Aston Villa: Unai Emery may receive boost before Brentford clash after Leon Bailey update
After back-to-back Premier League wins over Arsenal and Manchester City, Aston Villa are hoping to maintain their incredible recent form against Brentford on Sunday 17 December.
Unai Emery’s side could move even further ahead of Manchester City in the Champions League places with a win over the Bees on Sunday, after Pep Guardiola’s men dropped points once again, drawing 2-2 with Crystal Palace.
While the Villa boss will have to do without both Lucas Digne and Douglas Luiz who will miss the trip to the capital through suspension, he may well have received a fitness boost concerning Leon Bailey after the Jamaican missed the clash with Zrinksi Mostar.
The 26-year-old shared a photo on his Instagram story (16 December) that appeared to show him back in first-team training in preparation for the clash with Brentford. While it could be an old photo, it appears more likely as a hint that he could be fit and available for Sunday’s clash.
Bailey earned a majority of the plaudits for his role in Aston Villa’s win over Manchester City at Villa Park as the winger scored the only goal of the contest with 16 minutes to play in the second half. In his 85 minutes of action, the Jamaican had five shots created two chances and was a thorn in City’s side [Fotmob].
Few players in the Premier League are better with the ball at their feet and Bailey completed three of his five attempted dribbles against Guardiola’s side and typically gets the better of every full-back he lines up against.
So far this season, the 26-year-old has registered five goals and four assists in just 591 minutes of league action. He has only started five games in the Premier League but is averaging a goal involvement every 65.7 minutes he plays.
Against Arsenal, Bailey showed a different more defensive side of his game as he went about his work out of possession incredibly. The Aston Villa star won 100 per cent of the tackles he entered in the game and made two ball recoveries before being substituted at halftime.
Most importantly of all, however, the Jamaican international picked up the assist for McGinn’s early goal with the only chance he created in the match. In the big matches, he can produce a moment of magic to change the tide of a game.
When compared to his positional peers in the Premier League, Bailey places in the 99th percentile for non-penalty xG and expected assisted goals per 90 minutes. Few players in England’s top tier are more impactful in the final third [Fbref].
On top of that, the Villa winger sits in the division’s top one per cent of dribblers, making an average of 5.31 progressive carries a game. More often than not he beats his marker as well, being successful with his take-ons more often than 97 per cent of midfielders.
Brentford have only won one of their last five matches so on paper should provide an easier test than either Arsenal or Manchester City. If Thomas Frank’s side leaves gaps open in search of a much-needed win, there could be plenty of space for Bailey to exploit.
Hopefully, the Jamaican will be fit and ready to start and Aston Villa can move further ahead of City and maintain their place in the Premier League title race.
In other Aston Villa news, Martin Keown has slammed Alex Moreno for his performance against Zrinjski Mostar live on air