The elation on my twitter timeline among Aston Villa supporters on Tuesday night was understandable.
Quite how the situation has descended to such a point where Villa fans are willing another Premier League club to defeat to save the club's skin - pretty much for the third season in a row - is less so.
Following on from the near misses engineered by Gerard Houllier and Alex McLeish, we have Paul Lambert's vintage.
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Jump for joy: Villa have had sparks of excitement this year, but on the whole have been disappointing
Hoisted aloft into the Villa Park manager's chair on the back of an unprecedented mandate, the Scot has produced the ugly, bad and good during a season which has never strayed too far from one controversy or another.
In his hands: If Villa lose Benteke in the summer, next season could be detrimentalOf course, it has all ended happily. No trophy for the 17th season in succession, but at least Villa will take their place in the Premier League next season.
It is incredible, really, what Lambert - and to a lesser extent the club - has overseen in terms of managing expectation. Hats off. They've managed it downwards magnificently.
And now, despite a loss of almost £100m in the last three years, it is seen as something to celebrate that a club of Aston Villa's size retains its' Premier League place during a season of dubious quality.
Never mind the biggest thrashing in the club's history at Chelsea, humiliation in the semi-finals of the Carling Cup against Bradford City, the unnecessary alienation of senior players and a transfer policy that has been just as much miss as hit.
And all this, we are told, is against the backdrop of owner Randy Lerner - a man who doesn't care, allegedly - sanctioning the fourth largest net spend on transfers in the past 12 months.
Now I can lay the blame for a few things at the American's door - the ill-judged appointment of Alex McLeish for a start - but I cannot question his devotion when he is prepared to dig that deep.
Does anyone out there have the remotest idea of what £100m looks like? I don't.
Yet this is the loss borne by the club on top of record revenues.
It is a fantastic sum. Put into sharp focus by the fact that both West Bromwich Albion and Swansea City - both of whom will finish above Villa this season - have posted a profit.
Finale: Without Villa's decent end to the season, they would have been in deeper danger
And before anyone starts yes, it is relevant.
Manchester City and Chelsea won the Premier League and Champions League last season because of what, exactly?
Sure, they had the best teams. Assembled at a cost in excess of £1.7bn...
But waste, sadly, is nothing new at Villa Park. Thankfully, steps are being taken to address that issue.
But bright new dawn? Hang on a minute.
We were all sold on the fact that a young, vibrant team was being assembled.
Lambert boasted before the first game of the season against Everton that 40,000 supporters wouldn't need to wait 40 minutes to see a shot on goal.
Demolished: Heavy defeats on the bounce against Chelsea, Tottenham and Wigan left fans angry
He was absolutely right. It was 44 minutes, Barry Bannan's effort dribbling into Tim Howard's arms.
In the week that followed what was, frankly, an alarming start, Villa dipped into the transfer market.
They made what was to become a season-defining signing in the shape of Christian Benteke.
His campaign couldn't have gone any better, had it been scripted. Scoring within a few minutes of his appearance as a substitute following Ashley Williams' gifted backpass.
It was to prove something of a false dawn. One of two victories in the opening 13 matches this season as all manner of players, systems and tactics were tried.
Despite a couple of Benteke-inspired successes (Reading and Liverpool) the whole season appeared to crash down either side of Christmas.
If conceding eight at Chelsea wasn't bad enough, then came the debacle against Bradford City.
And I have a point to make about the second leg. Where was the leadership when the Bantams equalised at Villa Park?
Villa just pumped ball after ball down the throats of the League Two centre-halves. I wanted to see a cool head on the touchline, urging the players to keep the ball, to maintain what they were doing for a first-half in which the visitors hardly got out of their own half.
I didn't see anything of the sort.
But the turnaround eventually came, just in the nick of time. Pretty much when it looked as though the Baggies were going to dance on Villa's grave at the Hawthorns, we saw a glimpse of what was to become the club's saving grace.
The sight of Benteke, Gabby Agbonlahor, Andreas Weimann and, to a lesser extent (when he felt like it) Charles N'Zogbia running riot.
