Aston Villa head take on Fulham on Saturday afternoon looking to bounce back from their 2-1 defeat to Manchester United.
Unai Emery’s side have bounced back well this season, with a win immediately following each of their five defeats before the loss to United.
Villa has not dropped their last two games, so the travelling supporters should feel optimistic as they make their way to West London.
It wasn’t a bad performance that saw them lose to Manchester United. Villa had more possession and produced an xG (expected goals) of 2.43 as opposed to 1.79 for United, according to FotMob.
In addition, the home team had five more shots on goal and seven more shots overall than Erik ten Hag’s.
The outcome might have been completely different on an other day.
Villa continues to play at a very high level, so any result on Saturday short of three points will be disappointing.
Pau Torres, who signed for £33 million, might make his debut in 2024.
The Spaniard has been out with an ankle injury, but he might be back for Villa’s match against Marco Silva’s team, according to The Express and Star.
Emery will be happy to be back, as his team has been decimated by injuries lately.
Boubacar Kamara, a key midfield player, went down during the Manchester United match and is gone for the season with an ACL injury.
Diego Carlos and Ezri Konsa, the defensive tandem, are both injured. The Brazilian injured his hamstring during practice, and Konsa damaged his knee in the team’s 5-0 victory over Sheffield United.
Tyrone Mings’ return to training after suffering a knee injury in Villa’s opening game of the 2023–24 season is unquestionably a huge plus.
Villa’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League may still be alive if Mings is able to rejoin Torres.
But Emery could have to ask Calum Chambers to accompany him to West London. With just one start this season, the former Arsenal defender has been forgotten at Villa Park.
