Dean Smith returned to Griffin Park on Wednesday evening and had to sit there and watch his Villa side get completely dominated by his former team.
The scoreline might have been only 1-0, but that does not paint a true reflection of the game. Villa struggled to get a foothold in the match, which was mostly due to the fact that their midfield could not keep hold of the ball or complete a simple pass. This meant that the defence was under pressure for the majority of the game.
The defence, mainly due to the efforts of Tyrone Mings, Tommy Elphick, and Lovre Kalinic, held out for 90 minutes, but they were punished severely when Elphick had one lapse in concentration.
Next up for Smith’s men is a local derby against West Bromich Albion at Villa Park, and if Villa fail to win they could find themselves 10 points adrift of 6th place, which would surely be curtains for their promotion hopes.
Here is our predicted Villa XI for Saturday’s game against West Brom:
