By Aston Villa FC

After being thrust into the national spotlight against Liverpool in the FA Cup on Friday night, Mark Delaney and his Under-23 squad returned to training on a high this week.

A valiant display against the reigning Premier League champions won plaudits from pundits and players across the country, with Aston Villa CEO Christian Purslow expressing his pride at their performance via a video call with the squad after the game.

Delaney says taking on one of Europe’s elite was invaluable for the players, and he’s now challenged them to maintain that performance level for the rest of the season.

Aston Villa v Liverpool

He said: “It was a unique, one-off experience for everybody. The players embraced the enormity of it, and they knew what an opportunity it was for us as an academy and for them as players.

“We tried to allow them to have Monday to enjoy and chat about what happened to them, and from Tuesday onwards we explained that to make it an even more enjoyable experience we’ve got to show that consistency until the end of the season.

“People who weren’t looking out for us as an academy are now, so that’s added pressure for the boys to keep producing performances like they did against Liverpool.”

The average age of Villa’s starting XI versus the Reds was 18 years and 294 days, and Delaney says the plan is to keep challenging the Under-18s to step up in their remaining Premier League 2 games.

Aston Villa v Liverpool

The coach is also keen to see some of the older members of his squad gain valuable experience by heading out on loan during the January transfer window.

“Without taking our eye off the ball for our games, we’re trying to make sure the players’ career plans are thought about first and foremost,” he said.

“Our main focus is on loans and integrating the Under-18s into our squad and giving them a challenge for the rest of the season.

“We’re really pleased with our programme and how it’s running at the minute.”

West Bromwich Albion are next up for Delaney’s squad, who sit one place below the ninth place Baggies heading into the game at Bodymoor Heath on Friday night.

U23: Aston Villa vs West Bromwich Albion

Rivalry will always exist between the two clubs and the Villa players will be doing all they can to pick up a win.

Delaney said: “The players understand the closeness of the clubs and the rivalry between West Brom, Birmingham and Villa, so they all see it as a challenge.

“We don’t put too much focus on it. For us [coaches] it’s just another game, but for the players it’s a challenge that they want to be on the right side of come 90 minutes.

“We need to build on Friday and show a bit of consistency. We’ve got two or three more under-18s coming into the squad, so I want to see how they settle into the team.

“We’re ready for it, we know it’s going to be a tough game. West Brom always provide a tough game but first and foremost, it’s about our performance.”