Jack Grealish is happy to see Aston Villa performing above expectations this season, and ahead of taking on Leicester City this weekend he’s aiming high for the rest of the campaign.
After narrowly avoiding relegation last term, Grealish and his teammates have rarely been outside of the top ten after winning their first four Premier League games of the season.
The Villa captain has played his part in the team’s turnaround, scoring six goals and registering 12 assists, and he’s keen to ensure the club maintain their upward trajectory for the rest of the season.
He said: “It’s been a better season than we expected. In our heads, we’re all looking at finishing as high as possible.
“Whether that be tenth, ninth, eighth, seventh – that’s where we should be aiming now in my opinion.
“We’re in a good place, we still have a few games in hand, but we have a few sticky games coming up now which will obviously be tough.
“Leicester are one of the most in-form teams in the league at the moment and they’ve got great players all over the pitch. We know how much of a tough game that will be but we just need to take it one game at a time.”
A number of the players currently flourishing in claret and blue, such as Ross Barkley, Ollie Watkins and Matty Cash, have never played in front of fans at Villa Park as a Villa player due to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
As a lifelong fan and someone who’s played over 200 times for the club, Grealish has stepped in to tell his teammates about what playing in front of a sold-out Villa Park is like.
“With us having one of the best seasons we’ve had for a while, it would have been lovely if the fans were here this season,” he said.
“There are plenty of players that are playing week-in-week-out and have never played at Villa Park with it half full never mind when it’s packed out.
“I’ve told them all a fair bit about what it’s like, saying ‘wait and see what it’s like when it’s fully packed out’. Hopefully that can happen soon.”
Watch the full VillaTV interview with Jack below...
