Aston Villa will be looking to make it ten wins on the bounce when they host Millwall on Monday afternoon.
Ian Dowie has doubted whether Aston Villa will be going into the playoffs full of momentum because of the expectations at the club.
The former Championship manager feels that Villa are an ‘expectant’ club anyway and that added pressure will overpower the current winning run they are on.
Dean Smith’s side, who beat Bolton on Friday afternoon, have won nine games on the bounce and are edging closer to a top-six finish.
Prior to that win, speaking to Soccer Special (19/04/2019 at 2:35 pm), Dowie, whose Crystal Palace side went on a similar run to Villa to finish in the playoffs, spoke about Villa’s current run.
“I just think it’s a little bit different because Palace came from nowhere,” Dowie told Soccer Special. “My view is, Villa’s such a big club anyway. I think Villa’s a different set of circumstances.
“They are definitely the form dog at the moment, so you’d think they’d be the one. But I’m not so sure. I think they have a great team. Tyrone Mings has been a great addition. I just think there’s a huge amount of expectation on Villa.
“Whose expected to go up?” Dowie asks Matt Murray. “Villa are,” he responds.
“That’s my point,” Dowie added. “It’s an expectant club. That’s what my view is.”
Alan McInally agreed and added “Ian’s right, there’s a lot of pressure on Villa.”
On Monday, Smith’s side could potentially seal their playoff spot if they beat Millwall on home soil and other results go their way.
For the final two games of the season, they travel to automatic-chasers Leeds United before hosting champions elect Norwich City on home soil.
If Villa maintain their fifth-placed finish then they will more than likely come up against Midland rivals West Brom in the playoff semi-finals.
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