Aston Villa: Second City Derby lineup projections
By Josh Tonti
It is here, folks. Gabby Agbonlahor’s biannual holiday takes place Sunday. Aston Villa host rival Birmingham City in England’s “Second City Derby.”
For once, what feels like a millennia, Aston Villa Football Club go into a league match at full-strength.
Long-term absentee Jonathan Kodjia should be the only player unavailable through injury. Christopher Samba is back in training, while Gabby Agbonlahor is fit again after a pair of calf injuries derailed his season to date.
Now the question becomes, can he actually find a way into Steve Bruce’s plans?
Aston Villa Projected XI (4-1-4-1): Johnstone; Elmohamady, Chester, Terry, Hutton; Bjarnason; Snodgrass, Grealish, Hourihane, Adomah; Hogan.
Substitutes: Bunn, Taylor, Tuanzebe, Jedinak, Onomah, Grabban, Davis.
There shouldn’t be any surprises in the starting eleven following six league wins on the bounce. Birkir Bjarnason continues as the anchor in midfield. Likewise, Alan Hutton and Ahmed Elmohamady keep their fullback positions amid competition from Neil Taylor and Axel Tuanzebe, respectively.
As for the bench…
There remains an embarrassment of riches from which to choose from for manager Steve Bruce. Lewis Grabban, fresh off a Deadline Day loan move, gets involved for the first time with Aston Villa. Gabby’s checkered history against Blues is well known, but Villa should not afford the luxury of his inclusion at the sake of someone else more deserving.
That said, in what I think Bruce runs with, Samba, Gabby, Glenn Whelan, Rushian Hepburn-Murphy, André Green, Henri Lansbury, and Callum O’Hare all fail to make the bench. Again, an embarrassment of riches to choose from.
Birmingham City lowdown
Blues are fresh off FA Cup defeat – dropping to Premier League side Huddersfield Town on Tuesday afternoon. They lost 4-1, but it went into extra time. Expect fatigue to be a small factor considering some who line-up on Saturday played a full 120 minutes just days prior.
Incumbent left back Jonathan Grounds suffered a knee injury last weekend. He’s out, so Arsenal loanees Cohen Bramall or Carl Jenkinson might take-up the position. Additionally, Villa-killer David Davis should return to the starting lineup after being withheld against David Wagner’s Terriers.
Prediction: 2-1 Aston Villa victory.
Give me Villa by the narrowest of margins. The Villa Park home boost will be real as the faithful are in full voice. Albert Adomah to convert a first-half penalty with Sam Gallagher retaliating before the break. Adomah wins it in the second-half.
The Second City Derby is live on Sky in the U.K. and stream-able in the U.S. via WatchESPN. UTV!