Aston Villa face Manchester United on the final day of the Premier League season, and Unai Emery has named his starting line-up for the encounter.
From Villa’s perspective, the assignment is clear. We must win at Old Trafford to have any chance of qualifying for the Champions League next season, while we’ll need a result elsewhere to go in our favour too.
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Given our historical struggles against Man Utd, their problems this season aren’t enough for many to perhaps go into this fixture with a great deal of confidence, but Villa are in good form and hopeful that we’ll be able to break into the top five in the league standings on what is likely to be a dramatic last day of the campaign.
There was a boost in midweek as Youri Tielemans resumed group training, but it was unclear if the influential Belgian international would be passed fit enough to start on his return to the fold. As per the club’s post below, Emery has named an unchanged side from our win over Tottenham last time out, as he sticks with the same XI to try and get the same result.
There is a crucial bench boost though with Tielemans making the matchday squad, while Jacob Ramsey adds another potentially decisive reinforcement on the sidelines as he returns having served his suspension.
It’s hoped that we don’t need an impact from our substitutes in the latter stages as that will mean we’re in a strong position to get the desired outcome, but it’s a strong bench as usual given our depth and competition for places.
Emiliano Martinez continues between the posts, while Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres and Ian Maatsen keep their places, fending off the likes of Tyrone Mings and Lucas Digne.
With Tielemans on the bench, Amadou Onana will continue to form our midfield pivot partnership with Boubacar Kamara, while John McGinn, Marco Asensio and Morgan Rogers will provide support and service behind Ollie Watkins in the final third.
It’s a crunch clash for Villa with so much on the line, and Emery and the player will want to ensure we do our job at the very least by securing all three points, and what will be will be in the other fixtures to determine where we finish in the standings this season.
Your starting XI from Old Trafford, Villans 👊 #MUNAVL pic.twitter.com/BdarXzfEq5
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) May 25, 2025
