Aston Villa travel to the Stadium of Light this weekend to take on Sunderland, and here’s how Unai Emery’s starting line-up for the clash could look.
The Villa boss opted to make multiple changes in midweek for our Carabao Cup tie with Brentford, and although we didn’t secure the desired outcome last time out, many of our starters would have benefited from the rest having been left on the bench.
READ MORE: Villa player ratings vs Brentford: Miserable start to season continues after cup exit
Injuries continue to be an issue though with Victor Lindelof, Andres Garcia, Ross Barkley, Amadou Onana and Youri Tielemans missing out, but there was positive news as Boubacar Kamara made his return from his setback.
Speaking to the media in his pre-match press conference, Emery provided our latest team news ahead of the trip to Wearside, and there was good news in that Kamara is available having come through unscathed on Tuesday, but Tielemans, Onana, Barkey and Garcia remain sidelined, while Lindelof will face a late fitness test to determine his availability on Sunday.
In turn, while changes are expected, Emery will be limited in what he can tweak with the absentee list above in mind, but it will be a strong Villa XI that will hopefully give us a foundation in the game to secure all three points.
Multiple changes, key decisions for Emery
Emiliano Martinez will come back in for Marco Bizot between the posts as he looks to build on his decisive performance against Everton last weekend, while we’re likely to see a more solid backline formed by Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings and Lucas Digne.
While Ian Maatsen’s energy and attacking threat give us an important dynamic in our play, Villa will need to be strong defensively and Emery has shown a preference for Digne in those sort of games, with the same said for Mings being selected over Pau Torres.
It will be interesting to see what the Villa boss does in midfield though, as Lamare Bogarde has impressed in our last two games and deserves to keep his starting berth, but with Kamara possibly returning to the starting line-up, will that be as a straight replacement for the Dutchman, or could they pair up and allow John McGinn to move further up the field?
Time will tell which option Emery goes with, but there is a feeling that Bogarde will stay in the side after being singled out for praise by the Villa boss on Friday, and so McGinn could operate in an advanced role through the middle, with midweek goalscorer Harvey Elliott keeping his place as he looks to build on his early momentum after joining us on deadline day.
Morgan Rogers will complete the trident behind Ollie Watkins, and so it’s hoped that combination gives us a vital balance of defensive shape and work ethic along with the required quality in the attacking third to make the difference and score goals.
With competition for places and depth in the squad, we’re likely to have a strong bench regardless of our injuries, as Evann Guessand, Jadon Sancho, Donyell Malen and Emiliano Buendia will all be pushing to be involved, and will possibly be important options to bring on depending how the game plays out.
An out-of-form Villa need a morale boost this weekend and getting our first win of the season sooner rather than later is of paramount importance to get us going. It certainly won’t be straight-forward at Sunderland who have started well and will be a tough test for most sides at home, but after showing signs of improvement and encouragement in the last two games, Villa need to step it up another gear now and get back to winning ways with a convincing display.
Predicted Aston Villa XI vs Sunderland: Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Digne; Bogarde, Kamara; Elliott, McGinn, Rogers; Watkins.
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