Dean Smith: Devil is in the detail for Aston Villa

Villa head to Molineux for Saturday’s West Midlands derby looking to bounce back after consecutive defeats to Brighton and West Ham.

Smith, who has watched his team lose four of their last five Premier League matches, remains happy with the general performance of his players.

But he concedes it is the minor details which are currently letting them down, with last week’s 2-1 defeat at West Ham the best example.

Villa paid the price for poor defending at the start of each half to leave empty handed from a match they dominated.

Smith said: “We did the debrief on West Ham and talked about the small details which would have helped us with the goals we would have conceded.

“At the end of the day we let in two disappointing goals. We have talked about those small details and how we get them right. The lads all voiced their opinions about what we need to do and it is about putting that into practice now.”

Smith believes a free weekend has given Villa the chance to reset ahead of a busy festive period.

Last Friday’s home match with Newcastle was postponed due to the visitors suffering a coronavirus outbreak and Smith gave his players the weekend off in order to recharge the batteries.

Saturday’s trip to Wolves is the first of five matches in the space of 17 days and Smith said: “What this has done is given everyone a chance to reset, reflect on what has gone on and move forward.

“We have already prepared our training schedule for the next five weeks. The players know when they are in and when they are off.

“Now it is about preparing the training sessions and getting tailored for those games coming up.

“We have got used to playing a number of games in a short period of time and it becomes normal. We know what it feels like and how to get the best out of everyone during these periods.”