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Tykes Come to Town: Aston Villa vs Barnsley

By Joel Rawlin

BARNSLEY, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 25: Joe Williams of Barnsley gives instructions to his team mates during the Sky Bet Championship match between Barnsley and Leeds United at Oakwell Stadium on November 25, 2017 in Barnsley, England. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)
BARNSLEY, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 25: Joe Williams of Barnsley gives instructions to his team mates during the Sky Bet Championship match between Barnsley and Leeds United at Oakwell Stadium on November 25, 2017 in Barnsley, England. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images) /
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On the back of a solid win away at Nottingham Forest last Saturday, Villa entertain a Barnsley side who’ve only won once in the last twelve games.

Barnsley could come into Saturday’s game with renewed confidence however after a battling for a draw against league leaders Wolves. The hard-fought point saw them extend their unbeaten run to four games. A mini-revival which has pulled them just clear of the relegation spots.

Lloyd Isgrove and Ryan Hedges could be back in action for Barnsley following injury scares. Zeki Fryer and Angus MacDonald should miss out due to injury. Gary Gardner will also be missing as he’s still owned by Villa.

Expect a few youngsters in and around the Barnsley team after their boss Paul Heckingbottom told their official site,

"“We’ve a lot of young lads with us for this game, from the academy and that’s just where we’re at right now. But it’s an opportunity for others as always, it’s a chance and what a game for that to happen.”"

(Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)
(Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images) /

Scott Hogan finally seems to be hitting a bit of form and his confidence looks to have returned especially after recent comments. That’ll only help Aston Villa’s chances going into this game.

Little has been said about Mile Jedinak’s injury after he missed out on the win over Forest, so I expect him to miss out. Whelan is the likely replacement but with Bjarnason stepping in so well last week hopefully Bruce rewards him with a start.

Predicted Aston Villa XI

Johnstone; Elmohamady, Terry, Chester, Hutton; Bjarnason, Hourihane, Grealish; Snodgrass, Hogan, Adomah – 4-3-3/4-2-3-1

Subs: Steer, Taylor, Onomah, Lansbury, Whelan, Green, Davis

Score: 3-0 Aston Villa (Hogan, Snodgrass and Grealish)

We beat Barnsley comfortably 4-0 at their place earlier in the season and even after their recent unbeaten run, they are struggling in the league. With Terry back to organise the defence and Hogan hopefully hitting the form we expected we should go into the game on the front foot. A good performance and a win will do to help us close the gap on the top two.

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