Aston Villa won't let up to finish season claims Steve Bruce
Boss Steve Bruce has challenged Villa to finish the season as strongly as possible after Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Burton extinguished their play-off hopes once and for all.
The result left Villa 11 points adrift of the top six with just five games remaining but Bruce, while visibly disappointed after the final whistle, has promised his team will not be throwing in the towel as they aim to finish as high as possible in the Championship table.
“We have got to finish off the season,” said Bruce.
“We have five games to play and we want to finish as high as we can. It’s as simple as that.”
Jonathan Kodjia’s 19th goal of the campaign looked to have put Villa on course for a fifth successive victory to keep alive their already slim chances of bridging the gap to the top six.
But they failed to build on the platform provided by the striker’s third minute goal and former Villa youth team graduate Lloyd Dyer earned the Brewers a deserved share of the spoils with a second half equaliser.
A run of seven wins in eight games prior to Saturday’s draw had lifted the mood at Villa Park but Bruce knows his team still has some big improvements to make if they are to be promotion contenders next season. “We are Aston Villa and you are always playing for your future,” he said. “You are only ever a week away from a crisis. That is what we have to do.
“We can’t be happy with 10th in the Championship. Our club does not demand that. At the moment that is where we are and we have to improve. My job is to keep improving us.” He continued: “We have got to look after the ball better and be a bit more progressive. We have tried to blow a bit of life back into the place and find a resilience. .”
