Aston Villa take on Lille on Thursday evening in the first leg of their UEFA Conference League quarter-final.
Unai Emery’s side breezed through to the last eight last month thanks to a commanding 4-0 win over Ajax at Villa Park.
The competition is Villa’s only chance of silverware this season, and, to date, Emery has given the Conference League the attention it deserves.
Lille are currently fourth in Ligue 1 and have 16-goal striker Jonathan David in their ranks. The French side also have former Tottenham midfielder Nabil Bentaleb and Englishman Angel Gomes in their ranks, although the latter is unlikely to feature due to a hamstring issue.
The hosts will fancy their chances on Thursday evening, and here’s how we envisage Emery’s starting XI.
Unai Emery to make two changes to Aston Villa starting XI
Aston Villa News envisages the Spaniard making two changes to the team that drew 3-3 with Brentford on Saturday.
The first comes in defence, with Clement Lenglent potentially coming back into the fray. The Frenchman was rested at the weekend but has been an everpresent since the turn of the year. Diego Carlos, who has struggled with injury this season, could be handed a rest. The £26million signing has started Villa’s past three fixtures.
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Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres and Lucas Digne will make up the rest of the back four in front of Emi Martinez.
Emery will likely deploy a similar midfield, with Youri Tielemans partnering Douglas Luiz with John McGinn in an advanced role. Although Tielemans and McGinn are interchangeable.
One further change could come out wide. Morgan Rogers has started three Premier League games on the spin and could be replaced by Moussa Diaby, who only featured for moments against the Bees. Leon Bailey should retain his spot.
Ollie Watkins appeared back to full fitness on Saturday and should lead the line, with Jhon Duran making do with a spot on the bench.
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