OPINION
Aston Villa centre-forward Jonathan Kodjia continued his return from injury with an impressive cameo in the win over Cardiff on Tuesday night and he could still be the difference in the hunt for promotion.
The rarely-seen player made just his 12th appearance of the season in midweek and helped the Midlands giants beat Cardiff 1-0 at home.
Jack Grealish’s stunning late volley earned the three Championship points, but the 28-year-old came off the bench to ignite some freshness to the attack and spur them onto victory.
Steve Bruce’s side are fourth in the league standings and the play-offs look the most likely route for them in their attempts for a Premier League return.
However, they need to keep winning in case of a major slip up from Fulham (2nd) or Cardiff (3rd), and going into the play-offs in good form is also key.
That is why Villa must recall Kodjia to the starting XI on Friday night for the home fixture against Leeds.
The Ivory Coast international has been used as a substitute in the last four consecutive league matches following his return from a long layout with an ankle injury.
He showed signs against Cardiff that he is getting fully back up to speed and Villa fans would love for him to be firing by the time the play-offs come around at the end of the season.
Kodjia has the pace to stretch any defence and scored 19 goals last season for Villa to prove his quality in front of goal.
The 28-year-old appears to be timing his return to the side perfectly and it may be written in the stars that he scores a winner at Wembley after a turbulent season for him.