Nottingham Forest, looking to break a six-game winless streak, will be hosting Aston Villa, who are aiming for their fourth consecutive victory at the City Ground on Sunday. Nottingham Forest recently suffered a 3-0 defeat to Liverpool in their latest Premier League match, while Unai Emery’s squad maintained their impressive home record with a 3-1 win over Luton Town.
Emery will set his men up in a 4-4-2 formation and is expected to make just a single change in the starting XI. Leon Bailey would get a chance to play from the start of this game while Nicolo Zaniolo makes way for him and drops to the bench.
4-4-2 Aston Villa Predicted XI Vs Nottingham Forest
Defence
Emiliano Martinez will operate in between the sticks for the West Midlands outfit after conceding one goal in his last appearance. Ezri Konsa will continue to play alongside Pau Torres at the centre of the Aston Villa backline as they try to keep things solid at the back during the 90 minutes.
Matty Cash will fill in as the right-back while Lucas Digne hopes to impress on the other flank as the left-back. Both of them will have the freedom to get forward and express themselves in the opponent’s half.
Angelo Ogbonna will offer cover for the defensive positions on the bench.
Midfield
Douglas Luiz and Boubacar Kamara will once again anchor the midfield for the Villans as they try to establish their dominance over the opposition in the middle of the park.
We can expect John McGinn to put in a hard-working performance on the left flank while Leon Bailey looks to catch the eye on the right wing. Both of them will be instructed to stretch the opposition defence at every chance they get.
Youri Tielemans and Nicolo Zaniolo will have to be content with a spot on the bench and might come on to influence the game in the latter stages if required.
Attack
Ollie Watkins and Moussa Diaby will spearhead Emery’s attack on the offensive end of the field. Both of them will need to link up with each other well if the Villans want to secure a convincing win this weekend.
Bertrand Traore will be named on the bench as he waits for his chance to make an impact in the second half if Emery opts to call upon his services.
