Aston Villa is gearing ready to take on Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Sunday. Get all the latest team news, injury updates, and expected starting lineup here.
When Aston Villa travels across the Midlands to play Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon, they will be trying to win four straight games after going the entire month of October without losing.
In contrast, Forest lost all three of their games in October and hasn’t won since defeating Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in early September. The fact that Unai Emery just needs to make a few decisions on injuries will lessen any attempts he may make to inflict further suffering. Additionally, the team is getting closer to having a full complement after a crucial defender made a successful recovery from an extended injury layoff.
Before the trip to the City Ground, we’ve compiled all the most recent information on injuries and team news for you and given our prediction for the starting lineup below.
Goalkeeper and Defence
The main story out of Villa Park this week is that left-back Àlex Moreno, who has missed the entire season due to a hamstring injury, is finally back to full training. Moreno was supposed to start on the bench for the matches against Legia Warsaw and Crystal Palace, but he wasn’t ready and had to return for remedial fitness training. He has since joined the team for regular training.
It will undoubtedly be too soon for him to start in Sunday’s match, but there’s a chance he’ll be back on the bench and able to play at least a cameo for Villa if needed. Tyrone Mings, of course, is the lone Villa defender who is now sidelined. He is not expected to play again this season following a terrible knee injury sustained against Newcastle on opening weekend. Lucas Digne is one yellow card away from missing a game, but there are no suspensions.
Meanwhile, Emiliano Martínez will play in his first game since winning the title of world’s greatest goalkeeper. At the Ballon d’Or event on Monday night, the Argentine World Cup winner accepted the Yachine Trophy and is thought to have fully recovered from any champagne hangovers he may have experienced while in Paris.
Since it is a recurrence of a previous metatarsal injury, Jacob Ramsey is still out and has not set a return date. The England Under-21 international was hurt during the team’s 6-1 victory against Brighton & Hove Albion back in September.
The second long-term absentee is Emiliano Buendía, who isn’t expected to return until approximately February. Meanwhile, Tim Iroegbunam, a young midfielder who hasn’t played yet due to injury, is thought to be fully healthy after being added to the bench against Luton Town last weekend. In the upcoming season, he might prove to be a vital addition to the club after making an impression while on loan at QPR last year. Similar to Digne, Douglas Luiz
Forwards
The lone injury that casts doubt on Villa’s front line concerns Jhón Duran, a striker from Colombia who has missed the last two league games due to an infected toe. After what sounds like a rather difficult issue, he is probably going to return shortly, but we are still waiting on Emery to let us know if he will play against Forest.
Full predicted line-up vs. Nottingham Forest
Martínez; Digne, Torres, Konsa, Cash; McGinn, Luiz, Kamara, Bailey; Diaby, Watkins.
