The international break is over (Scotland fans rejoice), so we can now return to the business end of the Championship season.
Before the break for the European qualifiers, Villa were on a run of four wins from four matches, having scored 11 goals while conceding just one. This fantastic run moved them up into 6th place in the table. Therefore, it is safe to say that the break came at the wrong time for Dean Smith and his men.
Next up for Villa is a home match against Blackburn, who, after a decent run of results earlier on in the season, have fallen out of form and now sit in 16th place, 10 points behind Villa.
If Villa play how they were playing before the international break, it is probably safe to assume that they will make it 5 wins from 5. If this happens, and other results go their way, Villa could find themselves with a two point gap between them and 7th.
We know this doesn’t sound like much , but in such a tight season, it could make all the difference.
Here is our predicted Villa XI for Saturday’s game against Blackburn:
