Dean Smith has confirmed his starting XI to play QPR in the Championship on Friday night and he’ll be looking for a reaction after losing his first game in charge in mid-week.
The team news was confirmed on the official Aston Villa Twitter page ahead of the 7.45pm kick-off.
Tonight’s team is in! ???#PartOfThePride #AVFC pic.twitter.com/Kl5mZMcDTf
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) October 26, 2018
The game is being show live on Sky Sports in the UK with a 7.45pm kick-off.
COMMENTARY
Smith has won one and lost one since he took over from Steve Bruce but there’s a lot riding on the next few games. The Aston Villa owners have said that they will invest in January if Smith needs new recruits and there’s a genuine chance of getting in the play-offs. Otherwise Smith might as well wait until the summer to overhaul his squad. The Championship is tight and a run of good results between now and Christmas will see Aston Villa right back in the mix at the top of the table. They’ve definitely got the quality in the squad, with players like Tammy Abraham among the best in the Championship. Smith needs to work hi magic now and has made three changes, bringing Jonathan Kodjia back in after he was dropped for the Norwich game. Tonight’s game will be tough. It sees QPR in resurgent form and one goal either way could nick it. We’re going to sit on the fence and say that it’s going to be a low score draw, 1-1, with both teams sharing the spoils.