Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at how Aston Villa could line up for Saturday’s Premier League clash with Liverpool.
Aston Villa captain Tyrone Mings is at risk of the axe for Saturday’s Premier League showdown with Liverpool at Anfield.
The centre-back made his Champions League debut in Wednesday’s clash with Club Brugge but proceeded to give away what will surely go down as the most ridiculous penalty in the history of the competition, picking the ball up after Emiliano Martinez had restarted play.
Mings was also booked and hooked in the second half of that Belgian disaster, but he should not be dropped on account of that mistake alone, rather for fitness reasons after only just coming back from an ACL injury.
Unai Emery will surely feel that starting Mings twice in the space of four days is too risky, so Pau Torres is primed to step in alongside Diego Carlos and Ezri Konsa, while Lucas Digne should also replace Ian Maatsen.
Emery should adopt a similar approach with Mings’s fellow cruciate ligament victim Boubacar Kamara, who played the full 90 in midweek but should now make way for Amadou Onana to partner Youri Tielemans.
John McGinn, Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rogers are all expected to reprise their roles in attack, but Leon Bailey is also a candidate for the chop as Jacob Ramsey looks to regain his place in the final third.
Ross Barkley (unspecified) and Matty Cash (calf) are Villa’s only two fitness concerns for Saturday’s game; neither should return until the international break is over.
Aston Villa possible starting lineup:
Martinez; Konsa, Torres, Carlos, Digne; Onana, Tielemans; McGinn, Rogers, Ramsey; Watkins
> Click here to see how Liverpool could line up for this clash
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