Aston Villa be looking to make it three Premier League wins on the bounce on Sunday when they travel to the Vitality Stadium to face Bournemouth.
The Villans beat Tottenham 2-1 in north London last weekend to leapfrog them into fourth in the Premier League table. They have won four of their last five league games and will be confident of getting a positive result on the south coast.
Bournemouth, on the other hand, have registered back-to-back wins over Newcastle United and Sheffield United respectively to climb away from the relegation zone. Andoni Iraola’s side should be in high spirits heading into this fixture at home.
On that note, here are the key battles that could define the outcome of this game.
#Lucas Digne vs Antoine Semenyo
Full-backs have played an important role in Unai Emery’s system at Aston Villa. Lucas Digne and Matty Cash have been instrumental for the Villans this season and their ability to provide service along the flanks has been extremely crucial. Digne, in particular, has caught the eye with his rampaging runs and pin-point crossing from the left channel. He has been productive with two assists in 13 appearances so far.
The French full-back will come up against Antoine Semenyo, who has been one of the highlights of Bournemouth’s campaign to date. The Ghana international was unplayable at times in Bournemouth’s 3-1 win over Sheffield United last weekend, with his pace, directness and movement causing all kinds of problems for the home side’s defence.
Semenyo will be responsible for creating opportunities in the final third for the Cherries as well as preventing Digne from bombing forward and feeding the Villa forwards. All in all, the game could well be decided by the player who comes out on top in this individual battle.
#Justin Kluivert vs Boubacar Kamara
Justin Kluivert scored a spectacular goal in Bournemouth’s win over Sheffield United last weekend, and he will be high in confidence heading into this game. Operating in the hole behind the striker, the Dutchman finds space effectively, makes late runs in the box and creates opportunities in the final third. With his vision and incisive passing, he can be a game-changer for the Cherries.
Monitoring Kluivert’s movements in attack could be a tricky task to take on, as his intuition with the ball is excellent. Hence, Boubacar Kamara will have his work cut out. The Frenchman is a vital component in Villa’s midfield, and his defensive capacity mixed with passing range from the No.6 role allows the likes of Douglas Luiz and John McGinn to play their natural games.
If Kamara could keep Kluivert under wraps, Bournemouth’s creativity to unlock the Villa defence will be seriously hampered.
#Ollie Watkins vs Bournemouth centre-backs
Ollie Watkins is among the most in-form strikers in the Premier League, and he took his tally for the season up to 12 goals by finishing off a delightful team move against Tottenham. The England international is very proficient in losing his markers, making him a very difficult customer to curtail.
So, Bournemouth centre-backs Illia Zabarnyi and Marcos Senesi face a tough task of stopping Watkins. The partnership of Zabarnyi and Senesi is still in its embryonic stage but they have done well in Bournemouth’s last two games against Newcastle and Sheffield United.
Given how easily Villa can carve open defences—as demonstrated this season—and create opportunities in the final third, the Bournemouth centre-backs have to be on their toes to contain an in-form Watkins. The Villa striker will wait for his moments to make runs in behind the home side’s backline and create problems.