It is shaping up to be an eventful couple of weeks for Aston Villa, with the club's hopes of securing a play-off finish come the end of the season slowly fading away.

It has been a difficult time  for Dean Smith of late, whose Villa side have failed to cope with the absence of midfielder Jack Grealish in recent weeks - the playmaker has been out of action with a shin injury since the draw with West Brom in early December.

Since Grealish's absence, Villa have won just two of their last 12 league games, with Dean Smith's men sitting nine points off the top six after two successive league defeats.

Thankfully for Villa, Grealish is set to make a long-awaited return to action against Stoke City at the weekend - but it seems as if Villa have ran over a black cat this season, with news recently emerging that other standout midfielder John McGinn will miss the next two games due to suspension.

Here, we take a look at the Aston Villa midfield that we might see in the coming weeks...

CDM: Glenn Whelan

Whelan has been a regular for Villa in recent times, and has divided the opinions of those at Villa Park.

The experienced midfielder may not provide the grit and energy that McGinn provides, but he certainly adds a calming influence to Villa's midfield, and has the ability to dictate the tempo of the game when he is at his best.

RM: Jonathan Kodjia

Kodjia has endured a difficult time at Villa Park this season, and has put in a mixed bag of performances when played in an unnatural position out wide.

The Ivorian has been in and out of the first time having failed to get in ahead of the magnificent Tammy Abraham up front, but you just cannot leave a player of his quality out of the team for much longer.

CM: Conor Hourihane

Hourihane has been far from his best in recent times, typified when he was booed off after being substituted against West Brom at the weekend.

But similarly to Kodjia, the Irish midfielder possesses real quality on the ball and it is hard to leave a player of his capability on the bench, especially after being a standout performer for Villa in the early stages of the campaign.

CM: Jacob Ramsey

In the absence of John McGinn, we could well see exciting youngster Jacob Ramsey be given a chance to impress in the first-team.

The midfielder made his debut for Villa at the weekend, coming onto replace Conor Hourihane as Dean Smith's men tried to get back into the game.

Birkir Bjarnason could be another interesting option for Villa, but the Icelandic international is seemingly out of favour under Smith, with Ramsey getting the nod ahead of him at the weekend.

LM: Andre Green

It was a tough afternoon for Green at the weekend, who was given a start after his heroics against Sheffield United the week before.

It was a tough day for everyone, however, and people shouldn't write off the 20-year old straight away - his performance against the Blades showed exactly what he can do when he is on form.

CAM: Jack Grealish

The inclusion that every Villa fan will have been waiting for since early December.

There is no denying that Grealish brings the best out of everyone - he links the defence and midfield magnificently well, connects the ball to Tammy Abraham with ease, and produces that final killer-pass that Villa have missed over the last month.

Grealish is something special, and Villa will be desperate for him to return as soon as possible...