Aston Villa looked absolutely lost in their pursuit of a place in the promotion playoffs but things have somewhat improved for the Lions since the turn of the year.
Back-to-back victories over Derby County and Birmingham City in the Championship have reignited hopes of finishing in the top six and the fans can now be hopeful of their team carrying their newly-found form into the subsequent fixtures.
Villa struggled for creativity in the final third following the injury to Jack Grealish at the start of December but Dean Smith couldn’t have expected his star midfielder to make a return at a better time.
Grealish found the net on his return in the 4-0 victory over Derby and proved once again how important he can be to the team with a winner against Birmingham City. His return has seen Villa close the gap on the playoff places, with the Lions now only 4 points adrift of Bristol City and Derby for the 6th place.
The expectations of securing promotion are bound to rise at Villa Park, and while Grealish’s return has undoubtedly been a massive boost for the team, someone by the name of Tyrone Mings has also made a massive impact at the heart of Villa’s defence.
The Lions have been let down numerous times throughout the campaign by the inconsistent form of their defenders but the acquisition of Mings on loan from Bournemouth in January has proved to be a step in the right direction for Dean Smith in his bid to shore up his porous and vulnerable backline.
Truth be told, the acquisition of Mings from Bournemouth and Kortney Hause from Wolves couldn’t have come at a better time for Villa.
With James Chester, Axel Tuanzebe and Tommy Elphick all out of the frame due to injuries, Mings and Hause have done really well at the back in recent games. Mings, in particular, has proven himself to be a wonderful addition to the squad.
Prior to his arrival in January, Villa had conceded 44 goals in 29 games in the Championship on a average of 1.51 goals per game but that has come down significantly since the turn of the year.
Mings has established himself as a reliable presence at the back and has helped the team achieve a better defensive record, with the Lions conceding only 7 goals in their last 7 Championship outings. And Mings has been at the centre of it all, playing the full 90 minutes in each of Villa’s last 7 fixtures.
Not only has Mings added steel and stability to the backline but he has also made an impact with his ball-playing abilities and composure in possession, including a goal in the 3-3 draw against Sheffield United.
The 26-year-old has averaged 55.1 passes per game with an accuracy percentage of 80.8, including a staggering 7.3 successful long balls per game. Defensively, he has been impressive too, averaging 1.3 tackles, 1.4 interceptions, 5.3 clearances and 2.1 aerial duels per game.
A tall and powerful defender blessed with commendable levels of composure and incredible ball-playing abilities, Mings is a proven talent at the Championship level.
Going by the kind of impact he has had in such a short span of time, it should be an absolute no-brainer for Smith to sign him permanently. Mings found regular minutes hard to come by at Bournemouth and he can’t expect to start too many games at the south coast club next term, especially after the arrival of Chris Mepham in January.
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The prospect of playing regular first-team football is bound to appeal to the Englishman and Villa should do everything in their power to make his stay permanent at the end of the season.