After winning against Manchester City, a point against Hull City may feel like a loss, or at least a loss of points, ergo we should see criticism of the team, right?

Logic may well dictate such a narrative, but we have seen this season – just as we have for several seasons in the past few years – is that any team can beat any other team in the Premier League.

If they couldn’t then maybe Aston Villa’s record this season may well be different to what has actually transpired, though the Midlands based club may well find very few teams below them this season if that was how reality had to pan out.

As it stands, Villa are in the top half, something of an achievement when viewed in the context of the matches played so far, with the Villans having played Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal already so far. That the club were close to getting at least seven points from those encounters is pretty amazing, and only lost the two games by one goal.

Instead, Villa have six points from the two games won which, combined with the win at Norwich City, and the weekend’s point at the KC Stadium, leaves the club with a healthy 10 points so far.

If we multipled the current points out to the end of the season, Villa would sit on a total around 54 points, far more than the traditional 40 points required for survival. Of course, such an analysis is far too early to be engaged in, but the premise is fairly sound, and the opposition Villa have faced has been suitably challenging – it isn’t like Villa have had an easy start to the campaign.

So what do this mean for Paul Lambert’s team? Should we all be revising our expectations upward? For me, the answer is still no, regardless of what does or doesn’t happen in January’s transfer window.

I said at the start of the season that 12th is a suitable aim for a club in Villa’s predicament, that is one recovering from financial issues and in the middle of dramatic changes. 12th isn’t exactly a hugely lofty ambition admittedly but, in the context of circumstance, it is most certainly achievable.

What will most certainly be the case when the season is up is that the points difference in the middle of the league will be marginal – win one game late and you could rise up several places.

As it stands, Lambert’s team are doing well so far, albeit in the context of their circumstances. Can the team continue to deliver at the same rate? Only time will tell but, despite a draw at Hull City, there is a lot more going right at Villa than there is going wrong.

And long may it continue.

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