OPINION
Aston Villa fans will surely be relieved about the news that on-loan defender Tyrone Mings should be fit for Tuesday’s Championship play-off semi-final second leg.
Speaking to the Birmingham Mail, Villa boss Dean Smith provided the update after Mings needed treatment on his hamstring during Saturday’s 2-1 first-leg win over the Baggies.
“Tyrone had a little bit of a tight hamstring at the end but hopefully they’ll be good,” the manager said. “The performance team that we’ve got manage the players really well so they’ll be ready for Tuesday.”
This has to be music to Villa fans’ ears. Mings was excellent on Saturday and put in a fantastic shift as his side took control of their play-off tie with James Shan’s men.
There were fears the first leg could have been a disaster after Dwight Gayle pounced on Glenn Whelan’s mistake to finish, but goals from Conor Hourahane and Tammy Abraham put Villa in the driving seat.
What would have made it worse is to see Mings ruled out of the second leg, since he showed class and maturity in his performance against West Brom on Tuesday.
Having him back in the squad means that Villa are that bit more well-off in terms of being closer to full-strength, and Villa fans must be thinking that the tie is in their hands if they can put in a good performance on Tuesday evening.
Mings has only made 15 Championship appearances all season, but when he has played, he has been impressive. During those 15 games, the 26-year-old has chipped in with two goals and he has been solid all season long.
Not only do Villa have one of their key men back in for Tuesday’s game, but they are facing one less star man after Gayle was sent off in the second half of Saturday’s encounter.
The ball was crossed in and Villa goalkeeper Sam Johnstone had the ball in his arms for a long while before Gayle slid in and caught the stopper, picking up a second yellow and trudging off the pitch.
Mings – and Villa fans – will surely be happy knowing that Gayle and Hal Robson-Kanu are both out for the second leg, leaving Jay Rodriguez as the only real goal threat in the Baggies team.