Aston Villa's Birmingham City Dominance Continues Champions League Dream

Claret and blue is the colour in the West Midlands city of Birmingham, England, tonight as Champions League chasers Aston Villa won an arguably fortuitous 1-0 victory over bitter rivals Birmingham City.

It was a colossal result that gave Villa not only renewed hope of realising their UEFA Champions League dream, but also meant they've now gained their highest ever points total in the Premier League era.

Before a ball was even kicked you could tell exactly what this encounter meant to the two greatest sporting teams in the West Midlands.

On that Sunday afternoon, Birmingham was a city gripped by the football; this one match took over the city.

Outside the stadium the scene was set: road blocks and diversions, random police stop and searches, as well as the usual set of squiffy fans shouting to the world their love for their club.

The Second City derby (as it's known) is a massive occasion in the city, which is clearly evident inside and outside the stadium.

Inside Villa Park, the whole crowd at the Holte End were chanting Aston Villa songs many minutes before kickoff in something of a chant-fight with the opposing fans.

As the game began, chances started to open for both sides, and the two teams enjoyed similar control of proceedings.

The first half in all was nothing really more than the average Premier League tie; there was no derby match fire, apart from the odd pole-axing of opposition players a few times.

So thus it was up to the second half to ensure this match didn't end in a disappointing 0-0 draw, a result neither Aston Villa fans, Birmingham City fans, nor the neutrals across the globe wouldn't be interested in.

Moments did present themselves, but Villa and USA goalkeeping hero Brad Friedel ensured he'd grab another clean sheet, even saving a shot with his face at one point!

This match meant so much to the players as well as the fans that there were times when the general sporting etiquette went flying out of the window.

Birmingham City fullback Gregory Vignal went down with a touch of cramp at one point, with the Aston Villa players carrying on as usual instead of sportingly kicking the ball out of play so Vignal could get some treatment.

It was a move met with disdain and disgust by the opposition, and led to one of a few angry scuffles that materialised between both sets of players.

And in the final 10 minutes, such hostility by Birmingham City was directed to referee Martin Atkinson, who gave Villa a crucial penalty after City defender Roger Johnson was judged to have denied Villa's Gabriel Agbonlahor a goal-scoring opportunity.

England World Cup hopeful James Milner stepped up to smash home the resulting spot kick, giving Aston Villa a decisive 1-0 lead and subsequent victory.

It was a vitally important moment in the match for Aston Villa, who up until that point were being completely dominated at times by their fierce rivals.

The penalty decision by Atkinson most certainly wasn't without its fair share of controversy, as television replays from several camera angles show that awarding a penalty was a somewhat harsh decision.

As Agbonlahor made his charge into the penalty area, Johnson slid in with a very precise tackle that clipped the ball out of Agbonlahor's path and cleared the danger.

However, the problem for Johnson was that he also got plenty of the man, and Agbonlahor was brought to the ground by the Birmingham City centreback.

It also didn't help that the ball, after being clipped away by Johnson, moved the area that Agbonlahor would've touched it to anyway, meaning that the referee, from his position, obviously thought that Roger Johnson made a mistimed challenge that only brought down the player.

So from the referee's position and viewpoint, it could've been a stone-wall penalty as by letter of the law Johnson had denied Agbonlahor an obvious goalscoring opportunity.

But from the various camera angles, it was evident that actually the referee's decision was wrong as Johnson's tackle cleared the ball before taking the man.

In any case, here's what either side's managers had to say on the matter.

Villa supremo Martin O'Neill said, "There's no dispute about it, it's a penalty-kick.

"I've seen it back since and it's a definite penalty. It's a penalty—simple as that."

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Birmingham boss Alex McLeish took a rather different stance, saying, "It was a great tackle [by Roger Johnson].

"It was a bad mistake by the ref. He was not up with the play.

"It was a great touch by Roger Johnson. He's made a name for himself in the Premier League [making last-ditch tackles]."

And on the match as whole, McLeish added,"I thought we deserved to win it let alone lose to a controversial penalty.

"I am disappointed such a big game and big decision went against us.

"As [Stoke boss] Tony Pulis said in the morning papers, he feels the bigger teams get more of the decisions throughout the course of the season and today was evidence of that."

Well, in the end it was a vital decision in Aston Villa's favour that could well give their hopes of Champions League football next season a fundamental boost.

Their next Premier League encounter is an all-important clash against mega-money superpowers Manchester City.

Should the Villa win that one also, referee Martin Atkinson could potentially be the reason why Aston Villa finish in that lucrative fourth Premier League place this season.