*Villa pick up the pieces*

Today Villa Park plays host to an FA Cup semi-final, next month to the European Cup-Winners’ Cup final. Those two events, allied to yesterday’s ultimately comfortable win over a Southampton side whose plight worsens at the foot of the Premiership, serve only to bring home to Aston Villa what might have been this season.

Finally the misery of sliding from top to sixth inside three months was halted with goals by Mark Draper, Julian Joachim and Dion Dublin. Saints made a contest of it for a half but after losing Claus Lundekvam for a second bookable offence, their 10 men degenerated into a demoralised, well-beaten crew for whom the relegation trapdoor beckons.

The omens for a fluent, high-quality game were not encouraging. Villa’s alarming freefall from the top of the table had seen them take only three points from 10 matches while Southampton had lost their last seven away games. Such was the visitors’ desperation for points, though, that their manager, Dave Jones, went with a bold attacking formation, Matthew Le Tissier making a rare start in the absence of Hassan Kachloul, who was playing for Morocco.

It almost paid early dividends. Le Tissier’s long pass over a Villa defence - in back-four system these days - who were too square and too advanced found Egil Ostenstad and it seemed certain that he would run on and score until Mark Bosnich intervened, saving with his legs. Chris Marsden was then just wide with a low 25-yard shot.

Gradually, though, Villa’s lack of confidence was shown to be less debilitating than Southampton’s. Ian Taylor had glanced a header wide from Alan Wright’s cross as early indication that they still had some attacking force and, so fired, they claimed the lead.

Mark Draper shrugged off Marsden in midfield and ran on unchallenged, the Saints’ defence backing off. His shot, from the edge of the penalty area, was low and true past Neil Moss, deputy for the injured Paul Jones, entering the net via a post.

Villa might have had another but a nervous Moss tipped Draper’s free-kick round a post and Steve Stone shot high and wide after neat work by Lee Hendrie, on for the injured Alan Thompson. Then came a bizarre incident that further stoked Villa’s dominance.

Jason Dodd appeared to be shown a yellow card for a foul on Ian Taylor but after consulting a linesman, who had flagged for offside, the referee, Neale Barry, returned and sent off the already-booked Lundekvam to Southampton’s disgust and the bemusement of the crowd.

It was a position from which Villa should have gone on to win the game comfortably, and the signs immediately looked promising for them when Hendrie sent Taylor clear, only for him to screw his shot wide. Southampton duly steeled themselves for a second-half onslaught, withdrawing Dodd into defence and bringing on Francis Benali for Mark Hughes, leaving Le Tissier up front to forage for an equaliser.

A 40-yard shot over the bar was an optimistic attempt. It was also a rare one from a side looking increasingly ragged. Villa were now in the ascendancy, the more so when the lively Paul Merson was introduced. He took less than 10 minutes to make his mark. A delightful chipped pass over the Saints’ back line found Julian Joachim and the striker lobbed Moss, whose touch was not enough to keep the ball from the net, for his 11th league goal of the season.

The third looked inevitable. Hendrie sliced a volley wide after Merson’s ball had been flicked on by Dublin before Moss saved from Joachim after Merson had sent him past Dodd. No matter. Stone beat Dodd and crossed to the far post, where Dublin leapt to nod home his own 11th of the season.