Unai Emery right with Youri Tielemans call as Aston Villa confirmed XI v Arsenal emerges
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has named his starting line-up for Saturday’s (9 December) Premier League showdown with former side Arsenal.
The Villans enter the match on the back of a superb 1-0 win over Manchester City in midweek – their 14th straight home top-flight victory.
As confirmed by Villa’s official Twitter account [9 December], Emery went with an unchanged XI from that game three days ago.
Given the quick turnaround between matches, some speculated whether one or two changes would be made for the visit of Arsenal.
Youri Tielemans was one of those potentially at risk of being rested, with many others pushing for a start in midfield, but the Belgium international got the nod from Emery – and rightly so.
While he did not register a shot of any sort against Man City, Tielemans assisted Leon Bailey’s deflected winner and completed 77% of his 31 passes [Sofascore] in an assured display.
The former Leicester City ace can provide an attacking threat, while also having the ability to keep play ticking along in the final third.
Moussa Diaby, Nicolo Zaniolo and Leandro Dendoncker were named among the substitutes against Arsenal, and each will perhaps feel they are deserving of a starting spot for different reasons.
Ultimately, though, Tielemans has impressed in a number of metrics this season, not least with his 0.53 assists per 90 minutes [FBref], which is a career best at this point.
Indeed, FBref ranks Tielemans among the top 10% of midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for assists per 90 (0.21) and expected assisted goals per 90 (0.19).
It may well be that Emery is forced to make full use of his squad as the game goes on, but Tielemans is certainly one to keep an eye on against Arsenal as Aston Villa look to extend their winning run on home soil.
One word of caution, though – the Villans are winless in eight Premier League games against sides starting the day top of the table (D1 L7), losing each of the last five in a row [Opta Joe].
In other Aston Villa news, one of Emery’s favourites is showing why he is better than Arsenal’s £100+ signing.