- Aston Villa take on Tottenham at 19:00 UK time on Sunday
- One more win could secure Champions League football if Bournemouth lose
- Unai Emery is expected to make changes after Thursday’s defeat to Nottingham Forest
Aston Villa could secure Champions League qualification on Sunday night if they take the three points and Bournemouth are beaten by Crystal Palace. With a key injury to Amadou Onana and a couple of bleak performances by some of the players against Nottingham Forest, Unai Emery is expected to make a few changes to the team that takes on Tottenham.
On Thursday night, Villa were narrowly defeated 1-0 by Forest in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final. The match was defined by one key moment. Chris Wood struck home a penalty in the 71st minute, after Lucas Digne’s handball.
It was a game that had few chances for either side. A one-goal deficit heading into the second leg at Villa Park certainly means the tie is not over.
But first, they turn their attention back to the Premier League, with qualification to Europe’s elite competition at their fingertips. They face a Tottenham side, who earned their first league win of the year last weekend, and are in the midst of a relegation battle.
Amadou Onana replacement conundrum
Amadou Onana was forced off with a calf injury against Forest and has been ruled out of tonight’s fixture. His physical presence will be a big miss, especially as his replacements have not replicated his impact. This gives Emery a dilemma as to who will come in for the Belgian.
Lamare Bogarde was favoured over Douglas Luiz in the last two matches, but has been poor on both occasions. This could mean Luiz gets a start; however, he himself has also struggled since returning to the club in January.
With this in mind, Emery could opt for Ross Barkley to partner alongside Youri Tielemans. Although the Englishman has started in the No 10 position in four of his last five league games, he’s no stranger to playing in the double pivot. He would give Villa more composure on the ball further down the pitch, and given the likelihood they will have the majority of the ball, this would be a good option.
Maatsen and Sancho to also start
Given Digne’s poor showing against Forest on Thursday, Ian Maatsen may come in for him at left-back. This would probably be the only change to the back four.
Ollie Watkins is expected to lead the line once more. Despite no goals in his last two games, the striker looks to be full of confidence heading into the final stretch of the season.
Emi Buendia is another who was disappointing in the Europa League. It is expected that he will make way for Jadon Sancho.
With McGinn, Morgan Rogers and Sancho in attack, due to their versatility, they could all start in any of the positions behind Watkins. This creates the potential of rotation during the match, which may cause problems for Roberto De Zerbi’s side.
Aston Villa predicted lineup: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Maatsen, Barkley, Tielemans, McGinn, Rogers, Sancho, Watkins
