Aston Villa advances to the fourth round of FA Youth Cup

Aston Villa’s Young Lions advanced to the fourth round in the FA Youth Cup on Tuesday afternoon. A 4-2 victory over Swansea City saw the claret and blues through.

The FA Youth Cup, an annual tournament for those aged 15-18, had many third round ties played on Tuesday.

Aston Villa, hosting Swansea City at Villa Park, scored 3 first-half goals en route to a 4-2 victory. Familiar names in the starting XI included captain Jake Walker, Indiana Vassilev, Jacob Ramsey, Colin Odutayo, and Dominic Revan, coming off two matches in which he made the senior team matchday 18.

With the win, Aston Villa Football Club moves into the final 32 in the fourth round. Drawn in tie 13, Villa will face the winner of Cambridge United or Reading reserves. It’s a favorable draw, considering many of England’s premier top flight academies also have teams still in the hat. The FA Youth Cup is a tournament that provides development in a high-pressure environment; it’s an invaluable resource for young players.

In other Aston Villa news, on-loan forward Ross McCormack has returned to Birmingham following a knee problem. Central Coast Mariners, McCormack’s loan club, have sent him back to the U.K. for treatment on the ailing injury. The player’s second A-League stint is not going as well compared to last season with one goal and one assist in his five league appearances. McCormack is set to see a specialist with the hopes of a return to Australia before Christmas.

Dean Smith and the senior team have a good eight days off between matches following last Friday’s controversial 2-2 draw with West Bromwich Albion. A home match-up against Stoke City awaits on Saturday.