Aston Villa are set to go up against Derby County at Villa Park tomorrow afternoon as the latter tries to secure their place in the promotion playoffs. The automatic promotion spot is still up for grabs for the Villans but it is likely to go to either Cardiff City or Fulham with just 2 games left in the season.
It seems like both sides are destined to go head to head post the regular season and this match will only be a preview of that matchup. Steve Bruce’s side are coming off an impressive 4-0 win over Ipswich Town and are on a 3-game winning streak.
The Rams, on the other hand, lost to Middlesbrough earlier in the month and had to exact revenge on Cardiff last week. Derby ran their opposition raged with their pace on the counter and triumphed 3-1 at Pride Park, a big statement of intent by Gary Rowett’s men.
While they will be enjoying the return to winning ways, Villa are set to put up a hard resistance while at home.
The last time these two sides met was back in December which the Rams won by 2 goals to nil. At the time, Derby was higher up in the points table and Villa were climbing their way up to the top.
While the seating for the final look of the points table might already have been done, this fixture comes as a must-win for both sides. After all, nobody wants to look weak ahead of the final battle for a place in the Premier League.
Here is how Aston Villa might lineup on game day.
Predicted Formation: 4-1-4-1
Defence
Sam Johnstone will be starting in between the sticks well ahead of Jed Steer and Mark Bunn. The Manchester United shot-stopper has been impressive this season with 20 clean sheets to his name.
John Terry’s return is expected but not guaranteed. The centre-back roles, therefore, will have to be filled with James Chester and Mile Jedinak.
Neil Taylor is the predicted starter on the left and Ahmed El Mohammady on the right.
Midfield
Glenn Whelan is the rightful choice in the defensive anchor role. Conor Hourihane and Jack Grealish to appear in front of the 34-year-old.
Birkir Bjarnason is still recovering from his calf injury.
The flanks might feature Robert Snodgrass on the right and Albert Adomah on the left.
Attack
Scott Hogan’s return to the starting lineup is anticipated in place of Lewis Grabban.
