Source: Team_Talk
Davies: Missing fourth hard to take
Martin O'Neill's side were lying in fourth spot in the Premier League in March, six points clear of a stuttering Arsenal.
But Saturday's 1-1 home draw with West Ham all but ended any lingering hopes of Villa joining Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea in Europe's premier competition.
They are now seven points adrift of the Gunners, who have a match in hand, and have collected just two points from the last seven matches.
Davies said: "Is the Champions League out of reach now? It is going to be tough. We can only go and win the five games we have left.
"I know Arsenal are involved other competitions, including the Champions League, and they are going to be focusing on them as well so you can hope that they are going to slip up.
"But, to be entirely honest, I don't really see Arsenal slipping up too many times over the course of the rest of the season.
"For us as players, and also the fans, because we were in fourth place for so long and looking so strong when in that position, then it is a tough pill to swallow.
"We had to win against West Ham. Then you could have said 'Arsenal have still got to play the top three and that is going to be tough for them.'
"But I didn't see them losing all three of those games anyway and, with them now having a game in hand, for them to lose another one after that as well to let us back in is a big ask."
Although there is a sense of disappointment, Davies is adamant Villa should not regard finishing fifth as a failure if they manage to stay ahead of Everton.
And he believes the big spending power of other teams will not be to Villa's detriment in the battle to break into the elite bunch of clubs.
The central defender said: "It will not be a failure if we come fifth. At the beginning of the season, if you said we would finish fifth, you would be happy.
"There are a lot of teams who would love to finish in the Premier League.
"People ask me if this is a golden chance gone especially as team like Manchester City might spend a lot in the summer. But I think City spent a lot of money last summer and they are still technically in a relegation fight.
"We are never worried about people spending money. Arsenal, even though they don't spend a lot of money as such, when they do bring in players, they bring in top quality players and we pushed them all the way to the wire.
"We can only see what happens next year, and who we bring in, and we just have to try and jump in there next season."
Prem W/out Top 4 2008/09 Win Outright: Aston Villa 8/13
