Luton defender Alan Sheehan believes Jack Grealish holds the key to success for Aston Villa.
The attacking midfielder has been missing with a shin injury since early December, and Sheehan believes that Dean Smith’s side have suffered without his presence.
Smith initially started his Villa Park career well, but has fallen off slightly in recent weeks. The former Brentford manager saw his side lose 1-0 to his former side earlier this week, thanks to a Neal Maupay strike.
The Villans now remain a way off the Championship play-off spots, and will need to take every possible opportunity between now and the end of the season to ensure they’re in with a shot of promotion.
And Sheehan believes Grealish is the man to get the club back on track. Speaking on Sky Sports’ EFL Matters podcast, Sheehan said:
For me he is the best player in the Championship.
When Dean Smith took over, before he got injured at West Brom, they were starting to dictate possession the way Dean Smith sides have done in the past.
You can do that with Grealish, they had good wins against Middlesbrough, Derby and Birmingham but then he got injured and they’ve won two in their last ten without him.
For me if Aston Villa are going to challenge, they need him back as soon as possible.
It is expected that Grealish’s injury is set to keep him out for a few more weeks.
