Aston Villa have announced that a massive stadium redevelopment has begun, with the club planning to use the international break to increase the capacity.
The Villa Park project is expected to cost around £100 million, with plans to redevelop the North Stand.
Birmingham City Council has already approved it and will add around 6,000 new seats in that section alone.
Combined with upgrades to the other three stands, the stadium redevelopment will increase its overall capacity to more than 50,000 seats, bringing it in line with some of the best venues in the country.
Early work has already started, with Villa keen to make the most of the three-week international break.
The first stage of redevelopment will be used to clear structures in the corners to ensure the primary construction phase stays on schedule.
The plan is to complete the initial phase before Villa host Bologna in their Europa League quarter-final second leg clash on April 16.
Villa’s club statement read: “As part of our commitment to delivering the new North Stand on schedule, the first phase of works will involve the removal of the existing structures located in the North East and North West corners of the stadium.
“This will be completed ahead of our home fixture against Bologna on April 16.
“As a consequence of these works, the existing concourse and turnstile facilities serving supporters in the lower tier of the North Stand will be removed for the remainder of the season.
“To ensure supporters continue to have access to essential services, the Club will install temporary food and beverage outlets and toilet facilities for fans using this area of the stadium.
“In addition, access to the stand will be via a temporary turnstile installation.”
Villa Park has been a neutral venue for high-profile fixtures for decades and hosted more FA Cup semi-finals than any other venue before Wembley Stadium entered the fray.
