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FOR GOD'S SAKE GO DR JO!

DOCTOR Jozef Vengloš has failed at Aston Villa.

The team are bad and getting worse.

On-pitch morale has collapsed and relegation is uncomfortably close.

Villa, quite simply, have become the whipping boys of the First Division, and last night's horrific 5-1 defeat only underlines our demand that Vengloš must go.

What is more, he should go NOW.

It has become clear that he is incapable of meeting the first requirement of an English club manager to motivate his team.

Four months ago, we made a similar call for the dismissal of Dave Mackay at Birmingham City.

It gave us no pleasure for, like Vengloš, Mackay was a friendly father figure of football. But Mackay's eventual walkout proved the turning point at St Andrew's.

Since Dr Jo started giving his orders, Villa have slumped from runners-up last season to the relegation zone, and the decline is accelerating.

Within the last few days, Wimbledon and Manchester City have found them an easy touch at Villa Park. And Vengloš’ response has been apologetic and low-key.

Four goals from David White, three of them from unchallenged dashes through the centre of a slow-reacting defence, were more than a manager's reputation can usually bear when his team are supposed to be fighting for some degree of respectability.

Vengloš said after this second humiliation in four days that he risked playing an attacking game, and it was true that in a vividly entertaining first half Villa should have scored four times.

But set against a number of fluent moves were two naive errors by Andy Comyn, replacing the injured Derek Mountfield.

As for the second half, it stunned the Holte End to silent protest, half the fans there heading for an early pint.

Villa have not been in such a mess since the dog-days of Billy McNeill. It must be said in McNeill's defence that his team was not fielding eight international representatives and a further five who cost more than £1.5 million between them.

After five minutes, White was unleashed by Mark Brennan and beat Spink with a cross shot.

Then, 20 minutes later, Niall Quinn lobbed goalkeeper Tony Coton's kick for White to nudge in his second.

Villa responded bravely.

Three times lan Olney urged himself on to deftly-made chances only to fail with each.

David Platt, too, opened up space as he does so cleverly.

Villa, caught in an offside trap no fewer than 14 times, tried a little drill themselves, only to stand appealing as Mark Ward slipped the ball to White whose cross Brennan struck in.

If the referee's decision was dubious, it was no more so than that against Steve Redmond's chin which offended Mr Groves sufficiently to award a penalty when it blocked Platt's short-range shot in the 69th minute.

Platt scored his 23rd goal of the season but he will gain no satisfaction from that for Villa collapsed in as utterly forlorn a fashion as they had against Wimbledon.

Vengloš claimed they were chasing the game. It looked more as if they were chasing rainbows.

White scored twice more before the Villa manager trotted away down the tunnel, a distressed. mournful but dignified figure.