By Graham Hill
DEAN Smith admitted Villa captain Jack Grealish will be taking a personal heartache into the Play-offs.
Grealish’s grandmother has passed away and he attended her funeral this week.
But Smith says Grealish still has his appetite for the play-offs.
And, in an interview given to the Mail on Sunday last week, Grealish said: ‘I’m like this with my family. I’m the biggest family person you’ll meet.
“My nan passed away last Friday and that broke my dad’s heart. I’ve been wearing a message under my shirt in games saying: ‘Rest in Peace Nan’ but I haven’t got round to scoring yet.”
And Smith said: “Jack’s really looking forward to the games. We had a chat about it on Thursday, he can’t wait for them. He lost his grandmother recently and was at the funeral on Wednesday.
“People said he was very relaxed and he admitted he was.
“He would’ve felt how bad it was to lose in the final last season but he also wants to go one better this year. It’s just another part of his career moving forward.
“He also knows that West Brom is a tough game. He got injured in that match earlier in the season and wasn’t seen for a long time after that.
“He’s full of energy. You don’t like players to be missing that period of time but because we’ve got to the play-offs, it actually helps him, We’ve got a few fresh players now.”
Villa Roar 