Struggling with inconsistency in the Premier League, Aston Villa will shift their attention towards the FA Cup 5th-round tie against Cardiff City this Friday.
Villa’s top-four ambitions took a severe hit after they suffered a huge 4-1 defeat against Crystal Palace, further accentuating their inconsistency in the English top-flight. Morgan Rogers briefly put the Villans on level terms, but only to suffer an onslaught from the Eagles in the second half.
While initially remained in contention for the title, the Villans’ fluctuating run of results has seen them descend to the tenth place in the table. Yet, It is not the end of the line as they are only five points adrift of the final Champions League spot.
Contrastingly, the Lions have enjoyed more success in other ventures, reaching the round of 16 in the Champions League through automatic qualification and looking to progress further in the FA Cup.
Despite their fallacies, Unai Emery’s men will look to regain their best form against Cardiff City in their first big step towards winning silverware this season.
On the other hand, Cardiff City are also looking to push their boundaries, having shown great consistency in the FA Cup so far. They will try to inflict an upset against the Villans on Friday.
Team News
Adding to the woes in their defeat against Crystal Palace, Argentine keeper Emiliano Martinez limped off with an injury midway before being replaced by Robin Olsen. It has now cast doubt on Martinez’s participation in the FA Cup tie.
Meanwhile, their injury list hasn’t altered much, with the likes of Boubacar Kamara, Ross Barkley, Pau Torres and Amadou Onana still sidelined.
Predicted Aston Villa line-up vs Cardiff City
Goalkeeper
With cloud hanging over Emiliano Martinez’s fitness, Robin Olsen is likely to take up the keeping duties, though he endured a tough game against Crystal Palace.
Defence
Ezri Konsa will continue to marshall the defence, while Tyrone Mings could return to the X1 as his centre-back partner. Ian Maatsen could also make his way into the line-up at the expense of Lucas Digne, with Andres Garcia taking up the right-back spot.
Midfield
John McGinn and Youri Tielemans will continue to be the undisputed double pivot, with Morgan Rogers, who found the score sheet against Palace, shouldering playmaking and scoring responsibilities at the No.10 position.
Attack
Unai Emery might hand new signings Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio a place in the playing 11, with two of them already showcasing their potential in the previous games. Ollie Watkins will lead the attack and will try to find his scoring boots.
