Bruce was furious after Villa’s 3-1 defeat to Norwich on Saturday afternoon, and rightfully so. The defending for two of the three goals was poor, there was no attacking prowess, and Bruce’s men got exactly what they deserved from the match – absolutely nothing.
Since their 4-1 win over Wolves, his side has gone off the boil and have only picked up four points from their last four matches. It’s almost as if they have resigned themselves to a play-off place and are doing just enough to achieve just that.
However, they need to keep a close look over their shoulders as their play-off rivals are in form and are picking up points, especially Millwall. The Lions, who now sit in 7th place, are now unbeaten in their last fifteen matches and are only 8 points behind Villa.
Villa have the chance to cut the seven point gap between them and automatic promotion to four points again as they take on Cardiff City at Villa Park on Tuesday evening.
Here is our predicted Villa XI for tomorrow’s match against Cardiff City.
GK: Sam Johnstone
Has played every Championship game this season and he will certainly play this one.
RB: Ahmed Elmohamady
We don’t think Bruce trusts Tuanzebe, so we expect Elmohamady to start at right-back again.
CB: James Chester
Chester has been immense for Villa this season and he will start all the remaining games if he is fit to do so.
CB: John Terry
Terry, like Chester, has also had a very solid season for Villa, and the club will need his experience in the remaining games.
LB: Neil Taylor
With Hutton suffering from a tight hamstring, it’s likely that Taylor will start at left-back.
RM: Robert Snodgrass
Had a poor game against Norwich, but that won’t be enough for him to drop to the bench. When he’s on form, Villa look much better.
CM: Mile Jedinak
Against a physical Cardiff side, Jedinak’s height and strength could prove vital.
CM: Birkir Bjarnason
Bjarnason has been playing well lately, and Jedinak’s presence should allow him to have a bit more freedom to go forward.
CM: Jack Grealish
Grealish was one of the only players to come out of Saturday’s game with any sort of credit.
LM: Albert Adomah
Has been poor in the last few matches, but Bruce will trust him to up his game.
ST: Lewis Grabban
Villa look much more of a threat when Grabban is playing instead of Hogan.