Aston Villa boss Dean Smith has backed Mile Jedinak to step up if the Australian is required to play centre-back against Bristol City today.

Tommy Elphick and James Chester remain relatively long-term absentees, with on-loan Wolves man Kortney Hause the latest defender to suffer an injury.

That meant Jedinak was brought on following Tyrone Mings' sending off in the week at Rotherham and he could start today with the 25-year-old suspended.

Even though he is naturally a defensive midfielder, Jedinak has played in a back four before, although former boss Steve Bruce was heavily criticised for playing the 34-year-old in that role.

However, Smith told the Express & Star that he has the utmost confidence in the player.

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"I had no doubts about putting Mile on against Rotherham and he gave the kind of performance I was expecting.

"He has been first class from the moment came in, even though he has not played as many minutes as he probably would have liked."

Villa are on a seven game winning streak and will look to make it eight against their play-off rivals at Villa Park this afternoon.

The Verdict

You'd expect this sort of message from Smith as he needs to give Jedinak confidence as it looks likely that he will start today.

He was superb in the week against the Millers in what was a rare appearance and now it's about building on that.

It will be a tough game against a strong Bristol City side so it's sure to be a real test for the ex-Crystal Palace man.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.