Previews of Aston Villa matches, both competitive and non-competitive
Aston Villa left Switzerland worthy 3-0 winners over Young Boys in their first appearance in the Champions League, such as it’s become. And just like that it’s back to the league and an opponent in Wolves who’ll likely give us more trouble than Young Boys, especially given they’re still looking for their first win of the season; no matter how they’re going, it’s always a difficult fixture.
Two solid outings in the first two weeks is the sort of signal we were looking for. And we could quite easily have taken all six points, but for some rust and luck. Or lack thereof. So, the feel-good factor remains and now Villa have a stretch they need to take advantage of.
Having done the double on Arsenal last season, and in doing so ultimately taken the points they needed to finish top, I imagine they’re going to be more than a little motivated. So I’m glad this one’s at home. Can Villa win? Yes. Are the odds against it? Probably.
So here we are, on the brink of elimination in the Conference League and 7 points to the good in 4th with two to play. Villa should’ve had at least 3 last week, and this is a game they don’t really deserve to be chasing like this. But they are, so it’s the classic situation where Villa have to come out, force the issue, and open themselves up to the counter from the off.
As you might expect, Emery is fielding about as strong a side as he can, with Rogers and Bailey getting starting nods and Konsa, Carlos and Torres filling out the back three with Digne wide left. Will certainly be good to have Super John back in the side.
