Aston Villa 3 Port Vale 1

If the scoreline suggests that Aston Villa cruised into the fifth round of the FA Cup, the reality is that this was an uncomfortable affair for the Premiership club, played in cold conditions and in front of another low attendance.

Villa deserved to win and, in Milan Baros, boasted the game's most accomplished player. But if Port Vale had taken just one of their many chances, they might have forced a replay or - dare one say it? - something even worse.

Baros scored twice, in the 70th minute and 74th minute, to effectively seal this victory for Villa but the significant moment came in the 68th minute when David O'Leary sent on Kevin Phillips to replace the ineffectual Juan Pablo Angel.

The effect of Phillips was instant. He gave Villa more urgency up front and was involved when Baros opened the scoring. His first touch was decisive in helping Villa take the lead. Phillips, short of full fitness but still impressive, threaded the ball into the path of Baros who clipped into the far corner of the net.

With 16 minutes remaining, and Villa looking nervous, Baros scored his eighth goal of the season after a corner by James Milner was turned across goal by Olof Mellberg for the Czech Republic international striker to head home from close range.

"We totally controlled and dominated the whole game," O'Leary said. "It was important to keep going and break them down. It is very hard when a team sits back and drops deep. I thought if we kept pressing the goals would come and they did in the end.

"We gave ourselves problems with our usual inability to defend a ball into the box for their goal and I was concerned at the end. But the bottom line is that we are in the next round. Only a few teams can win the Premiership and for most of us the FA Cup is the best thing we can win."

If only it was as easy as O'Leary thought it was. Prior to Villa taking the lead, Port Vale missed the best chance of the match up to that point and should have pulled it to 2-2 in the final five minutes.

It was Leon Constantine who missed in the 64th minute, dragging his shot wide from 12 yards when it seemed easier to score.

Vale gave themselves a life-line when Nathan Lowndes, a substitute, headed home a free-kick. And then, almost immediately, Sean Doherty shot over from close range and held his head in his hands as the ball disappeared from view.

It was tough for him that Steven Davis, the Northern Ireland international midfield player, restored Villa's two goal lead in injury-time after a shot by Lee Hendrie went straight across the face of goal.

Of course, the FA Cup is never about coherent performances and Villa find themselves in the fifth round for the first time since they reached the final in 2000. It is all about hanging in there, taking advantage of whatever luck is going, and making full use of players in form.

With that in mind, it is good to note that Phillips looks to be over his injury problems. He is more flexible than Angel and, significantly, seems better able to read the runs and movement of Baros. O'Leary was certainly impressed.

"It will take a few weeks to get Kevin up to speed after his two month lay-off but he is a good player who I am sure will prove value for money over the next couple of years," the manager said.

Martin Foyle, the Port Vale manager, was disillusioned not to have led his team to a replay which, he says, his players deserved.

"The lads were disappointed afterwards because they thought they could have got something out of the game," he said. "Villa were a bit nervous because of their crowd and we got to half-time being level which was our main objective after frustrating them.

"They scored at the right time and I thought the second goal had killed the game off but we then had a real go at them. They were on the back foot and we had three or four good chances."

But this result was proof that Villa are making progress. When they lost 3-0 away to Doncaster Rovers in the League Cup in November, they looked like a collection of players who were hardly interested in matching the energy and enthusiasm of their lower-league opposition.

Not so on this occasion. Villa's victory was as much a triumph for hard graft as it was for skill.