Charlie Nicholas says Aston Villa would rather top flight survival than EFL Cup victory

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Sky Sports pundit Charlie Nicholas says most Aston Villa fans would take a loss in the EFL Cup final meant they stayed in the Premier League.

Nicholas says that Dean Smith has to go all out to try and keep his side in the top flight even if it comes at the expense of a trophy.

He said: “It is needs must in the Premier League for Aston Villa, despite reaching the Carabao Cup final. If you were to say to Dean Smith this could be the game to keep you in the Premier League, while you would lose the Carabao Cup final, despite being underdogs anyway, I think he would take it. And I think the majority of Villa fans would too.

“We have seen before that teams have won it and have gone down. The global interest is in the Premier League, so they have to go after it.”

TBR’s View – Pragmatic view but is he correct?

Villa have spent so much and put so much effort into getting into the Premier League that relegation would be a body blow for the club, not least from a financial perspective.

But given Villa haven’t won a domestic trophy – last season’s play-offs aside – since the League Cup in 1996, the importance of getting silverware to the club can’t be underestimated.

Villa can always get promoted back to the Premier League but the chance to win a pot at Wembley doesn’t come around so often.

For those fans who go to the games, would a Wembley win against the champions of England bring more joy than survival? Quite possibly, although that may just be a romanticized view towards a game which is becoming increasingly pragmatic.