Dean Smith praises Jack Grealish after Aston Villa beat Norwich

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Aston Villa manager Dean Smith hailed the performance of Jack Grealish in the win over Norwich City on Boxing Day.

The Midlands club picked up a vital 1-0 victory at home in the Premier League and have a crucial run of fixtures.

They stay 18th in the league table with their win, but are now just a point from safety and are just adrift of 17th-placed West Ham.

Dean Smith’s side travel to 19th-placed Watford on Saturday for their next game and it’s another match where they can try pull towards safety.

Conor Hourihane’s left-footed strike was the difference against Norwich and it came after an excellent assist from teammate Grealish.

Grealish showed quick feet to in the build up to create space before teeing up Hourihane to do the rest.

‘He [Grealish] played as a 10. With John McGinn out, I felt it was a good option for us. He’s a terrific player, which you saw with the link-up for the goal. He can still get better,” Smith said, as quoted by the club’s official Twitter account.

TBR’s View:

Grealish once again caught the eye for Villa and they would surely be adrift at the bottom of the table without him.

The attacking midfielder looked dangerous in a more central role against Norwich and it’s an exciting prospect that Smith feels the 24-year-old can improve.

He’s played 19 games across all competitions so far, scoring seven goals and supplying six assists in return.