Aston Villa Under-23s are hunting down a play-off position in Premier League 2 Division 2 as they head into their final eight games of the season.
The Young Lions are currently in sixth place – one place and one point outside of the top five finish needed to qualify for the play-offs.
And while coach Mark Delaney is keen to finish as high as possible, he believes the season has been a positive one on a number of other fronts.
He said: “We’ve improved our performances from the start of the season until now. We’re looking to finish as strong as we can.
“The next three games are at home, but we know they’re against the teams around us in those play-off positions. We’ve seen a massive progression in the whole Academy for the whole year.
“Players training with the first team, my U23s is full of Under-18s, the U18s are full of Under-17s, so for us that’s everything.
“As much as we’d love to see us in the play-offs and getting promoted, we’ve been really progressing as an Academy this year which is the most important thing.”
Burnley visit Bodymoor Heath on Friday afternoon for Villa’s next league match, and the game will be broadcast live on VillaTV.
The Clarets snatched a 2-2 draw with an injury-time equaliser in the reverse fixture, and Delaney is expecting another battle this time round.
“They are a very accomplished 11. They play exactly like the first team – 4-4-2, all know their roles, they’re a tough outfit and strong in what they do,” he said.
“As much as we took control of parts of the game at Burnley, we always knew it would be a set-piece, a free-kick, a long ball that was going to cause us a problem.
“It proved that way at the end when they had a corner, it took a few ricochets, and they got a draw. We know what it’s about.
“We’re going to find it tough, we’re going to enjoy the battle, but we’re mainly thinking about what we can do to hurt them.”
Fans can watch the game against Burnley with a Match Pass for £1.99, with all proceeds going to the Aston Villa Foundation.
Match Pass - Burnley
