Why Aston Villa can feel a Champions League place slipping through their fingers AGAIN: The three key players they look half a team without and where Unai Emery is going wrong after Wolves defeat: TOM COLLOMOSSE

When Rodrigo Gomes sealed Wolves‘ victory with a handful of seconds remaining, Unai Emery had seen enough.

The Aston Villa boss marched straight down the tunnel and when Rob Edwards approached the away dugout at full-time to shake hands, Emery was nowhere to be seen. Soon after full-time his captain, Ezri Konsa, appeared to be restrained by a Villa staff member. There were suggestions Konsa had exchanged cross words with some away supporters.

‘In September I was worried about being in the relegation zone,’ said Emery, referring to Villa’s poor start. ‘Then maybe a month ago I was dreaming of fighting with Manchester City and Arsenal for the title.

‘We are having a great season and I want to tell our fans now that we need them. We are grateful for them for being with us but at Villa Park we need their help. We need to be together – players, coaches, fans, everyone.

‘Our points total is similar to clubs who have finished in the top five before. We are competing against great teams and for them it is necessary to finish in the Champions League. We need to keep our position.’

Joao Gomes’ opener and Rodrigo’s clincher means Wolves eclipse Derby’s record low points total from 2007-08 and they deserved their win. ‘I have not been especially focused on [the total] but it is important for the club and the fans,’ acknowledged Edwards.

Unai Emery was left with his head in his hands as his third-place side stumbled at Molineux

The lasting image of the night, however, was Emery’s touchline meltdown. Villa fans hope their toiling team do not follow suit as they fear a Champions League place will slip from their grasp for the second season in a row. Their next two fixtures are against fellow contenders Chelsea and Manchester United.

Asked about the pressure on Villa, Morgan Rogers said: ‘It does weigh on us but it shouldn’t. We deserve to be here and we should not forget that. There is nothing to worry about.’

Emery’s early exit was no surprise. From the moment he gave Jadon Sancho an earful midway through the first half, the Spaniard looked ready to boil over. ‘Only seven?!’ he seemed to scream at the fourth official after the stoppage time board was raised, with his side chasing an equaliser. Earlier, Emery appeared to ignore Emi Buendia and Lucas Digne when they were substituted, his frustration growing when play was delayed due to an issue with referee Craig Pawson’s earpiece.

Emery is one of the finest managers in Villa’s history but this was not his finest hour. From the moment the team sheet landed, his night started going wrong. Ollie Watkins and Lucas Digne ahead of the in-form Tammy Abraham and the adventurous Ian Maatsen. Really?

Then there was his demeanour throughout the game. Emery is always full of nervous energy on the touchline and usually it is a positive force. Here, though, it could not possibly have been.

Villa are still third in the table, six points ahead of Liverpool in sixth, and are favourites for the Europa League.

Villa needed Emery to be calm. Instead he acted like a man who was watching everything go up in smoke, though he had cooled down by the time he faced the media.

In this form, Villa will struggle to succeed at home or in Europe. When Joao Gomes gave Wolves the lead just after the hour mark, only Ezri Konsa and Digne tried to encourage their team-mates. Konsa and Amadou Onana berated Buendia for dragging his heels as the Argentine walked to the bench after being substituted.

Wolves know they are down but there are still certain matches that can bring some light in the darkness. One is next week’s FA Cup fifth-round tie against Liverpool. The other is the chance to knock over one of their local rivals.

The absence of key players is starting to take its toll on Villa. Shorn of Boubacar Kamara, as well as John McGinn and Youri Tielemans, they look half the team.

Joao Gomes (above) struck midway through the second half to put Wolves in the ascendancy, before Rodrigo Gomes grabbed the hosts’ second goal with virtually the last kick of the game

Villa’s dismal defeat marked just the second time Wolves have won in the league this season

The early signs were not promising. Buendia’s clumsy challenge on Jean-Ricner Bellegarde gave Wolves a free-kick that Mateus Mane sent just wide from 22 yards. Many expected Abraham to be preferred to Watkins here and in the sixth minute Watkins wasted a great chance to repay that faith.

Sent clear by Morgan Rogers, Watkins hesitated just long enough for Yerson Mosquera to steal the ball before the forward could even shoot. Moments later, Pau Torres wasted a free header from Douglas Luiz’s corner. Luiz then volleyed straight at Jose Sa and at the other end, Mateus Mane put a free-kick just wide and Toti Gomes miscued a volley.

The pattern did not change in the second half until, moments after Emery had made a double change, Jackson Tchatchoua crossed from the right, Adam Armstrong laid the ball off and Gomes crashed it in off the bar from 15 yards. Maatsen’s arrival made a difference and his rising shot forced Sa into another sharp stop and Mosquera cleared off the line from Abraham before Rodrigo sealed it in front of the South Bank.