There was little doubt that Saturday’s FA Cup defeat to Peterborough United stunned Villa Park, with Steve Bruce’s Aston Villa left embarrassed by their lower league opposition, who recorded a 3-1 victory to progress to the fourth-round.  

With Villa now out of the FA Cup and Carabao Cup, Bruce’s side can put their sole focus into the Sky Bet Championship, where the Villans are looking to challenge for promotion and end a miserable stint in the second-tier.

Bruce’s side currently sit fifth in the Championship table, after putting a disappointing December behind them with impressive results either side of the New Year.

Villa recorded back-to-back victories over Middlesbrough and Bristol City to move back into fifth, with attention now turning back to the league this weekend, as Bruce’s side travel to the City Ground to face Nottingham Forest.

The club’s official Twitter account (@AVFCOfficial) have moved to share images of Bruce’s squad training ahead of Saturday evening’s fixture, with the likes of Andre Green and John Terry taking part as they continue to mix back in with the first-team.

The duo returned to the starting XI for the FA Cup clash with Peterborough at the weekend, and both will be pushing for a start this weekend against Forest.

The Verdict

Villa’s supporters will be delighted to see Bruce’s squad back on the training field ahead of Saturday, as they look to put right what went wrong in the FA Cup.

Of course, Saturday’s defeat was a disappointment, but now full focus can go into the Championship and a push for promotion.

The Villans have to make a statement in Saturday’s clash with Nottingham Forest.

Aston Villa fans… Let us know your thoughts!