If there is one ground where Sunderland boss Paolo Di Canio is guaranteed a welcome as hostile as St James’ Park, it is Villa Park.
Although he has offered his explanation for the gesture at the end of Aston Villa’s Capital One Cup win at Swindon this season, when the Italian manager was still in charge at the County Ground, Villa fans were incensed. Tonight he will discover they still are.
Antagonising: Paolo Di Canio won't be given a warm welcome by Aston Villa fans on Monday night, having wound them up last time he visited with Swindon
Jumping for joy: This time he is back as a Premier League manager
Di Canio had just watched his League One side storm back from 2-0 down to draw level against Paul Lambert’s team, only for Christian Benteke to score a late winner which sent the Barclays Premier League side into the last eight.
At the final whistle, Di Canio went over to the travelling support and gestured to the heavens and the ground.
He explained: ‘I was saying it was my fans that are the top and Villa are underneath you.’ The Villa support took it as a sign he thought their team would be relegated.
The intention may not have been to offend, but Di Canio would not hide his desire to see Villa among the bottom three now. Villa or Wigan. Anyone but Sunderland, who will be in the Midlands tonight looking for a third win in four games under their new head coach.
Rejuvenated: Stephane Sessegnon has put an indifferent season behind him with a string of important match-winning displays for Sunderland since Di Canio took over from Martin O'Neill
PROBABLE LINE-UPS
Aston Villa (4-3-3): Guzan; Lowton, Vlaar, Clark, Baker; Westwood, Delph, El Ahmadi; Weimann, Benteke, Agbonlahor.
Sunderland (4-2-3-1): Mignolet; Colback, O’Shea, Cuellar, Rose; N’Diaye, Gardner; Larsson, Sessegnon, Johnson; Graham.
A victory would virtually seal Di Canio’s task of keeping Sunderland safe. Central to their survival fight has been Stephane Sessegnon who, in the last three weeks, has cast aside eight months of inconsistency and mediocrity.
‘He can cause more damage to opponents even when he doesn’t score because he is dangerous - if he works as he has done in the last two games,’ said Di Canio.
‘There are times when I allow him a free moment because he is a fantasy player - like I was. If you give them too much advice it can put them under pressure. So you can be generous with them.’
Leading by example: Ron Vlaar
Sessegnon said of the Italian’s impact: ‘We are physically stronger and I think physically and tactically we are in better shape. I like this kind of management and it shows. After this season, we don’t know, but at the moment we like this coach.’
Villa skipper Ron Vlaar has hinted that relegation could see him leave Villa to protect his World Cup finals dream. Having suffered heartache three years ago when he did not make the final cut to travel with Holland to South Africa, the centre half is anxious not to suffer a repeat ahead of Brazil 2014.
‘That’s my goal - to get to the World Cup,’ he said. ‘If we play Premier League next season, that’s good enough.’
Villa have the third worst defensive record in the League and have gone 23 matches without keeping a clean sheet.
Vlaar, a £3.2million buy from Feyenoord, said: ‘Obviously, that’s too many goals. I don’t think it’s right to blame only the defenders - it is the whole side.’