Aston Villa loanee Kortney Hause doubtful for clash with Bristol City

On loan Wolves star Hause is still struggling with the hip problem which forced him to miss Wednesday’s 2-1 win at Rotherham.

With Tyrone Mings suspended after his red card against the Millers, Smith is poised to hand Mile Jedinak only his second start since September.

The 34-year-old impressed after coming off the bench at the New York Stadium, when Villa fought back to win despite being down to 10 men.

Smith said: “Kortney is going to struggle. I’ll leave it as late as possible but it’s looking doubtful at the moment. He’s got a hip flexor problem and it can affect the abdominal side of it.

“If he’s not ready we’ve got people who can go and play there like Mile showed on Wednesday evening.”

Villa will have Alan Hutton available for the first time since February following the Scot’s recovery from an ankle injury.

But both Tommy Elphick and James Chester remain sidelined, though the former has returned to training.

Goalkeeper Lovre Kalinic is expected to return after Easter, having undergone surgery on a knee problem sustained while away with Croatia during last month’s international break.

“He had an operation to tidy up a bit of cartilage,” said Smith. “He’s walking around already and I expect him to be back in the next 10 days or so.

“It was one we wanted to get done very quickly. He came back from international duty, had a scan, and they saw a little problem so they’ve dealt with it very quickly and he should be back in the next 10 days.”