Aston Villa captain Ron Vlaar is confident his side can avoid the drop but admits they need to get back to winning ways as quickly as possible.
Villa slumped to a fourth defeat in a row at Crystal Palace on Saturday and are now just four points clear of the bottom three.
Vlaar’s side haven’t managed to pick up any points since seeing off title contenders Chelsea 1-0 last month, and the defender admits they need to put a run of results together in their final five fixtures to ensure they avoid relegation from the Premier League.
“We need to realise the situation we’re in and stick together,” said the Villa captain. “Results haven’t gone our way in the last three weeks and we need the fans behind us.
“We’ve lost four in a row since we beat Chelsea. We have to stop the sequence and change it around as soon as possible.
“The gap is down to four points, the bottom three are not far behind us and we realise we’re going to need more points.”
Villa host Southampton on Saturday and can be backed at 3.29 to take all three points.
Vlaar admits the visit of the Saints has taken an added significance following the defeat to Palace but he is confident his side can come out on top and avoid slipping into the bottom three, having successfully avoided relegation last term.
He added: “As a team, we’ve come through a tough situation last season and I’ve every confidence we can get through it again, but everyone must fight for it – starting next week against Southampton.”
Southampton are priced at 2.18 to beat Aston Villa next weekend, while the draw is available at 3.25.
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