Three Aston Villa youngsters that deserve a first team chance during the run-in

Aston Villa’s extremely faint hopes of reaching the Championship play-offs almost came to an end when they drew 1-1 against Burton Albion at the Pirelli Stadium.

While it is mathematically possible that they could still finish in the top six, it would take a miracle now and manager Steve Bruce can already start looking ahead to next season.

While he will probably already know which senior players he wants to lead his promotion push next term and which can leave Villa Park in the summer, the former Hull City boss may want to take a closer look at some of his younger players in the final five league fixtures.

Bruce has shown that he isn’t afraid to have those youngsters in and around the first team squad during the current campaign, and he may feel that they deserve a start during the run-in.

Here are three Villa youngsters that should get an opportunity before the end of the season…

Rushian Hepburn-Murphy

The exciting young striker made his debut for the first team when he was just 16 years of age as he came on as a substitute in March 2015.

The 18-year-old made another substitute appearance last term, before making two more this season in the Championship.

The last of those came in the defeat to Cardiff City at the start of 2017, and Hepburn-Murphy signed a new three-and-a-half year deal with the club in February.

He has been sidelined with an ankle problem in recent weeks, but after making his comeback with the under-23 side this week he will hope to get an opportunity in the first team during the run-in.

Callum O’Hare

The versatile 18-year-old appeared on the substitutes’ bench for the Championship matches against Huddersfield Town and Sheffield Wednesday last month, but failed to get on the pitch.

The fact that he was named in the squad shows that Steve Bruce already likes what he has seen of O’Hare, who has played in a variety of different positions for the under-23 side this season.

However, his preferred position is in the middle of the park and he will hope to get an opportunity alongside the likes of Mile Jedinak and Conor Hourihane in the closing stages of the campaign.

Keinan Davis

The 19-year-old striker has played a total of 29 minutes across six appearances in all competitions this season, including in the Championship matches against Rotherham United, Huddersfield Town and Sheffield Wednesday last term.

Steve Bruce talked up the potential of the attacker after he made his debut as a substitute against Tottenham in the FA Cup in January, and the youngster will hope that he is given a more consistent run in the side in the final five fixtures in order to make more of an impact on the pitch.

Do you agree, Villa fans? Let us know below.

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