If it does nothing else this debacle shows that Lescott was and probably remains at the core of the dressing room rebellion against managerial authority. Dave Woodhall in his excellent piece 'Over the Press-ipice' suggests that something has happened in recent days to destroy the green shoots of better organisation and better morale. Could it be the flare up of the old anti-european, pro-Sherwood battles?Wycombe and the chewinggumgate offered some clues, as did the laughing hyenas Christmas message and the alleged French only on the team bus back from Newcastle. The dressing room malcontents appear to have Lescott, Richards, Guzan and Agbonlahor as their leaders. Did Gabby's return out of the cold and his collector's piece goal last week put Remi on the back foot and give new heart to the dressing room rebels? Lescott's fan goading tweets within minutes of a horrendous defeat for which he was jointly culpable seem to suggest that the spirit of Sherwood in the dressing room is alive and well.
If one moment sums up the tragic ineptitude of that game it was Okore trying to shepherd a static ball over the line for a goal kick. Every brain cell of every Villa spectator was screaming at him to put the ball out for a throw. His brain cell first told him that the static ball might start rolling again then when it didn't he decided to try to dribble it and lost possession.