Aston Villa have been outstanding in the Championship over recent weeks and will go into their play-off semi-final against West Bromwich Albion full of confidence, despite their twelve-match unbeaten run ending at the weekend.

Dean Smith decided to rest several key players for the defeat to Norwich City on Sunday and the Villa boss faces another important decision ahead of the play-offs.

Smith must decide whether to start Tammy Abraham or Jonathan Kodjia up front against the Baggies, ahead of the first leg of the semi-final at Villa Park on Saturday afternoon.

Abraham has had an outstanding campaign for Villa, scoring 25 goals in 37 Championship appearances since joining on a season-long loan from Chelsea in the summer.

The 21-year-old has missed the last three matches for Villa and suffered a shoulder injury last month, but Smith has confirmed that the striker will be fit enough to start against West Brom in the play-offs.

Kodjia has started the last three matches for Villa in the absence of Abraham and was outstanding at the weekend, causing problems for the Norwich defence all afternoon.

The striker equalised for Villa in the 14th minute with a smart finish from Conor Hourihane's free-kick, after Norwich had taken the lead early through Teemu Pukki.

The 29-year-old has been an important player for Villa this season and has now scored four goals in his last three games for the club, giving Smith plenty to think about ahead of the play-offs.

Both strikers have different qualities, with Abraham possessing great pace while Kodjia is a more physical option, but both players have great technique and are usually clinical in front of goal.

The fact that Smith decided to rest Abraham at the weekend even though he was fit to play suggests that he will probably start him in the play-offs, but it will be interesting to see if Kodjia's performance against Norwich will have changed his mind.

If Smith does decide to start with Abraham against the Baggies, Kodjia is certainly a good option to call upon from the bench and could cause real problems for the West Brom defence.