At last there was an antidote to the goals that were being thumped into - and still are being thumped into - Villa's net at a rate of knots.
Backwards: Villa failed to make progress under Gerard Houllier after Martin O'Neill suddenly left the club
And it is their prowess, in essence, in front of goal that has at last given Villa fans something to shout about.
Benteke takes the plaudits - and rightly so - but Agbonlahor remains a real asset to the club. Weimann too, needs to take his share of praise.
And Lambert deserves a dollop too. There have been times when I've scratched my head - and I've not been alone, face it - and wondered just what the grand plan is.
But he has ploughed on and it has paid off, particularly towards the end of the season when Villa have won every match they really needed to.
Reading, QPR, Stoke Sunderland and Norwich have been the key fixtures. And all of 'em were won.
In one respect, Lerner and chief executive Paul Faulkner deserve praise too.
No so glorious days: Villa were winning the European Cup 31 years ago, but are no languishing in the lower realms, with owner Randy Lerner (below right) putting his hand in his pocket to help raise the club
There has never been even one scintilla of doubt in their minds that Lambert should stay in his job. It helps when there is no schism. Everyone knows where they stand.
That solidity needs to be recognised. The powers-that-be need to be lauded for that.
Hard job: McLeish was brought in to lower the wage bill but fans took an instant dislikeOn one level, Lambert has been extremely fortunate. He has been afforded latitude where he can sideline some of the club's big earners.
The likes of Shay Given, Stephen Ireland, Darren Bent, Alan Hutton and Steven Warnock would, under normal circumstances, have to feature.
Most managers wouldn't just be able to go out and buy replacements, adding yet more money to a heavy wage bill.
They wouldn't be able to push a £24m record signings like Bent to one side.
(And for all the money Villa could make on Benteke, how much will they write off on Bent this summer. My point is: Did it have to be this way?)
No, most managers would have to work with what they had - not just be able to sideline them - as yet more players were added to the rosta.
Thirty-nine players were listed on the back of Villa's programme against Chelsea - the London Blues, by contrast - had twenty-five.
Of those imports, several have paid off. Benteke, Matthew Lowton and Ashley Westwood are in credit. Ron Vlaar, Karim El Ahmadi, Yacouba Sylla and Joe Bennett will need another season of progress to convince.
So, where are we?
Well, the results towards the season's end have been encouraging.
There might be more hope of a bright new dawn now than there has been for some considerable time.
Hit and miss: Lambert has got some signings spot on, but others need more time to adjustBut only if Villa retain Christian Benteke's services. I know Brad Guzan has enjoyed an outstanding season, but it is far harder to create and score goals than it is to stop them.
The Belgium international is at the hub of all things good. He creates havoc and space for the other two. Just look what happened at the weekend against Chelsea when he went off. As an attacking threat, Villa weren't one.
Overall, it has been a scarcely-believable first campaign for Lambert. And Benteke. Guzan. And Villa. Not all in a good way.
But forgive me if I don't join in with the general happy chorus.
Following Chelsea, Bradford, Millwall, another huge write-off of transfer fees and 22 games without a clean sheet, I really don't think there's that much to celebrate.
Aston Villa Football Club really should be aiming higher - much higher - than merely celebrating a third successive Premier League reprieve.
Escape: Luckily for Villa, Wigan's late escape wasn't enough to keep them fighting until the final day.epl_container,.epl_top_container, .spon_left, .spon_right, .epl_clear{display:block;margin:0px;padding:0px;min-height:0px;font-size:0px;border:0px;white-space:nowrap;} .epl_container{background-color:#000000;} .epl_top_container{background:#F9F9F9 url(http://l.yimg.com/i/i/uk/any/e/bkg.jpg) repeat-x scroll top;} .spon_left{width:140px;float:left;height:60px;overflow:hidden;background:#000000 url(http://l.yimg.com/i/i/uk/any/e/ylogo.jpg) no-repeat;} .spon_right{width:160px;float:right;height:60px;overflow:hidden;background:#000000 url(http://l.yimg.com/i/i/uk/any/e/right.jpg) no-repeat;} .epl_clear{clear:both;}
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