Aston Villa host Sheffield United on Friday night, and here’s how Unai Emery’s starting line-up could look for the Premier League encounter.
Villa go in search of a 16th consecutive home league win in this one, as we also have the possibility of going top of the Premier League table, albeit perhaps only for a short period.
READ MORE: Villa team news vs Sheffield Utd: Double blow, Emery provides recovery timelines
Those will either be used as added incentive by Emery or entirely dismissed as he focuses on the game itself, and the Villa boss does have decisions to make on his starting line-up, in contrast to recent weeks where he has been able to field a familiar XI.
The hectic schedule continues over the Christmas period with a trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United on Boxing Day, but as far as this Friday showdown at Villa Park goes, there are big calls ahead.
Pau Torres out, Douglas Luiz returns from suspension
Emiliano Martinez will continue between the posts and as is often the case, he will no doubt have a decisive impact at some stage on the outcome to help us try and secure another positive result.
There will be at least one change in his backline though, as Emery confirmed that Pau Torres is out with an ankle injury in his pre-match press conference, as per the link above, and so it remains to be seen what he prefers to go with to fill that void.
Clement Lenglet is an option in a like-for-like swap, but with the Frenchman not featuring in Europe last week and lacking in match fitness and sharpness, will he get the nod for his first appearance in the Premier League this season?
Conversely, Emery could shift Ezri Konsa across to partner Diego Carlos in the middle, with Matty Cash returning at right-back and Alex Moreno keeping his spot on the left.
Lucas Digne returns from suspension and will certainly be in contention, but given Moreno’s impact since returning, he’ll hope he’s done enough to stay in the side.
While we welcome Douglas Luiz back from suspension to bolster our midfield, Boubacar Kamara serves one of his own after his late red card at Brentford, and so our midfield orchestrator could have John McGinn alongside him to form a strong partnership in the heart of the Villa XI.
As we saw last weekend, having McGinn filling in centrally gives us a better balance and an ability to impose ourselves to control the game more effectively, and so it would be no surprise if we see that again.
Jacob Ramsey could get his second consecutive start, with Leon Bailey passing a fitness test last time out and hopefully ready to return to the starting line-up in this one.
That in turn will allow Moussa Diaby to continue to support Ollie Watkins in the final third, although it will be interesting to see if that’s what Emery opts for, or if he looks to Nicolo Zaniolo to provide a more creative threat against a side that will likely defend deep and in numbers.
There are some important decisions there for the Villa boss to make, but it’s hoped that whatever XI he puts out, Villa are able to continue our fine form and secure another home win to move atop the standings even if only for less than 24 hours depending on results elsewhere.
