It is testament to the football Spurs are playing that despite a third straight defeat, and for the third time having led the match, the Tottenham Hotspur fanbase is fully behind Australian manager, Ange Postecoglou.
In truth, even ignoring the impressive football they play, 26 points from 13 matches is a good start to a season that was always going to be a learning process.
In addition, it's fair to suggest that had the squad not been depleted to the extent it has through injury, that total would be higher. However, this most recent reverse has seen Spurs slip out of the top four to the benefit of their opponents, with Aston Villa's form showing no signs of relenting.
On a day that Spurs fans may have earmarked as 'winnable' after two defeats in a row and the proposition of Manchester City next in line, it could have all been so different but for a few sliding doors moments.
What if Son Heung Min had timed his runs better on one of his three offside goals? Perhaps Matty Cash needn't have taken his anger out on Rodrigo Bentancur's ankle after his blood was brought to boil by Ollie Watkins’ own disallowed goal. Was there an excuse for how Spurs descended into sloppy football and given away a needless free kick from which Aston Villa equalised right before halftime?
Alas, all these moments were the reality, which means that Ange Postecoglou now has to find a way to arrest his side's spiralling form next week against the current champions, Manchester City.
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Spurs still creative without Maddison
In fact it's probably an insult to say Spurs are "still" creative without James Maddison, because despite the absence of their undoubted key playmaker, Spurs produced their most incisive, purposeful performance of the season in the first half.
By the 30th minute the result could have been a formality had it not been for a combination of poor finishing, overplaying when a shot was on, and some badly timed runs.
However, with Kulusevski looking every bit the complete attacking midfielder with his runs beyond Son and ability to drive at the Villa defence, Lo Celso reminding Spurs fans why the club were relieved of such a princely sum to buy him with his ability to vary play and create space, and Bentancur setting the tempo from deep to set Spurs on the way, the three looked every bit the complete midfield.
That one of these players has only ever played on the flank in almost two years at Spurs and the other two were making their first starts of the season is proof that Postecoglou's methods are permeating through the entire squad.
That the reward was merely the entertainment of the present support and not the three points should not distract from the many positives on display.
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Aston Villa are here to stay
It may sound patronising to one of England's biggest clubs but often when a side enjoys this type of form and aren't one of the "big six" it invites rival supporters, supposed experts and the general masses to suggest it won't last and that it is a flash in the pan.
Often that does transpire to be the case, but the Midlands club are managed by one of the Premier League's most astute managers and a man who has been tactically outclassing opposition for a long time.
In finding a way to win a match where his side wasn't on top for the majority of play, Unai Emery let Villa into the top four and cemented his team as the on form side in the league with 13 games out of the way.
It remains to be seen if this can be sustained, but in what is a transitional season for several of the other traditional top clubs, the Villains have an opportunity to achieve a full turnaround from the ignominy of their relegation in 2016.
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Aston Villa set a great offside trap
Not a huge amount of explanation needed here, but a simple look at the evidence. Son Heung Min scored three goals in this match, and three times saw his goals ruled out for offside.
If this was a young, pugnacious speedster learning how to time runs still then I'd be less inclined to give so much credit, and equally if Son had only seen one of his finishes disallowed it could easily be attributed to luck.
However, Son has made a living out of racing away from defences for over eight seasons in North London, and that he couldn't do so legally in this game was the result of a synchronicity in the Villa backline which would make George Graham proud.
Emery knew that Son would win a foot race against his players, so instead he used Son's pace against him and drilled his defence into making the space behind redundant. Perhaps there's some fortune in Son having a bad day at the office, but when he was offside so regularly credit has to go to the opposition for setting the trap.
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Spurs need a centre back
Not so much a new lesson, but one which has been relearnt. Neither Davies nor Emerson performed poorly, and in fact Villa's open play chances were largely limited, relying on a low percentage chance to win the day having equalised through a set piece.
However, what chances Villa did have in open play you suspect wouldn't occur had Romero or Van de Ven been present, with both Watkins’ disallowed header and the header he missed in the second half from point blank range examples of chances a season centre back knows how to mitigate.
Given that Eric Dier is clearly not in Postecoglou's plans, Spurs' Australian manager will be praying that his great start to life in charge of the Lilywhites is rewarded in the upcoming transfer window with a centre back who can both deputise for, and challenge, the first choice pairing.