Aston Villa caretaker manager Eric Black is out to prevent "anarchy" in the Villa Park dressing room as relegation from the Premier League looms.
Black was given the unenviable task of seeing out the season in the Villa hot seat following the sacking of Remi Garde last month, with the Birmingham club rock bottom and 15 points adrift of safety after 33 matches.
And with relegation pending as early as Saturday against Manchester United, Black's main priority is maintaining some sense of order among the players.
"They're probably going to be relegated," Black said.
"This could very easily implode. It could very easily turn into anarchy.
"I'm going to try and ensure that is not the case."
Anything but a win at Old Trafford will seal their relegation, provided it has not already been confirmed by Norwich City, who can send Villa down by avoiding defeat against relegation-threatened Sunderland on Saturday.
Black said the players were already showing a distinct lack of motivation as the season draws to a close, leaving plenty of questions for the club moving forward.
"The players are waiting to see what's going to happen here. They're all in limbo," he said.
"They are not great elements to motivate yourself every single day.
"That's my responsibility and I will do my utmost to ensure that it continues to be done on an extremely professional basis."
