Aston Villa will look to make it three wins from three in Europe’s most esteemed competition tonight, as Champions League football returns to Villa Park.
Of course, the last time such an occasion happened under the lights of Villa’s noisy home ground, Unai Emery’s men managed to topple the might of Bayern Munich, as super-sub himself Jhon Duran won the game late on with a smart finish past Manuel Neuer.
It’s a different task for the Premier League side tonight, however, as they’re very much not the underdogs for a clash with Bologna, as Emery also ponders some changes in personnel for the mid-week affair with the Serie A side.
One change could see Leon Bailey drop out of the lineup, who struggled to get going as Villa convincingly beat Fulham 3-1 last time out in the league.
Bailey's performance vs Fulham
The Jamaican winger could find he has to settle for a place amongst the substitutes for the clash with the Italian outfit tonight, having failed to spark into life for his side even as Villa picked up a comfortable 3-1 win.
From his low-key 61 minutes on the Craven Cottage turf, Bailey would only muster up a meagre 38 touches of the ball and register 13 accurate passes, as the ex-Bayer Leverkusen man continually struggled to create openings for his full-throttle side.
In contrast, Youri Tielemans controlled the game from the centre of the park – away from Bailey fading in and out of the game – with the Belgian managing a far heftier 94 touches.
Only managing one shot on Bernd Leno’s busy goal too, it could be a night for a different option down the right flank, not just with Bailey being axed, but also with Matty Cash being sacrificed for a fresher face in the full-back spot.
Cash's performance vs Fulham
It was a torrid afternoon in truth down Villa’s right channel, with the Poland international at fault for the Fulham penalty – which was thankfully saved by Emiliano Martinez to spare Cash’s blushes – alongside other shaky moments in defence.
He wasn’t directly responsible for Raul Jimenez’s opener, however, as Pau Torres was brushed aside far too easily for the ex-Wolverhampton Wanderers man to fire home, but his general numbers still make for some uninspiring reading.
Stat
Cash
Minutes played
90
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Touches
68
Accurate passes
35/38 (92%)
Possession lost
13x
Clearances
4
Interceptions
1
Tackles
1
Total duels won
5/7
Squandering possession 13 times across the 3-1 win at Craven Cottage, it certainly wasn’t Cash’s most polished display, with the 27-year-old only managing to put in just one tackle when faced with stopping the likes of Alex Iwobi and Emile Smith-Rowe for the hosts.
With Cash just back from a long-term layoff owing to injury too, it could be for the best if Emery does shuffle his pack and drops the defender, who was handed out a low 5/10 match rating by Birmingham World journalist Charlie Haffenden after the game.
He could revert to a similar lineup that managed to pull off an unthinkable win versus Vincent Kompany’s men, with Cash absent from that famous win, which could see Ezri Konsa take his place for the test of Bologna.
Moreover, another seamless alteration could see John McGinn come into the XI down the right flank to replace an out-of-sorts Bailey, with the Scotsman already captaining his side in Europe’s biggest competition this season to date as he picked up an assist away at Young Boys in Switzerland.
Whatever lineup does take to the field, Emery will be hoping his side don’t buckle under the pressure of another big occasion in the Champions League, with his team taking any pressures that have come their way in their stride this season so far.
2 changes expected: Aston Villa predicted lineup & team news vs Bologna
Unai Emery could tweak with his Aston Villa side slightly for their next Champions League showdown.
ByKelan SarsonOct 22, 2024
