Aston Villa travel to face Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday and Dean Smith has a difficult decision to make in midfield.
He made the bold choice to drop Douglas Luiz in last Saturday’s 1-0 win over Arsenal but Marvelous Nakamba performed admirably in his place.
The 27-year-old has duly staked a claim to start against Brighton, but Smith may have only been resting Luiz for a brief period as his form was suffering due to starting four games in 11 days.
Nakamba has started two of Villa’s last five Premier League games, playing a full 90 minutes in their wins over Newcastle and Arsenal and impressing in both. The Zimbabwean turned over the ball four times against the Magpies and seven times against the Gunners, so he did the job he was brought in to do.
Smith called upon Nakamba when McGinn was suspended against Newcastle and then dropped him for the next game, so he might give Luiz the nod on Saturday.
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It’s harsh on Nakamba given that he hasn’t put a foot wrong of late, but this is the nature of being a backup player.
Nevertheless, the 27-year-old has remained patient for his chance and didn’t let his manager down when called upon, so he might still get plenty more time to impress in the coming months.
