Aston Villa boss Dean Smith: We could have scored more

Anwar El Ghazi, John McGinn and Albert Adomah were on target as Dean Smith’s men cruised to a 3-0 win, continuing their remarkable resurgence.

Villa have now won four straight games for the first time this season and moved into the top six for the first time since September.

Smith said: “Probably the only gripe of mine is we could have scored more.

“It was a difficult game. We started really well and put them under pressure but they defended in numbers.

“Thankfully John McGinn spotted a great ball and El Ghazi slotted it and from there it became a different game because they had to come out a bit and John scored another great goal.”

Villa, who beat Boro on their own turf for the first time since 2005, now sit just one point behind Tony Pulis’s team in the table.

The clean sheet was their third in four matches and they have conceded just twice during a current five-game unbeaten run.

“The last five games have been very good performances and in the last week we’ve only conceded one goal and that was from a cross.

“Defensively we have looked very solid and that was our Achilles heel before.

“Winning four games on the spin gives us a bit of momentum and a spring in our step.

“We know there are eight games to go but it sends some of our players away on international duty with a smile on their faces.

“There are still teams like Middlesbrough above us who we need to try to catch and take over.

“The work doesn’t stop because you’ve just got in there, you need to keep looking to win the next game.

“We will recover well and get ready for Blackburn, which is another big game at Villa Park.

“We’ve achieved nothing yet. There are teams that have got games in hand on us at the moment and we’re well aware of that. What we’ve given ourselves is an opportunity.”

The only downside to the day for Villa was the sight of striker Tammy Abraham being forced off with a calf problem after 72 minutes.

Abraham will now undergo a scan as a precaution, with Smith believing the injury to be down to fatigue.

Midfielder Conor Hourihane, meanwhile, missed the game after becoming a father for the first time late on Friday night.

Smith said: “Conor’s partner had a baby last night at 11pm and I think he underestimated the first baby, how long it could take and the emotional stress that you go through.

“He was there helping his partner. Everything has gone well, which is pleasing, but he couldn’t make today.”