Aston Villa will be hoping to return to winning ways this afternoon against Brighton, giving one Villa star the chance to expose the hosts’ key weakness.
Unai Emery’s side return to action in the Premier League this afternoon, as Aston Villa face Brighton at the Amex.
The Villans will be hoping for three points on the South Coast in their bid to secure Champions League qualification for next season, as Spurs now sit seven points behind.
Emery’s squad has suffered a host of injuries this campaign, with key players such as Emi Martinez, Youri Tielemans and Alex Moreno the latest to become unavailable to the boss however, their current situation arguably isn’t as bad as Brighton’s.
READ MORE: Latest Aston Villa injury news v Brighton
Roberto De Zerbi has a list of his favoured XI unable to feature due to injury, a weakness that one Aston Villa ace in particular could look to exploit this afternoon.
Leon Bailey could cause Brighton problems this afternoon
One of the Seagulls’ biggest misses is the absence of Pervis Estupinan at left-back, with other defensive injuries seeing De Zerbi extremely restricted in his options in that position.
In January, Brighton completed the signing of highly-rated Argentine teenager Valentin Barco, who has seen his journey to the first team rocket as a result of the squad’s current injury woes.
Having secured only three Premier League apperances, and only 39 senior career appearances, the 19-year-old has started at left-back for Brighton’s previous two fixtures.
While Barco is an extremely talented prospect, his lack of experience in the Premier League should be something eyed by Leon Bailey, who if deployed on the right flank, could cause the youngster some significant problems.
If the Jamaican can be granted space to isolate the 19-year-old into 1v1 situations, it could prove to be an area of the pitch where the Villans could find joy in breaking down the hosts.
Leon Bailey will want to finish the season on a high
Lauded as ‘scintillating’ by Garth Crooks, it’s been a strong season for Bailey, who has contributed to 19 goals in the Premier League so far, scoring 10 and assisting nine to blow his previous tallies in England out of the water.
One area of the winger’s game that has improved is his end-product, with there never any doubt of his prominence when attacking with the ball at his feet, identifying as one of Villa’s best dribblers.
This season, very few are as potent in 1v1 situations as Bailey, who ranks in the top 1% of wingers in the Premier League for his average of 2.43 successful take-ons per 90, via FBref, telling of how he could exploit Brighton’s left-back this afternoon.
As mentioned, Barco is talented but incredibly raw, which is something that Villa’s expert wideman could find joy in as he has proven many times this campaign just how strong he is at beating his man on the right side.
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