JONATHAN Kodjia’s penalty condemned Wanderers to an eighth successive league defeat in a tense encounter at Villa Park.

The £11million striker scored the only goal of the game after Mark Beevers had tripped Keinan Davis in a scramble at a corner.

Bolton’s toils in front of goal continued, and they have now gone 12-and-a-half hours without scoring. They certainly went close against Villa, with Adam Armstrong missing a good first-half opportunity and both David Wheater and Gary Madine seeing chances cleared off the line.

The result leaves the Whites seven points from safety without a win in their first 11 games for the first time since 1903.

Phil Parkinson was left disappointed, claiming Kodjia had been in an offside position in the build-up to the goal.

“I thought it was a good performance, we had chances first half – especially the one from Adam Armstrong,” he said.

“But it was such a shame, the offside decision leading to the penalty. The pitches all have to be cut horizontally to help the linesman, and he’s offside – it’s right on the cut of the grass.

“I’d say 999 times out of 1,000 the linesman would give that because the players who possibly could have kept him onside was furthest away.

“I think the confusion between the ref and the linesman prior to that affected his belief to give the decision.

“Mark (Howard) made a good save, the corner comes in and I think we should have been calmer.

“That 30-second period has cost us in the game. I think when the linesman analyses his performance he will be thinking to himself ‘how did I not give that?’ “It has cost us in the end.”

Parkinson admitted, however, that Wanderers’ failure to put the ball in the net was another big factor in another away day disappointment.

“We had opportunities and Gaz had one cleared off the line by Chris Samba right at the end, which rather sums up our luck in front of goal at the moment.

“But I can’t ask for any more in terms of honesty from the lads. They gave me absolutely everything.”