Aston Villa manager Dean Smith has said that midfield architect Jack Grealish is heading in the right direction in regards to returning to full fitness ahead of Sunday's Premier League finale against Chelsea at Villa Park.
Grealish, who will be hoping to represent England at this summer's European Championships when Gareth Southgate names his Three Lions squad next week, has recently returned from a lengthy spell on the sidelines because of a shinbone injury.
After stepping off the bench in Villa's recent clashes with Everton and Crystal Palace, the attacking-midfielder returned to the starting line-up for Wednesday evening's 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur.
Sporting the captain's armband, Grealish lasted 73 minutes before being replaced by Douglas Luiz on his first start since the goalless draw with Brighton & Hove Albion on February 13.
Now Villa chief Smith has hinted that the England ace will keep his place in the side, confirming that he suffered no setbacks in making his first start in just over three months.
"He’s getting up to full fitness, he showed a real confidence in his performance at Tottenham and hopefully we will see more of that on Sunday," said Smith in the aftermath of the win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
"You could see having Jack back gives everyone a lot of confidence. We created a number of chances.
"I think over the last couple of weeks he has been a little bit tentative compared to the normal Jack Grealish, which is understandable.
"Tonight I thought he exuded confidence. He looked assured. He wanted me to keep him on and I managed to get 12 minutes extra than the medical staff wanted. I have no doubts he will want to start against Chelsea on Sunday."
During his absence, Grealish was sorely missed by Villa, as they won just three of the 12 matches he was absent for. Scoring goals also proven to be a problem without him weaving his magic, as they scored just 13 times.
Grealish has never scored or claimed an assist against Chelsea in his career, so he will be looking to stop that trend on Sunday afternoon.
