Aston Villa face Chelsea in a fourth-round FA Cup replay on Wednesday night, and here’s how Unai Emery’s starting line-up could look for the clash.
Following our emphatic 5-0 win over Sheffield Utd this past weekend, confidence should be high heading into this encounter as we look to advance and set up a fifth-round tie against either Leeds Utd or Plymouth.
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However, after struggling at Stamford Bridge last month in our goalless draw that led to this replay, particularly in the first half where Emiliano Martinez was needed to pull off crucial saves to keep us in it, this promises to be another difficult assignment.
Emery is expected to name a strong Villa XI with that in mind and with the objective of competing for silverware through this competition, but we suffered a fresh injury setback this week as Ezri Konsa has been sidelined by a knee injury.
While it’s a major boost to have Pau back in group training and closing in on a return, Emery made it clear that the Spaniard will start on the bench, and so it’s likely that Matty Cash will come in to replace Konsa at right-back.
That in turn forms a backline of Cash, Diego Carlos, Clement Lenglet and Alex Moreno in front of Martinez, with Digne and long-term absentee Tyrone Mings still unavailable.
Calum Chambers and Kaine Kesler-Hayden will likely offer cover on the bench, and it’s hoped we have enough quality and depth to cope with another big injury blow with Konsa ruled out.
In midfield, we could see the same quartet try and inspire us to a win, with Leon Bailey, Boubacar Kamara, Douglas Luiz and John McGinn all impressing last weekend.
Further, it could be the same in the final third too with Youri Tielemans and Ollie Watkins both enjoying a great game last time out, and so it remains to be seen if Emery wants to keep that balance and rhythm intact, or if he feels he needs to freshen things up and rotate.
Nicolo Zaniolo was back in the gym this week as it remains to be seen if he’s available for selection, but with the need to not only keep his players fit and healthy but also to help others get valuable minutes to build their fitness and find some form, Moussa Diaby and Jacob Ramsey feel like the most obvious options to bring in.
January signing Morgan Rogers is cup tied while Jhon Duran is out injured, and so realistically, Tim Iroegbunam is the only other potential change that Emery could make.
The Villa boss has been clear in that the Premier League is a priority as it challenges our ability to be consistent over 38 games, but he wants to win trophies, and so he’ll be targeting the FA Cup this year as a potential route to make that happen.
So while changes are expected, we’re still likely to put out a very strong XI, as will Chelsea, and it’s hoped that we can get the win and advance to continue to build momentum.
