Unai Emery ‘gets it wrong with Lucas Digne’ in confirmed Aston Villa XI v Ipswich
Unai Emery has made two changes to his Aston Villa side as they prepare to host Ipswich Town.
Off the back of the FA Cup triumph against Tottenham, a home encounter with Ipswich provides the Villans with an excellent chance to make it two wins from two and strengthen their chances of Champions League qualification again.
A 2-0 defeat to Wolves in their last Premier League encounter ended a five-game unbeaten run, with Villa undoubtedly keen to get started on a similar run once again.
To achieve that, Emery has made two changes to his starting 11 as confirmed via Aston Villa’s on X.
Aston Villa confirmed XI v Ipswich
Emi Martinez retains his place between the sticks having played a crucial role in the win against Spurs. The Argentine made four saves in the game, preventing 0.97 xG in the 2-1 win [FotMob].
Axel Disasi and Boubacar Kamara are the two to start in the centre of defence, the latter impressing against Tottenham last time out.
Kamara recorded an impressive 92 per cent pass accuracy while winning 83 per cent of his defensive duels.
Lucas Digne struggled in the last league encounter against Wolves but the Frenchman is still preferred at left-back with Andres Garcia occupying the opposite side.
Digne’s inclusion is a surprise given the fact that he failed to impress against Tottenham, completing just 14 per cent of his long passes while failing to complete a single cross.
Youri Tielemans won 100 per cent of his tackles and aerial duels against Spurs, rightfully keeping his place in the side with John McGinn partnering him.
Donyell Malen, Jacob Ramsey and Morgan Rogers make up the attacking trio. That is despite Malen failing to get involved against Spurs, making just four passes in the game.
Ollie Watkins is back in the starting 11, having missed the FA Cup clash through injury. The Englishman was withdrawn against Wolves at halftime after having just 12 touches.
Villa have a great chance for three points v Ipswich
Emery’s side are certainly in the Champions League conversation this season, with just seven points separating them from fourth-placed Chelsea.
It has been a very different campaign for Ipswich who have struggled to get to grips with the intensity of the Premier League, winning just three of their 24 fixtures to date.
While football is never won on paper, Villa should have more than enough to secure all three points at Villa Park and boost their hopes of a top-four finish.