Barring any late surges, the fight for the second automatic promotion spot in the Championship looks set to be a three-horse race between Villa, Cardiff and Derby County.
All three have tasted the top-flight in recent seasons, but Villa will be hoping a little harder than the others.
Both Cardiff and Derby have outlived their parachute payments, meaning they're battling on an even playing field.
Villa are still benefitting feeding on crumbs spilled by the top table, but with each passing season the amount they get decreases.
According to the Birmingham Mail, Villa received £41m in payments following their relegation from the Premier League and this season they've had £33m.
That financial input is significant, surely handing them an advantage over the likes of Preston, yet to taste the Premier League but still fighting at the right end of the Championship.
If Villa were to earn promotion it would be worth something akin to £100m and even a failure to do so won't stop their final payment.
If they're still a Championship side next season they'll receive £15m, a sizeable sum but a tiny slice of the Premier League's pot of gold.
Another failure and the payments stop, which is when relegated clubs begin to feel the pinch.
This season hasn't slipped from their grasp yet, not at all.
Preston earned a brave draw this week, but Villa have won seven of their last nine league matches.
Since the turn of the year they've been excellent, topping the form table from January 1st, clear of runaway leaders Wolves and Fulham, looming dangerously in fifth but still five points behind Steve Bruce's Villains.
Whilst Preston prove that money isn't everything, Villa are still carrying a sizeable wage bill as they plot a return to the top flight, a status fans feel is rightfully theirs.
As the drip-fed money begins to dry up, both the playing budget and the league placings could take a hit, so it is vital that Villa remain on track for promotion before they become 'just another' Championship team stuck in the cycle of mid-table obscurity.