Aston Villa boss Dean Smith has recently hosted a intra-squad friendly to assess the talent available to him.
Villa held a intra-squad friendly in midweek, to give Smith the chance to assess all the talent available to him in a match situation.
And there were some players that Smith had closer eyes on than others.
Both Bree and Lansbury were being watched intently by the new Villa boss, as he weighs up whether to give them a chance in the first-team.
He said: “We had an internal game. That allowed me to look at some of the U23s and players like Henri Lansbury and James Bree, who’ve not had match exposure.”
Both Bree and Lansbury were constantly overlooked when Steve Bruce was in charge, with the pair spending most of the season on the sidelines.
Smith has been careful not to make too drastic changes to Bruce’s line-ups at Villa since taking charge so far, with Bree and Lansbury continuing to be left out.
However, it could be that the duo now have a greater chance of featuring in future weeks.
Villa are next in action this evening when they take on Bolton Wanderers, and it remains to be seen whether Bree or Lansbury will be called upon.
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