The wait is nearly over for Aston Villa as they prepare to do battle with Derby County at Wembley with a place in the Premier League at stake.

Dean Smith's side saw off West Brom via a penalty shoot-out in the semi-finals to book their place at the Wembley showpiece where they will face Leeds United's conquerors Derby County.

The match comes at the very end of a gruelling season, but Villa have saved their best form until this late stage as they have only lost just two of their last 15 matches.

However, Smith has now criticised the scheduling of Monday's vital clash, which comes at the end of a weekend featuring three play-off finals in the capital.

“It’s a long time to wait. It’s a little bit wrong in my opinion that – given the prize which is on offer – and we’re the third game on at Wembley over the weekend," Smith told the Express and Star.

“I just think it should be the first one. It’s the biggest game. Who knows what the pitch will be like?"

This comes as a result of the long gap between Villa's second leg success and the final itself, as Smith's side will have waited 13 days for their chance to clinch promotion in the final Football League match of the season.

The Verdict

I can see where Smith's comments have come from given the long wait since the second leg.

However, I really don't think the pitch will cause any problems for the Villa and Derby players, as the Wembley groundsmen will have become accustomed with a quick turnaround in matches.

From a neutral point of view, the scheduling is fine because the best game will most likely be last. But I can see why the teams involved will disagree, as they will want to get on with it.