Aston Villa return to Premier League action on Sunday following a midweek victory over Wycombe Wanderers in the EFL Cup.
Unai Emery’s men won comfortably to secure progress into the fourth round, giving some academy graduates minutes in the first team.
The likes of Kadan Young, Sil Swinkels and Aidan Borland all played a part in the 2-1 win, proving that Emery has plenty of talent at his disposal.
Having enjoyed a solid start to the Premier League campaign, winning all but one of their matches, it is likely that the Spaniard will rotate his starting XI to bring back his big-game players.
This could mean several youngsters drop out, but positive signs are there for the future, no doubt about that.
Ipswich have yet to win on their return to the top flight, but there are some encouraging signs from the Tractor Boys after three successive draws.
With this in mind, here’s a look at the starting XI that Emery could unleash to secure yet another three points in the league, with seven changes from the side that saw off the Chairboys on Tuesday…
1
GK – Emiliano Martínez
The goalkeeper was given the night off against Wycombe in midweek, which gave Joe Gauci the chance to shine.
He performed well in the Argentinian’s place, making five saves during the clash while succeeding with 87% of his passes. For the Ipswich tie, however, Martinez will return to the starting XI.
The World Cup winner is yet to keep a clean sheet in the league this term, something which he hopes to change tomorrow.
2
RB – Kosta Nedeljkovic
The right-back area looked like it could be a problematic area when Matty Cash suffered an injury against Arsenal, but several players have filled in the position.
Lamare Bogarde started the previous two league games on the right side of defence, while Nedeljkovic played against Wycombe. Emery should stick with the Serbian, who completed 89% of his passes while succeeding with 100% of his dribbles in midweek.
3
CB – Ezri Konsa
Konsa was another player who was given a rest by Emery in midweek, as he didn’t even feature in the full matchday squad.
The Englishman has started every single Premier League fixture of the campaign, scoring his first goal against Wolves last week to seal a 3-1 victory.
He has formed a solid partnership alongside Pau Torres, one that Emery will once again deploy against Ipswich this weekend.
4
CB – Pau Torres
Of all the signings Emery has made during his Villa tenure, Torres is arguably the standout. Domestically, Torres has won 72% of his ground duels this term, while averaging an 86% pass success rate.
The duo may not have kept a clean sheet as yet, but the building blocks have been put in place for a successful defensive partnership.
5
LB – Ian Maatsen
The summer signing has played a part in every game for Villa this term, yet has started just once, the 2-1 win in midweek.
The left-back was in solid form, succeeding with 94% of his passes, while no opposition player managed to dribble past him during his time on the pitch. This surely merits him securing a start in the Premier League.
6
CM – Youri Tielemans
Losing Douglas Luiz during the summer was a blow, but Emery has certainly found a more than adequate replacement in Tielemans.
Described as “underrated” by Premier League Panel last term, the Belgian has emerged as a key member of the starting XI this term and will take his place back in the side to play Ipswich.
7
CM – Amadou Onana
Onana started in the EFL Cup clash in midweek but was brought off in the 62nd minute. The summer signing has already scored three goals for Villa this season, netting twice in the league and once in the Champions League.
While splashing £50m on the midfielder may have been seen as a bit of a gamble by the manager, Onana is certainly living up to his lavish fee, that’s for sure.
8
RW – Leon Bailey
The winger hasn’t found the back of the net so far this season, which is surprising given how effective he was in the final third during the 2023/24 campaign.
Against Wycombe, he did register one key pass and created one big chance, while succeeding with two of his three dribble attempts, but he couldn’t get on the scoresheet.
He will be given another start this weekend.
9
AM – Morgan Rogers
Rogers has been in excellent form this term for the Midlands side. He may not have scored in the top flight yet, but the youngster has created four big chances, averaging 1.8 key passes per game along with registering 2.2 dribbles per game.
Impressive stats indeed and the player should be fresh after he was rested in midweek. Can he finally get on the scoresheet for the first time this term? Only time will tell.
10
LW – Jacob Ramsey
The academy graduate struggled with injuries last season but appears to have gotten over his problems.
The Englishman even managed to get on the scoresheet in the Champions League, proving his worth to Emery, and he will return to the starting XI against the Tractor Boys.
11
ST – Ollie Watkins
Jhon Duran has been in wonderful form this season, scoring five goals in just seven games, despite starting only once in that time.
He was unleashed from the start against Wycombe and duly repaid Emery’s faith, scoring what turned out to be the winner during the match.
With Ollie Watkins getting the night off, he will be raring to go this weekend as he looks to add to his three league goals scored already this term.
If the striker is in the mood, he can be the difference against Ipswich and Emery will be hoping he can score for the third league game on the bounce.
Aston Villa’s predicted starting XI vs Ipswich Town – GK – Martinez; RB – Nedeljkovic, CB – Konsa, CB – Torres, LB – Maatsen; CM – Tielemans, CM – Onana; RW – Bailey, AM – Rogers, LW – Ramsey; ST – Duran
