Jhon Durán gives the final touch to Aston Villa's victory over Southampton | first division

Russell Martin made it clear that there would be no enthusiastic talks with the Churchillian team to try to turn around Southampton's battered season and, frankly, there may be nothing anyone can do now to preserve their first division state.

They again had moments, as they often do, usually courtesy of the prodigious 18-year-old Tyler Dibling, but the visitors, who have won once in the league all season, emerged from the rubble empty-handed. Again, irritatingly, for the Saints, eight points from the bottom of the table, an individual error allowed the opposition to attack, Jhon Durán fired in to win Villa Aston successive victories.

The decisive moment came midway through the first half. Diego Carlos threw a ball towards Durán and although Nathan Wood initially seemed to have it under control, his control quickly unraveled. Taylor Harwood-Bellis tried to intervene and help, but Duran pounced on the confusion, the Villa forward overpowered Harwood-Bellis and then shook a staggering Wood out of sight, before applying the finish. Durán, making his first league start of the season in place of Ollie Watkins and one of four substitutions for Unai Emery, took his chance. John McGinn missed the chance to seal the victory at the end.

The reality is that the back three of Wood, Harwood-Bellis and James Bree, who was replaced by Joe Aribo at half-time, were playing in the second tier last season and those defensive errors are often punished in this division.

After falling behind, it always felt like a big ask for the Saints to come back. The wait for a goal in the first half of the league away to St Mary's this season continues. Dibling was the catalyst for most of the positive flashes, advancing midway through the second half with Villa substitutes Lucas Digne and Jaden Philogene in pursuit before releasing former Villa striker Cameron Archer, only for Boubacar Kamara to make a clever block.

Sam Amo-Ameyaw, another promising Saints youngster introduced off the bench, sent in a diabolical left-footed cross from the right flank with his first touch, but Emiliano Martínez smothered the ball, which bounced tantalizingly on the edge of the six-yard box. . . Would Villa regret not being able to finish the game? Ezri Konsa prevented Kyle Walker-Peters' deep cross from reaching Adam Armstrong at the back post and five minutes later Aribo squared for Armstrong but the Saints captain failed to connect from close range.

After eight games without a win, Villa have won twice in four days. Now Villa, who sit in fifth place after enduring poor conditions here, can focus on trying to get back to winning ways on the continent, and next Tuesday it will be RB Leipzig.