Unai Emery tipped to axe Aston Villa attacker in Douglas Luiz decision for showdown v Chelsea
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery will disappoint one of Leon Bailey or Moussa Diaby by dropping them for Douglas Luiz against Chelsea, according to Alan Hutton.
The Brazilian midfielder is available for Saturday’s (27 April) showdown with Mauricio Pochettinho’s side at Villa Park having missed the Villans’ Premier League wins over Arsenal and Bournemouth through suspension.
In Luiz’s absence, John McGinn and Youri Tielemans have formed an excellent midfield partnership while Morgan Rogers, Bailey and Diaby all got on the scoresheet against the Cherries as Villa took a huge step towards the top four.
“Of course, they will be disappointed, but it’s just a fact that Douglas Luiz comes back in,” Hutton told Villa News.
“He’s everything that they need within that team, when he gets the ball from the backline he likes to play, his delivery and his all-round game so I think he does come in. But I think there is room and the manager has shown that for all of them to play.
“I don’t think for me that it works if John McGinn gets pushed out to the right and they play Tielemans and Douglas Luiz in the middle. I think John McGinn is better if he then moves up one and kind of supporter Ollie Watkins.
“That means you’ll leave either Diaby or Bailey out and I think that’s what the manager prefers to do at this moment in time. I think Tielemans has to play as well, he’s taken his game to the next level and has been consistent recently.
“It’s probably helped him that Boubacar Kamara has been injured because he’s been given that opportunity to come in and play and he’s shown everybody why he was brought to the club.
“It will be an interesting one but I think Luiz will come in and there will be room for them all to play.”
Who will Unai Emery start for Aston Villa against Chelsea at Villa Park?
Emery was told that his decision to start Luiz against Lille in the Europa Conference League had the potential to upset some players in the Villa Park changing room and it appears that the situation is no different ahead of Saturday’s clash.
But Luiz is a crucial part of Emery’s system and when he is fit, he always seems to start under Emery. That is unlikely to change against the Blues especially as Villa move within touching distance of the Champions League places.
The Villa boss has never been afraid to tinker with his team even after strong results and even if one of Bailey or Diaby drops to the bench, they will still be given an opportunity to impact proceedings from the bench.
Whoever Emery picks against Chelsea, the Spaniard will be convinced that his side are more than capable of claiming all three points.
In other Aston Villa news, Nicolo Zaniolo is unlikely to secure a permanent switch to Villa Park after a new injury update
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