Conor Hourihane struck the only goal as Aston Villa edged past Norwich City to claim a vital 1-0 victory at Villa Park.
Norwich had the best chance of a goalless first half, but Sam Byram's header looped over Tom Heaton and hit the bar.
After the break, Norwich again came close as Alexander Tettey's effort was cleared off the line by Douglas Luiz. At the other end, Jack Grealish's shot was well saved by Tim Krul.
Grealish was the provider on 64 minutes as he made his way into the area before squaring to Hourihane, who swept the ball in.
The win leaves Villa 18th on 18 points, while Norwich are two places and six points below them.
See: Villa report | Norwich report
Next fixtures
Aston Villa: 28 Dec v Watford (A)
Norwich: 28 Dec v Spurs (H)
Referee: Chris Kavanagh. Assistants: Sian Massey-Ellis, Adam Nunn. Fourth official: Matt Donohue. VAR: Lee Mason. Assistant VAR: Matthew Wilkes.
