Comprehensive defeats such as this have their value, even if it is only negative. It proved to Villa that their squad is not good enough, big enough, or experienced enough and that players will have to be bought.

Throughout his year or so as Villa’s manager, Ron Saunders has always been willing to introduce young players to the senior team. It was a brave move going to Anfield with three out of the 12 never having played in the First Division, but what it showed was that Villa’s latest group of young players are not ready for such a demanding life.

The exception, with natural reservations, must be Jake Findlay. While Frank Pimblett and Steve Hunt became flattened by the Liverpool steamroller, Findlay stood up quite well. He was playing instead of Jim Cumbes, whose mistakes in Antwerp in mid-week left Villa with an almost impossible task in the second leg of their first UEFA Cup tie.

Findlay, a 20-years-old Scot, did quite well. He had no chance of stopping any of the three goals but he made several other competent saves and deserves another chance.

Meanwhile, Saunders will be a frequent user of the telephone in the next few days. Managers are always ringing each other up inquiring after prices and availability of players but in the next few days Saunders’s questions will contain more urgency.

Sinister

There was, too, a more sinister aspect to this defeat.

Like Liverpool, Villa’s attributes have been work and effort. The skill factor is a bonus. But whereas Liverpool were their usual selves—perpetual motion in familiar paths - Villa fired on too few cylinders.

Their ethic depends on everybody working for everybody else but there were players who did not want to know. They hid, hoping for things to happen.

Against teams as forceful and basic as Liverpool you have to make things happen.

So Villa reach an important, if not critical stage of the season, relatively downhearted. They lost 4-1 in midweek, 3-0 on Saturday. Teams used to winning take those sort of defeats harder than others. In fact the last week must not be seen in isolation. Those defeats are part of a pattern away from home. Newcastle put three past Villa, Norwich five. All those goals were not Cumbes’s fault. The rest of the defence must take their share of the blame.

Senseless

Kevin Keegan worried them silly on Saturday. He is becoming a prima donna he was booked for senselessly arguing but he still works and runs. And he scored one and made another of Liverpool’s goals for Jimmy Case.

The first, scored by John Toshack after Villa had held out in the first half underlined another weakness in Villa’s defence and while they win at home, backed by their fanatical crowd, they will not do well away until they overcome their lack of confidence.