Aston Villa boss Dean Smith expects progress to continue to be made next season.

Villa have been comfortable in mid-table this campaign and go to Crystal Palace on Sunday with Smith believing his side are better equipped to challenge in the Premier League.

He said: “We're building a squad that's capable of challenging in the top half of this league. There's been a progression from that period of lockdown to where we are now. We want to keep progressing.

“Our jobs as coaches is to improve each and every player but also team performance. I thought the first half of the season was very good.

“We've been a bit hit and miss in the second half of the season but individually you can see we've now got better players and more depth for playing in the Premier League.

“That's something we've worked hard to create and they will be better next season from playing this season."