-tier club in English football to reach the League Cup Final.
This was no hard-luck story for Villa. True, over the two matches a dozen decent chances were spurned, but there were no shots hitting crossbar or post, no efforts hacked desperately off the goal line, no wrongly disallowed goals, stonewall penalty appeals ignored, refereeing decisions to blame. Villa were outscored, outfought and outthought. Bradford may well reflect the whole affair was rather more comfortable then they could have ever dreamed.
The night could be one of the greatest in Bradford's history. It's one of the darkest in Villa's without question. Were it a one-off blip in an otherwise decent season, it could be digestible. But it is not. It's the lowest point of one of the bleakest months I can remember for the club. From Dec. 23 to Jan. 22, results have been horrifying: hideous defeats against Chelsea, Spurs, Wigan, Southampton, Bradford. The two brighter performances in this period still climaxed with a sour taste - conceding an injury-time equaliser at Swansea, frittering away a 2-0 lead at West Brom. Even the FA Cup victory, against Ipswich, was laboured.
Supporters are broken to the point of desertion. The players, many of whom are experiencing their first full season in the Premier League, are mentally fragile, which is evident as soon as they concede a goal, literally shedding composure in an instant. The first real cracks are also now visibly appearing in the body language of the manager, the hitherto defiant and self-assured Paul Lambert.
Having admitted to sleepless nights a couple of weeks ago, Lambert, it has been reported, won't be appearing at the usual pre-match press conference prior to Friday's FA Cup fourth-round tie at Millwall.
Instead, Villa captain Ron Vlaar will be doing the talking. Read into that what you will. At best, it means Lambert will be too occupied with transfer business. At worst, he is either feeling disinclined to face the media, or his immediate future is in doubt.
So, where do Villa go from here? The short answer is down to London, to face Millwall. While I am no supporter of the theory that the FA Cup is reduced in importance in the modern-day game, I view this fixture as a nuisance. If I were Villa, I'd just want it out of the way, as quickly and painlessly as possible. An intimidating reception awaits: Millwall are a decent side, and the Villa players will be running on empty. The final whistle can't come soon enough. There are more pressing priorities on which to focus.
There is a week left of the transfer window. Villa have done nothing yet, and it is imperative that one or two new players arrive, even if they are six-month loan deals. The squad needs fresh enthusiasm and drive, the supporters need something to hold on to. In and around Villa, teams are doing business: QPR, Reading, Southampton and, significantly, Newcastle, the club just a point above Lambert's in the Premier League table and the Villans' next league opponents.
It's not difficult to see where Villa need the help. With all strikers fully fit, Lambert has enviable attacking talent to turn to - by the end of the game against Bradford, Christian Benteke, Darren Bent, Gabby Agbonlahor, Charles N'Zogbia and Andreas Weimann were all on the field - but the squad has a lopsided feel to it. The midfield is verging on threadbare. Ashley Westwood just about holds it all together when he plays, and though Fabian Delph has shown improvement he still lacks maturity at this level. Barry Bannan has recently taken on the mantle of the Holte End scapegoat, Stephen Ireland continues to be a peripheral figure, and it feels an age since Karim El Ahmadi last made a decent impression. How he'll settle after returning from the African Nations Cup remains to be seen.
Villa's soft centre remains. The core of the team is fallible - Bradford manager Phil Parkinson remarked he set his players up to exploit Villa's open game. If a team from the lower leagues can identify that, and deploy a successful strategy, it doesn't bode well back in the Premier League.
Lambert has avoided answering questions head-on about signing players in January. That doesn't help ease supporter anxiety, or the suspicion that there is no money available. The more despondent would say, if Villa sign no one, this team are as good as relegated. It's a gloomy, but understandable, opinion.
Something has to change. From studying Lambert's work this season, I can't escape the thought that the Villa manager has moved away from his own tactical ideals. His team now changes every week, players, formations, approach. Lambert is desperately trying to find the right formula, but there is no consistency, no pattern. I doubt he's fielded the same starting XI in a row this season.
Some of that is enforced, some of it is down to the manager trying to get it right. He needs to take a breath, and trust his instincts. He would do well to be reminded that the majority of Villa fans still see a future with Paul Lambert in charge.
In situations as dire as this, it's often asked if the players care. Though by no means representative of the entire squad, here's a message Vlaar posted on Twitter the day after the Bradford defeat: "The day after... waking up and thinking back... remember what happened... feel very bad and ashamed. Support was great... can't say any more."
Nothing more to say, and everything to do. Vlaar, and the other senior players in this Villa squad, need to get themselves together and turn this situation around.
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