If Aston Villa avoid a loss against Southampton on Saturday, the team will ensure they don’t drop into the bottom three for Christmas.
They will, of course, be aiming for more than a draw in this game, especially as they are at home, but this indicates how important it is that they at least come away from the game with a point.
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With this in mind, we have predicted that there will be nine changes made from the team that defeated a youthful Liverpool side 5-0 in the Carabao Cup.
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Tom Heaton is the undisputed Villa number 1, having played 16 league games this campaign, so he should retake his place in goal despite Orjan Nyland’s impressive performance.
Frederic Guilbert and Matt Targett seem to have cemented their place as the team’s first-choice full-backs on their respective flanks, starting 13 and 11 games respectively. The latter’s place should be especially safe after Neil Taylor’s suspect performance against Liverpool.
Kortney Hause put in a colossal display on his first start of the league term against Sheffield United, despite the loss, so it would be harsh for his place in the team to be taken away, especially as Tyrone Mings is still out injured.
James Chester gave a good showing in midweek against Liverpool, but it would be risky to play him twice in quick succession, so Bjorn Engels retakes his place in the team.
The two players to keep their place in the lineup from the 5-0 victory both come in midfield, with Conor Hourihane and Douglas Luiz staying put. Dean Smith has claimed that he should have gone toe-to-toe with Sheffield United, a game that neither of these two started, so there may be a temptation to put keep them in the team.
John McGinn hasn’t missed a single game this season, while Jack Grealish has done so just twice, meaning they are natural starters and should play here.
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With Trezeguet proving wasteful against Liverpool, failing to score from any of his six shots, it seems likely that Anwar El Ghazi will continue in the starting lineup.
One man who wasn’t wasteful was Wesley when he came on, as he stuck the ball into the bottom corner. This should be a big confidence boost for him as he hadn’t scored or assisted in the nine previous matches, so it would be pretty poor management to leave him out for the following game.
In other news, one Villa man has been linked with a quartet of clubs.