Aston Villa Lineup Questions for Wembley
By Clayton Nass
It’s almost here. The EFL Championship playoff final. With it comes one final team selection for Dean Smith.
Most of the Aston Villa Starting XI and bench is set in stone, leaving Dean Smith with only 2 or 3 decisions before this playoff final. Jack Grealish has solidified his role as captain, the Mings-Tuanzebe CB partnership is a lock, Jed Steer has earned the right to start every match between the sticks, and Tammy Abraham cannot be supplanted from his pillar of goal-scoring.
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At this point in the campaign, the final tweaks become more of a chess match between managers, rather than a “plug-and-play” in order to assess a player’s qualities and form. Dean Smith knows what and who he has, and now it’s simply a matter of playing the team that gives Aston Villa the best chance to win the match.
Therefore, I have compiled what I believe to be the two, and only two lineup decisions left to consider.