Aston Villa have proven how tight the Championship is this season, after seemingly coming from nowhere to storm into the top six.

From the turn of the year, Dean Smith’s side completely collapsed. He had a tough job, coming in and picking up the broken pieces of Steve Bruce’s spell in charge. He struggled to do so and a terrible run of results seemed to spell another year in the Championship.

Between December 2nd and March 1st, Villa won twice in fifteen matches. They were knocked out of the FA Cup by Swansea, a result that came against the odds in FA Cup betting markets.

Further poor results saw them slip away from the top six, and following a dismal 1-1 draw with Stoke City, they were as far away from the playoff race as at any other point during the season. Then, Jack Grealish returned.

He picked up an injury in early December against West Brom and missed 14 of the 15 matches his club failed to win. Surely, one man doesn’t make a team?

It seems that for the 23-year-old, that may be the case. Since he returned, Aston Villa have been revitalised and reborn. His first match back saw them thrash fellow promotion hopefuls Derby County 4-0, with him bagging a wonder goal.

In the next game, the talismanic midfielder was attacked on the pitch by a Birmingham City fan but didn’t react straight away. He waited until the second half before grabbing the crucial winner and furthering his side’s revival.

Three more wins followed, bringing them 15 points from five matches and pushing them into the top six. Whilst some of the sides at the top have faltered, the likes of Middlesbrough and Derby, Villa have hit form at just the right time.

Grealish clearly gave the whole side a lift, but there’s other elements at play. Dean Smith has worked with the players long enough now for his methods to take hold and in recent weeks their free-flowing football has resembled that of the swashbuckling Brentford side that Smith moulded before taking over at Villa.

There’s still the influence of Grealish at the heart of the system though. He’s flexible, can play on the flank or through the middle. He takes some responsibility from John McGinn and its little wonder the Scot weighed in with a couple of goals of his own once Grealish returned.

Aston Villa are now in a strong position to claim a play-off place and, if they keep up their good form, few sides will want to face them in a two-legged semi-final. The playoffs are often won by a team who have surged through the division late, rather than one that started brightly and faded.

Would West Brom, or even Sheff Utd really want to play Villa, after both have tumbled away from the top two?

It’s been a topsy-turvy time at Villa Park, with financial problems, takeovers, management changes and broken promises, but if their recent form is anything to go by, they’re on the right track.

With local boy turned good Jack Grealish on form too, they can’t be ruled out of a Premier League return.