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# Aston Villa manager Grard Houllier admits team are facing a survival battle
after Manchester City defeat
## Gerard Houllier has admitted that Aston Villa are facing a battle for
Premier League survival after the 4-0 defeat at Manchester City left the club
just two points above the relegation zone.
![Aston Villa manager Grard Houllier admits team are facing a survival battle
after Manchester City defeat][1]
Troubled expression: Grard Houllier knows his team must start winning or his
job will be on the line Photo: REUTERS
[![Mark Ogden][2]][3]
By [Mark Ogden][4] 9:24PM GMT 28 Dec 2010
[Follow Mark Ogden on Twitter][5]
[Comments][6]
The former Liverpool manager, who has overseen eight defeats and five
victories since arriving as successor to Martin O'Neill at Villa Park in
September, was subjected to chants calling for him to leave the club by
disgruntled supporters as Villa slumped to their sixth defeat in seven games.
And with champions Chelsea next up for Villa this weekend, Houllier conceded
that the club - who achieved three successive top-six finishes under O'Neill -
must now accept that avoiding relegation is the objective in the second half
of the campaign.
"We are in a relegation battle, definitely." Houllier said. "But we knew that
we would have a difficult run of games over Christmas with Tottenham,
Manchester City and Chelsea.
"Before this game, three points more would have put us in the top half, but
another way to look at it is the drop zone behind and we are in the fight for
that and we have to acknowledge that.
"Confidence is something that we need to address. We can't look too much at
this game - it's a missed game because we didn't play at the level that we
can. We need to turn the corner."
## Related Articles
* [Man City 4 Aston Villa 0][7]
28 Dec 2010
* [Houllier not to blame, says Petrov][8]
27 Dec 2010
* [Aston Villa 1 Tottenham 2][9]
26 Dec 2010
* [Woodgate's 'make or break' move][10]
25 Dec 2010
* [Cullar eyes top-four finish][11]
25 Dec 2010
* [Young to cost 'crazy money'][12]
23 Dec 2010
Villa's problems at Eastlands were exacerbated by the absence of Norwegian
forward John Carew, who missed the game,telling Houllier he was unfit after
getting stranded in Norway due to the recent adverse weather.
Houllier said: "He would have been in the squad, but he came to me and said he
was not fit enough.
"We gave the players two days off after the Wigan game [on Dec 18] and he went
to Norway and he was stuck. I have to accept that there was snow everywhere."
Also absent were former City players Richard Dunne and Stephen Ireland.
Dunne has been left out of Houllier's squad since allegedly clashing with
assistant manager Gary McAllister earlier this month, while Ireland, who has
fallen out of favour with Houllier, was cited as having a knee problem.
Despite the disaffection of some of his senior players and the negativity from
the terraces, Houllier insists he has identified the root of Villa's problems.
He said: "I didn't hear [the chanting], but the problem is in the team and the
problems I have to deal with are in the team. There are reasons."
Meanwhile, City manager Roberto Mancini has claimed in an interview in
_Gazzetta dello Sport_ that referees are "prejudiced" against his team.
City started Tuesday Dec 28 at the foot of the Premier League's disciplinary
table, and Mancini said: "I have the impression that referees are prejudiced,
to say the least, with City and I do not understand why.
"At least two of the cautions [against Newcastle on Boxing Day] were
excessive. We do not play a hard game and, every time, we try to play good
football."
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