Aston Villa are reportedly set to play in two more friendlies as games against Fulham and Liverpool have been scheduled in the coming week.
Villa will play their last officially announced pre-season game against Rennes on Saturday, and that follows on from a successful trip in Australia as well as the annual run out at Walsall.
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While Steven Gerrard will hope that the schedule thus far has served its purpose in getting his players ready for the new campaign, BirminghamLive report that a Villa XI will also face Fulham on July 29, while we’ll also take on Liverpool on August 7, a day after our opening game of the new Premier League season.
Both games will be played behind closed doors, and although perhaps the timing of the second fixture will raise eyebrows, it will hopefully continue to help the entire squad get fully fit and reach full match sharpness as we look to make a positive start to the new year.
Villa begin the Premier League campaign with a trip to Bournemouth on August 6, and with time remaining in the summer transfer window, it remains to be seen if there is any further significant movement, either in or out, in the coming weeks as Gerrard continues to stamp his mark on the squad.
These reported friendlies will no doubt give him a chance to also integrate any more new faces too having now missed the bulk of the pre-season schedule, while it will naturally also allow him to continue to work with his players on the preferred system and tactical set-up that he wants to adopt this season.
With that in mind, it seems like a sensible idea, with all clubs involved no doubt making it clear that while they’ll want to play at a high tempo and with intensity, they want to avoid any risk of losing players to injury too.
