Aston Villa v Middlesbrough

Fulham's 2-0 victory over Derby at Craven Cottage ensured they will be at Wembley in just under a fortnight, and Steve Bruce will be hoping to lead his Aston Villa side there as the opponents.

They are certainly in pole position and you can get no longer than 1/5 on them reaching the final after that important away win.

Boro have played 11 matches against Top 6 sides this season now, winning just once, drawing two and losing the other eight. They just don't look prepared for the tougher end of the wedge and despite not needing to win the match, Villa do look value at 13/10 in this one.

It's hard to imagine Steve Bruce being content to sit on a one goal lead that could so easily turnaround if the scores were level going into the last ten, and given their expected superiority, he will surely be prepared to force the issue earlier in proceedings and trust his cream to rise to the top in this one.

With Boro needing to chase the game it will be interesting to see how Pulis approaches this one - he's hardly renowned for his ability to put out a flair side. That could further play into Villa's hands in this one.

A Fulham v Villa final would be a pretty popular outcome and that's what we think we'll get.

1pt Aston Villa to beat Boro at 13/10 (Bet365)

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