Unai Emery’s Aston Villa welcome AZ Alkmaar to Villa Park this evening in the fourth match of the Europa Conference League group stage.
The Villans are second in Group E, level on points with leaders Legia Warsaw, and will hope to advance to the next round with a win tonight against Dutch opposition.
The Premier League side thrashed AZ 4-1 in the Netherlands last time out in the competition, leaving Pascal Jansen’s side jaded ahead of this evening’s crucial clash against Emery’s in-form squad.
Aston Villa vs. AZ Alkmaar team news
Despite a stellar run of form recently, Villa will be desperate to get back to winning ways after a shock defeat to Nottingham Forest in their most recent league match.
Due to other results in the table, the result had no effect on the Villans’ position in fifth place, within touching distance of the top four, putting more emphasis on Sunday’s game against Fulham.
With this in mind, Emery may opt to rotate his Conference League squad once more; however, the Spaniard admitted in his pre-match press conference that he is still undecided on which team to start against AZ.
In terms of injuries, the manager confirmed that Matty Cash will be in the squad after overcoming a “small problem,” while Alex Moreno is available for selection after returning to training and recovering from a hamstring injury.
Jacob Ramsey will not be ready for this evening’s match, but Emery gave a positive update on the midfielder, saying he will return to training after the international break.
The manager must make some selection decisions for his starting XI against AZ, with one name potentially poised to start after a slow start to life in the Midlands.
Statistics indicate that Youri Tielemans should start against AZ Alkmaar.
Despite not starting a league game this season after joining Villa as a free agent from Leicester City in the summer, midfielder Youri Tielemans could keep his place in the starting XI in the Europa Conference League.
Following his move, the Belgian expressed his dissatisfaction with his lack of minutes in the media, but after his performance against AZ last time out, the 26-year-old could have a strong claim to start once more in Europe.
Emery stated before the game that the £150,000-per-week ace is “progressively feeling better” after his frustrating start, allowing the manager to rest Moussa Diaby and put his faith in Tielemans this evening.
The Frenchman has yet to start a Conference League game for Villa, but has started every Premier League game this season, allowing the £51.9m acquisition to earn a break and allow other members of the squad to demonstrate their worth.
The former Leicester whiz has been lauded as “incredible” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, and the task for Villa is to get the most out of their summer acquisition, with the Conference League providing the ideal opportunity.
Tielemans thrived last time he faced AZ, playing in an advanced role in Emery’s preferred 4-4-2, leading the attack with Ollie Watkins to flex his final-third prowess.
In his three appearances in the tournament this season, the Belgium international has averaged a stellar two key passes per game and a 7.43 match rating, according to Sofascore, implying that the manager could unlock his best form by utilising his competition strengths.
Giving Tielemans more confidence and the opportunity to find his feet at Villa Park would only benefit Emery, as it would increase competition within the squad and promote a higher level of performance.
