Aston Villa face West Ham Utd in our Premier League season opener, and here’s how Unai Emery’s starting line-up could look for the encounter.
Although results weren’t as positive as hoped for, pre-season was productive for Emery and his squad, as he was able to rotate and share minutes across the group to get everyone back up to speed.
READ MORE: Aston Villa season preview 2024/25: Pre-season thoughts, signings, possible strongest XI
We saw our new signings integrate and adapt to his demands with crucial playing time, while key individuals such as Emiliano Buendia and Jacob Ramsey got minutes to step up their respective comebacks.
While we’re still not quite there yet in terms of having a fully-fit squad at Emery’s disposal given Tyrone Mings and Boubacar Kamara remain sidelined, it’s hoped that the Villa boss will have everyone else available on Saturday evening.
Cash, Digne and Watkins to get the nod from Emery?
Emiliano Martinez is expected to start between the posts, while the centre-half pairing of Pau Torres and Ezri Konsa will take their places ahead of him.
However, it’s not quite as clear cut as to who will start in the full-back roles. Kosta Nedeljkovic starred in pre-season and undoubtedly staked his claim for a starting berth at right-back, while Ian Maatsen began to integrate into the side towards the back-end of our summer schedule.
That said, it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise if Emery goes for experience over youth with Matty Cash starting ahead of Nedeljkovic, while Lucas Digne could be the safer option on the opposite side given he featured heavily over the summer.
That in turn keeps a familiar looking back five in place, and it’s hoped that defensive unit is able to give us a solid foundation on which we can go out and win the game.
In midfield, we saw positive signs from Youri Tielemans and Amadou Onana as they started to build a partnership in the pivot, and especially away from home in a tough game, it will be imperative to have that balance of physicality, tenacity and technical ability to try and wrestle control away from the Hammers.
The big decision comes up front though, as it remains to be seen if Ollie Watkins is fit enough to start. Emery confirmed in his pre-match press conference on Friday that the Villa talisman will be in the matchday squad, but having failed to feature at all in pre-season, it’s unclear if he’s ready to be thrown straight in.
In the event that it’s decided he’s not, Morgan Rogers could be deployed up top in a role he can play given his versatility, but ideally we’d see him operate behind a frontman. Leon Bailey and John McGinn are expected to start, while Jacob Ramsey could now be ready to join them after building his minutes up this summer.
Ideally Watkins will get the green light though, and that could see Rogers drop back to the left side with Ramsey going to the bench.
Time will tell what Emery decides, but whatever the personnel, it’s hoped that Villa are able to return home with a positive result to start the new campaign.
Thoughts on the Villa XI below? What’s your preferred line-up?
