Dean Smith calls on Aston Villa to notch tenth straight win after victory over Trotters

Friday’s 2-0 win over the Trotters was their ninth in a row, equalling a club record last set in 1910.

Smith’s men, who further strengthened their hold on a Championship play-off spot, can set a new benchmark by seeing off the Lions at Villa Park.

But they will likely have to do it without top scorer Tammy Abraham, who was forced off with a shoulder injury after netting their second at Bolton.

Smith said: “No living person would have seen the last record and to equal it record is certainly a proud moment. I’m proud of the players.

“But we have to go all-out to beat the record on Monday against Millwall.

“It will be a tough game. But if we can get the better of them, then what a place to get it done in front of a packed-out Villa Park.”

Abraham was injured in the act of scoring his 25th goal of the season, becoming the first player to hit that mark for Villa since Andy Gray during the 1976/77 campaign.

The Chelsea loanee also set up the opening goal of the afternoon for Jack Grealish as Villa inflicted a defeat which relegated Bolton to League One.

Smith, who expects to have Jonathan Kodjia back available for Monday’s game, said: “Tammy’s got a whack on the shoulder. It’s too early to diagnose it but I don’t expect him to be fit for Monday.

“He was down for a while. The doctor said he would have to come off because he was in too much pain.”

Victory means Villa, fifth in the table, now hold a six-point advantage over seventh-placed Bristol City.

But Smith warned: “It’s not job done yet. It’s six points but Bristol City and Derby County still have a game in hand.

“We’ve just got to concentrate on our own results and keep winning.”