Aston Villa were held to a 1-1 draw against Preston last night that saw them miss the opportunity to move into the top two.

Whilst they will see this as two points dropped, the reality is that Villa were fortunate to leave with a point, with North End having the better of the game.

Tom Barkhuizen gave the visitors the lead after an error from Sam Johnstone, although the on-loan Manchester United keeper made up for that with a good save in the second half.

Steve Bruce made a double change at the break and the subs were behind the equaliser.

Keinan Davis won a penalty, that Preston will feel was harsh, with Lewis Grabban converting to bring Villa back level.

From there, neither side made any real clear chances, although Davis could have won it with a left-footed volley in stoppage time.

On the whole though, it was a disappointing performance from the West Midlands side who were badly missing the creativity of Jack Grealish and Albert Adomah.

Here we look at the best combined XI from last night...

Sam Johnstone has had a fine season for Villa but last night he was at fault for the opener, whereas Rudd was solid and dependable throughout.

Neither Axel Tuanzebe or Darnell Fisher particularly excelled but the North End man settled quicker whilst the on-loan Manchester United man didn't convince.

Huntington was calm, strong and aggressive in defence, coping well with what Villa had in attack.

It's tough to leave Huntington's defensive partner Ben Davies out but James Chester was vital for Villa and one block in the second half was particularly impressive.

The former Spurs left-back was probably the best player on the pitch for Villa, defending reasonably well and a constant threat going forward.

Preston dominated the midfield, with Villa seriously struggling to get to grips with North End in the centre of the park and Browne was key to that.

If Browne was good, Pearson was better. The tenacious midfielder missed the last two games through suspension but was back to his best at Villa Park and arguably the man of the match.

Bodin had a decent game and was lively going forward. However, the reality is no Villa attacking midfielder could be considered.

Similarly, Robinson had a pretty good game although he was wasteful at times but no Villa man stepped up.

The Preston winger was an easy choice after his goal and he also gave Tuanzebe trouble when he managed to get at the full-back.

The on-loan Bournemouth man scored Villa's goal and no doubt improved their performance. He was sharp and will be pushing for a start on Saturday.

Thoughts, Villa and Preston fans? Let us know in the comments below.