Aston Villa are enduring a poor run at the moment, winning only twice in 2024 so far and failing to progress in the FA Cup, but Unai Emery will be confident his club can bounce back against Fulham today.
They could perhaps count themselves unlucky to lose against Manchester United last weekend, with Scott McTominay scoring in the final few minutes, but a win against the Cottagers is vital if the club look to secure Champions League football next season.
The Spaniard may have to shake things up slightly due to the club suffering a mini-injury crisis. Boubacar Kamara is now out for the rest of the season having suffered an ACL injury, while defender Diego Carlos will miss the next four weeks due to a hamstring problem.
This could see as many as three changes in the starting XI that Emery unleashes against Marco Silva’s men this afternoon…
1GK – Emiliano Martínez
Martinez will start in the Premier League once again, only missing one match so far this season in the top flight, keeping a total of six clean sheets across 23 matches.
The Argentine has conceded 31 goals, however, and a clean sheet against Fulham could go a long way to Villa securing a much-needed victory.
2RB – Matty Cash
Cash will retain his place in the starting XI, despite enduring a difficult match against United last weekend.
Not only did he lose possession 17 times during the match, while winning just three of his 12 contested duels, but he was also at fault for the away side’s winner, failing to get ahead of McTominay before the Scot scored.
The only other right-back Emery could call upon is Callum Chambers, but he has played only twice all season, so that means Cash will start against Fulham.
3CB – Pau Torres
The £31.5m signing from Villarreal will return to the side for the first time this year, missing the previous seven matches due to injury and his return could be a big boost, especially with Carlos and Ezri Konsa out injured.
Hailed as an “extraordinary talent” by former Villarreal player Javi Calleja, Torres has been a rock at the back for Villa since his move last summer and, hopefully, his return to the starting XI can coincide with an improved defensive display today.
4CB – Clement Lenglet
With three senior defenders all missing for the foreseeable future, Emery does not have much of a choice but to start Lenglet this afternoon.
The on-loan defender has started the previous seven matches in the Premier League for the club, yet Villa have won only two of those games and, hopefully, will have a better performance against Fulham.
5LB – Lucas Digne
The French defender will return following a period out injured, and he will take over from Alex Moreno on the left side of the defence today.
He played three minutes against United on the weekend and his return could be a boost for the Midlands side, especially as a few more players have joined the treatment table.
6CM – Douglas Luiz
Emery will likely deploy a 4-2-3-1 against the Cottagers and this means Luiz will operate in the heart of the midfield, and he has been wonderful this season.
Across 35 matches throughout 2023/24, the Brazilian has scored eight times while chipping in with seven assists and his attacking presence has made him a real goal threat from the middle of the pitch.
He scored the equaliser against Erik ten Hag’s side last week and Emery will be hoping the 25-year-old can get back on the scoresheet today.
7CM – John McGinn
McGinn will be deployed alongside Luiz at the base of the midfield and this partnership could provide both an attacking threat and defensive stability to the starting XI.
The captain has started all but two matches during the whole season and, like Luiz, he loves to get forward as often as possible, finding the back of the net on eight occasions already.
He scored against Fulham in the 3-1 win back in November and another goal against them today would go down rather well.
8RW – Leon Bailey
Bailey’s rejuvenation this season has arguably been one of the most pleasing aspects of the season, and he now looks like a key player for Emery.
The former Bayer Leverkusen star has registered an impressive 19 goal contributions – ten goals and nine assists – in just 33 matches so far for the club and his presence on the right wing has meant Emery has had to redeploy Moussa Diaby elsewhere.
The winger grabbed an assist the last time the teams met a few months ago, and he will be favoured to grab another goal contribution tomorrow.
9AM – Moussa Diaby
The Frenchman has perhaps not hit the heights he reached during his spell at Leverkusen, but given time, the winger will eventually turn into a top-class signing.
Indeed, the 24-year-old has only scored six goals in 34 matches, yet he has been switched around often, playing either as a winger, centre-forward or as a number ten.
With Bailey shining on the right, it is in the latter position from which Diaby will be unleashed tomorrow.
10LW – Jacob Ramsey
Ramsey has seen his season disrupted by injury problems, meaning he has played just 18 times in all competitions, registering only two goal contributions.
The Englishman started against United, but the manager will be hoping he can deliver a more productive performance as he took five shots during the match without scoring.
11ST – Ollie Watkins
With Watkins in their starting XI, Villa certainly fear no one, especially with his record in front of goal this term.
16 goals and 12 assists in just 34 matches is a sublime return and there is no doubt he will break through the 20-goal barrier this season.
The striker has scored three goals and grabbed an assist against Fulham in his previous ten matches, losing just twice to the London side, and he will be hoping to continue this decent form against them today.
Aston Villa’s predicted XI vs Fulham in full (4-2-3-1) – GK – Martinez; RB – Cash, CB – Torres, CB – Lenglet, LB – Digne; CM – Luiz, CM – McGinn; RW – Bailey, AM – Diaby, LW – Ramsey; ST – Watkins
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