2. Keep it tight in the first leg
Two-legged semi-finals have not always been easy on the mental health of Aston Villa supporters. 3-1 defeats away to Tranmere and Bradford made for unnecessarily difficult second legs (terminal in the case of Bradford) and it would be far better for all concerned if we could come away from Middlesbrough on Saturday evening with a win. If not, I will settle for a draw or even a one-goal defeat.
If the worst happens and Boro manage a convincing win (two goals or more) then even in spite of our excellent home record, I do still worry about the character of our squad in terms of overturning a deficit like that. At a full Villa Park, we could turn in a performance and result like we did against Wolves, but it could just as easily be a QPR-type game if we start two or three goals down.
As I mentioned earlier, I think our defence can handle what Boro have to offer, but in a cup tie-type game, anything can happen. So, we need to be professional on Saturday. We won’t win the tie in the first leg, but we can certainly lose it.
