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Dean Smith names which Aston Villa man has ‘impressed’ since ‘training’ with the first-team

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Image for Dean Smith names which Aston Villa man has ‘impressed’ since ‘training’ with the first-team

Dean Smith was full of praise for Dominic Revan, revealing that the centre-back “has impressed since training” with the first-team. The 18-year-old made more than 30 appearance for the u18s and has turned out more than ten times for the u23s.

Revan has made the first-team matchday squad this season, with the defender being an unused substitute against Middlesbrough on December 1, and Smith admitted he has a chance of making the squad in upcoming games due to Villa’s injury crisis.

The Villa boss said to Birmingham Mail: “We’ve had a glut of injuries in a short space of time so it’s given an opportunity to the likes of Callum (O’Hare), Jake (Doyle-Hayes), Dominic and Jacob Bedeau to come and train with us.

“They’ve acquitted themselves really well. Dominic is someone I feel can help us defensively if we need him. He’s got a little bit of pace, he’s comfortable on the ball and he’s impressed all of us since he’s been training with us.

“I’ve always said: If you’re good enough then you’re at the right age, it doesn’t matter whether you’re 16 or 35. If you’re good enough and performing day-to-day then you’ve got an opportunity to get into the squad.”

Villa are short of options at centre-back, with Smith only having James Chester and Axel Tuanzebe to choose from until James Collins is passed fit enough to play. There was talk of Tommy Elphick being recalled from his loan spell at Hull City, but the club might go in another direction to strengthen at the back.

In addition to signing Collins, Chelsea defenders Ethan Ampadu and Gary Cahill have both been linked with a move to Villa in January, but Smith is clearly happy to consider internal solutions to any problems in the squad. Revan has been rewarded for his performance in training, so others could follow this season.

Read Crippy Cooke’s previous article

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