Dean Smith says guiding Aston Villa to Premier League would be 'pinnacle' of managerial career so far

Dean Smith’s love affair with Aston Villa is so strong that last year, during a short break in North Carolina, he fired up his laptop to watch the Championship play-off final on a dodgy stream.

Twelve months later, he is the man hoping to fulfil the dreams of Villa’s supporters at Wembley by guiding his beloved club back to the Premier League.

Monday’s final represents the biggest afternoon of Smith’s coaching career so far, a reward for an arduous 14-year journey that has taken him from Leyton Orient’s academy to scratching around the relegation zone with Walsall.

He has worked hard for this shot at glory, but insists earning promotion with Villa would still not be his greatest achievement.

“I would probably say keeping Walsall up in my first year would be bigger because we needed snookers in January,” he said.

“My first game was Tranmere away and we were 3-1 down. I looked at Jon Whitney [assistant] and said ‘I can see why we’re bottom of the league’.

“That was certainly a tough time and each job you have has its own tough times and good times. At the moment we’re in the period of a good time and we need to make sure we finish that off by getting promoted.

“If we do, it will certainly feel like the pinnacle of my managerial career so far. Considering where we were in February and where we are now it's a great opportunity and one we're ready to take.”

It was a club record ten wins in a row, starting in March, which propelled Villa into the play-off places and Smith’s squad are regarded as the favourites to beat Derby.

His appointment in October has delivered the anticipated impact, creating a feel-good factor which was previously lacking, yet there is one regret he will have going into the final.

Smith’s father, Ron, has dementia and is living in a home. “Unfortunately because of his dementia he doesn’t know that I’m Villa head coach,” he said.

“That’s probably the tough part of it. I remember after the final of the Football League Trophy with Walsall [in 2015],  I had to go and put my dad to bed that night, which is a tough thing to do for anyone. I put my family side to one side and concentrate on Aston Villa.”

Ron, previously a matchday steward at Villa Park, may not be attending but over 30 other Smith family members will be at Wembley, desperate for the club to end a three-year exile from the top tier.

Last year, Fulham beat Villa in the final and many of the players in Smith’s dressing room – and assistant John Terry – have unfinished business.

Smith said: “I have not looked back at the game at all. There are staff members who have been there but our mindset is to go and do what we have been doing over the last few months.

“I can’t control the £170m, that’s just the price of it. All I can control is try to get the players to perform to the best level they can. I have to take that in isolation.

“After the game, one way or another, you are either a Championship team or a Premier League team - that’s when you have to deal with it.”

While Smith is facing the highlight of his managerial career so far, Villa midfielder Glenn Whelan will be at Wembley with his future uncertain.

The Republic of Ireland international is out of contract next month and all negotiations are on hold until Villa know which division they will be operating in next season.

But Whelan’s professionalism and commitment has never been in doubt and he insists his own situation must be put on the back-burner.

“It’s not an issue. I have not spoken to the manager. Everyone at the club is just waiting to see. We don’t want to unsettle anything. I am never busting down doors to find what is happening,” he said.

“I keep my head down and hopefully, if we get the win, something will happen. I am worried about Monday and getting the right result before anything else.

“I signed a two-year contract to get this club back in the Premier League. I was a whisker away last year and hopefully I have a chance this year.

“After last year, if you saw how we all were afterwards, it is definitely motivation to go out and turn things around. Everyone wants to play in the Premier League. For us to be one game away, we have to use it as motivation and embrace everything which comes with it.”