What a difference pre-season makes.
Gabby Agbonlahor went away over the summer, having struggled to hit the net from six yards or less on many an occasion, but now he is scoring from everywhere and in every fashion.
On the night - against Cardiff - it was a cocky touch of class that helped the England hit man net his fourth goal in as many games and send Villa through to round four of the Carling Cup.
After just three minutes a super run down the right from John Carew resulted in the ball being flicked past former Villan Peter Enckleman in the Bluebirds goal by Agbonlahor
It was a super touch from the currently super striker and it helped the Claret and Blue overcome a Championship hoodoo, which has blighted a run in the competition over the last two years.
Two seasons ago, Villa lost 1-0 to Leicester at the same stage at Villa Park and there was a carbon copy defeat to Q.P.R. last time year.
But this time - even with James Milner missing a second half penalty - Martin O'Neill's men claimed the win which secured their place in the draw for the next round.
Cardiff were left rueing a poor decision from the linesman with just seconds of the game to go as Jay Bothroyd saw his strike disallowed, but it was a touch of luck that had eluded Villa over the last two years and maybe they deserved it.
Agbonlahor's brilliantly cheeky finish was almost worthy of the win alone but few could deny that O'Neill's side are good enough to progress.
Milner may have made the scoreline more comprehensive but in the end it was third time lucky in the third round for Villa.
As for Agbonlahor, the scoring spree continues and he will now be hoping that it doesn’t come to an abrupt end as it did at the conclusion of the last campaign.