da mrbet： Aston Villa will be looking to end their run of three successive defeats when they host Newcastle United on Monday, and Dean Smith will have a number of decisions to make regarding the home side’s starting line-up for the clash against the Magpies.
da wazamba： Having lost to Manchester City, Liverpool and most recently Wolves, Villa find themselves in 17th place in the league table, whilst also having conceded 20 goals; only the current occupants of the relegation zone have let in more so far this season.
Ahead of a crucial Premier League fixture, here is how FFC believes Villa should line up against Tyneside outfit, following news that Bjorn Engels, Tom Heaton and Jack Grealish could all be available to start.
If Heaton is declared fit, the summer signing simply must resume his place in the starting XI; especially considering the injury to Jed Steer from the game against Wolves. He’s Villa’s No.1, after all.
In defence, given his impressive performance on debut in the Premier League, Ezri Konsa deserves to keep his place alongside Tyrone Mings, with a view to playing out from the back and breaking down what is likely to be a compact Newcastle side orchestrated by Bruce.
The last three games have seen Smith deploy both Douglas Luiz and Marvelous Nakamba in the holding defensive roles, but this feels like overkill against the Magpies and on the basis of his impressive start to life in the starting line-up, Nakamba should get the nod ahead of the Brazilian as Villa’s only deep-lying midfielder.
This enables a midfield three of John McGinn, Jack Grealish and Conor Hourihane to display the attacking qualities that saw the trio contribute significantly to Villa’s promotion-winning season from the Championship. They finished last season with a combined 22 goals and 30 assists.
That leaves a front two of Wesley as the focal point of the attack, supported by Trezeguet who should be given the freedom to drift around the final third depending on where the space is. That could leave Villa a little lopsided at times, but this starting XI and formation gets their best midfielders on the pitch.