Aston Villa boss Dean Smith has insisted that the club would have had a better chance at automatic promotion had defender Tyrone Mings been present throughout the season.
Villa eventually finished fifth last Sunday following a 2-1 defeat to champions Norwich City, meaning the Villans will play West Brom in the play-off semi-finals.
Speaking to the Birmingham Mail, Smith said that Mings, who was signed on loan from Bournemouth in January, has been a fantastic addition to the squad and would have helped Villa make more of a push for automatic promotion had he been secured last summer.
“Tyrone has been brilliant and to be fair to him he has had a few partners as well,” the manager said. “He has had Axel [Tuanzabe] coming back from injury and Kortney Hause playing alongside him.
“That is probably one of the biggest reasons we are not in the top two. Defensively we have had to chop and change an awful lot with injuries.
“We got some loans in January to strengthen and I think they have done that. Tyrone, who I rested last weekend, will be relishing the weekend’s game.”
OPINION
Smith is right; Mings has definitely improved Villa since he has come in on loan. It has not been easy for the 26-year-old, having to play with four different defensive partners. But he has managed it brilliantly, keeping six clean sheets in 15 appearances while chipping in with two goals too. If you translate those figures across a full season, you would see a very different outlook on where Villa finish, and as Smith says, a lot of that is down to Mings’ impact. In terms of Mings’ future at Villa, that is in the club’s hands. If the Villans can win promotion via the play-offs, they get to decide whether they keep the defender and, at this rate, you wouldn’t bet against them doing so. Mings has been brilliant, playing more football for Villa this season than he did in over three seasons with the Cherries.