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Leeds vs Aston Villa: Tony Dorigo expects tough test for Steve Bruce's side

Leeds could well be a litmus test of Villa’s impressive form tonight – so says former Tony Dorigo, the defender who graced both Villa Park and Elland Road.

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Villa are among the top dogs in the Championship form table, looking to claim a fourth successive victory and head up the M1 hoping to leapfrog Sheffield United into third place.

And, should results go their way, Steve Bruce’s side could be within two points of the automatic places, should Cardiff lose to Norwich.

“Momentum is key and that breeds confidence,” said Dorigo.

“Villa will go to Leeds looking for a result.

“If they go a goal behind, that’s when you’ll see how the confidence helps, especially when you’re playing a lot of games, like you do in the Championship – you can get on a bit of a role and momentum takes you a long way.

"What you’ve got at Villa is a manager who knows the ins and outs of the division, you’ve got players who have been brought in that know the ins and outs of the division, and you can add one or two exciting players around that.

“I think it takes a little while for it all to gel; to understand the style that the manager wants and maybe for players to adjust. But now they have adjusted they look very good and it’s no surprise to me whatsoever; it was always going to happen – it was just a matter of when.

“With the manager they’ve got, I always felt this was coming and on Friday night with Leeds it’s a big game for them.”

Albert Adomah is arguably the form player in the Championship at the moment, with five goals in his last three games.

The Ghana winger won promotion to the Premier League with Middlesbrough in 2016, but Dorigo admits it is a concern that Villa have only one fit senior striker in Keinan Davis and the bulk of the goals are coming only from Adomah.

“It’s a worry,” said the former England defender. “But, interestingly, if you look at the Leeds side I think the top scorers are on five – and that’s four players.

“It’s great to share them around, but if you’ve got one goalscorer and he’s scoring a load then that works as well, but you need to keep him fit.”

Friday is the first of six Championship fixtures in December for Villa, who also face promotion hopefuls Derby, Sheffield United and Middlesbrough over the festive period.

It is a month that can make or break a season, and Dorigo, who won the First Division title with Leeds in 1992, believes Villa can put themselves in a strong position for promotion.

“I think from the six games in December, if they only lose one of those then they’ll be OK but I think they’d like to go unbeaten,” said Dorigo.

“From Villa’s point of view, I think maybe a draw is OK.

“From Leeds’ point of view I don’t think they want to be slipping too far below that top six, so they need a win. I think it’s going to be a cracking game.”