Emery may mercilessly replace Zaniolo with a “exceptional” £100k per week star at Aston Villa.
Nicolo Zaniolo is battling with Villa’s “exceptional” player for a starting spot.
Aston Villa will play at Chelsea this afternoon in their return to the Premier League after their 3-2 loss to Legia Warsaw on Thursday night in the Europa Conference League.
After losing 3-1 at Anfield, the Villans defeated Crystal Palace 3-1 in impressive way.
Odsonne Edouard’s goal appeared to be the game-winner for Palace for the majority of the second half, but Villa scored an equaliser through Jhon Duran three minutes from time, and then two agonisingly late goals from Douglas Luiz and substitute Leon Bailey in the 98th and 101st minutes, handing the Eagles a 3-1 defeat.
Unai Emery’s team has the chance to further humiliate Mauricio Pochettino by trying to transfer this late momentum onto the pitch at Stamford Bridge.
The Argentine manager has only managed one victory since taking over the team, a 3-1 triumph over Luton Town. With mounting pressure on him as a result of his teams’ underwhelming play, the Blues will view this match as a must-win, regardless of the threat Villa poses.
Emery will be driven to defeat Pochettino, and he may make a few adjustments to his team to give himself the greatest chance.
This season’s opening injury blows to Aston Villa have been significant. Influential center-back Tyrone Mings was stretchered off in their 5-1 loss to Newcastle after suffering a significant knee injury. He then received the bad news that he would be out for the remainder of the season.
He is hardly the only important player going through a protracted rehabilitation procedure. Emiliano Buendia, an attacking midfielder, will be out until at least June after suffering a major knee ligament damage in training.
In other injury-related news, left-back Alex Moreno has not been used as a substitute in the last two games after recovering from a hamstring injury, while midfielder Jacob Ramsey recovered from his broken foot injury and was listed as a replacement on Thursday night.
While Emery has had to deal with a number of defensive ailments, aside from Buendia, his attack has been largely unharmed, giving the Spaniard a selection dilemma and the chance to try out different team combinations.
In the early stages of this season, Leon Bailey was a player who was frequently in and out of the starting lineup, but after coming off the bench to shine against Palace and then shining on Thursday night, the winger might be in position to start against Chelsea.
Leon Bailey should start the matchup with Chelsea.
Emery would almost probably like an extra spot to accommodate all of his attacking skill in given the quality and depth of his front line.
Ollie Watkins and Moussa Diaby are usually locks to start, leaving two openings for John McGinn, Nicolo Zaniolo, and Bailey, depending on the system. The previous two received the
nod to start versus Crystal Palace, but according to SofaScore, they both had relatively unimpressive match ratings of 6.5.
On the other side, Bailey’s 7.3 rating following his introduction in the 57th minute gave Villa the offensive vigour they required to defeat Palace.
The Jamaican made a significant impact off the bench, according to SofaScore, scoring in the last seconds with an xG of 0.77, four attempted dribbles, and two completed crosses.
These numbers only hint at the 26-year-old’s potential; nevertheless, it was his outstanding performance in a 4-0 win over Everton, where he registered a goal and an assist, that earned him great praise from his boss in the post-game interview.
“Each match is very different, and we need to maintain the balance by playing both at home and away,” stated Emery.
“Diaby and Bailey’s relationship was not great last week, but it was much better today. Diaby needs time to bond with his teammates, therefore we must keep working. Leon Bailey played poorly the week before, but now he was great.
Bailey, who has been praised as “expectional” by journalist Josh Holland, possesses the ball-carrying skills and explosive power to help Villa, and has already done so in certain instances this season.
Similarly, Zaniolo, who joined on loan from Galatasaray and has yet to score or provide an assist this season, has shown flashes of his potential, but after turning in two excellent outings, the £100k per week star is putting pressure on the Italian for a starting position.
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