Villa face anxious wait on Ron Vlaar injury

The home skipper was forced off after just 15 minutes of the goalless draw, with Ciaran Clark coming on, due to jarring his leg while challenging Wilfried Zaha.

Fears are that the Holland international has sustained the same injury he suffered at the World Cup, which caused him to miss a big chunk of pre-season for the claret and blues.

Lambert said: "I'm not 100 per cent sure about Ron, but we think it's his knee. We will see. To be fair, I didn't want to bring on Ciaran Clark. I wanted to give him a break, but he did well.

"Our defensive record is good. We just need to score."

Villa recorded their second stalemate and third home draw in succession with another battling point, against a well-drilled Palace side.

The hosts crafted out the better chances, but their wastefulness in front of goal again cost them. They have now found the net just once in their last five games.

Lambert said: "We're getting chances but we have to start taking them. We're dominating the ball and getting into good positions and the chances are there.

"We just need that finishing touch. I understand the frustrations but, if we keep playing the way we are, the chances will go in.

"I remember playing Crystal Palace last season and we went back to front and got hit by a sucker punch. If Alan Hutton scores early on, that entices them out.

"I think our possession was 70-30 but we need the finishing touch. We need to score. I'm pretty sure if we had done that, Palace would have opened up."