Aston Villa finally secured their second win in the Championship with a 2-1 win over Reading in the midweek away from home at the Madejski Stadium. Champions League-winning Italian manager Roberto de Matteo’s horrendous start with Aston Villa saw the Villans get rid of him early and experienced Steve Bruce took charge.
A promotion expert, Bruce has made an immediate mark at Villa Park with four points collected from two games. The former Hull City manager started with a 1-1 draw against local rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers but got a crucial win in the Englishman’s second game in charge.
Aston Villa will host Fulham this Saturday at Villa Park. The Cottagers have won just one of their last six games. They had a flying start to the season but it did not last long. Slaviša Jokanović will be a concerned man as his side travel to face a strong Aston villa side. Key defenders Tommy Elphick and Micah Richards are both expected to be absent for the hosts while Jack Grealish will serve the second of a three-game ban.
Here is the predicted Aston Villa lineup against Fulham.
Defence
Highly-rated Italian custodian Pierluigi Gollini will start under the bar. Alan Hutton won’t have to stave off any kind of competition to start at right-back as Micah Richards is out with an injury. Welsh international stopper James Chester will start at the heart of the defence with the armband on alongside Nathan Baker. Aly Cissokho will get a start at left-back ahead of Jordan Amavi.
Midfield
Summer signing from Crystal Palace Mile Jedinak has been almost ever-present for Villa this season. The Aussie defensive midfielder has done a decent job but he is too slow and rarely offers anything to the attack. Aston Villa need more creativity in midfield and therefore, we expect Ashley Westwood to replace him in the middle of the park.
Leandro Bacuna will start alongside Westwood in midfield after impressing against Reading in the midweek. Gary Gardner should keep his place in the number ten role.
Attack
Albert Adomah is likely to keep his place on the right flank. The 28-year-old is a big threat with his pace and strength and will be looking to trouble the Fulham defence. Jonathan Kodija is likely to keep his place on the left flank. We expect Jordan Ayew getting a place in the starting XI ahead of Rudy Gestede after scoring the late winner against Reading in the midweek.
