Aston Villa vs Rotherham United: Predicted Starting XI
By Clayton Nass
Two teams face very different but ultimately relevant scenarios in the Wednesday night clash at New York Stadium. Can our boys in the Claret and Blue make it 7 on-the-spin?
Aston Villa currently rest in 6th place, 2/3/4 points clear of 7th, 8th, and 9th, respectively. A mid-week win at New York Stadium would vault them back to 5th place, just 4 points off 4th. Having just missed out on promotion last year, ending on the precipice again would be heartbreaking. A higher finish would certainly aide in the quest to go up.
Meanwhile, Rotherham United face an all together different scenario. Time is growing short for Paul Warne’s side, as they desperately need to bag points in order to avoid relegation. Rotherham currently sit in 22nd, just one point clear of safety with 6 matches to play. Having arrived back in the EFL Championship after a one year absence, ping-ponging back down this season would surely be akin to constantly slipping backward every time you try to take a step up a hill.
The Millers should be getting a defensive boost to help combat Aston Villa’s goal scoring prowess. Per BBC, defender Joe Mattock will be available for selection this evening, after being sidelined the previous match with an illness. Rotherham have conceded 68 goals, which is tied for the most in the Championship (Bolton), so being at full strength defensively is paramount for them.
The defense for Rotherham will need to tighten up if they want to take 3 points from this match. The offense has been somewhat capable, however, it has only scored more than 2 goals just once this entire campaign, against Blackburn’s 21st ranked defense.
For Aston Villa, reaching that 2 goal mark should feel extremely attainable. The on fire and in form man is John McGinn, who has bagged 4 goals and 2 assists in his last 4 league matches. He will certainly be looking to continue his great run of form against a side that will likely offer up a number of opportunities.
If this Aston Villa side can take their chances well, they should be able to cope with the new* back four, as Kortney Hause is likely going to be unavailable for today’s match. It would be great to see Axel Tuanzebe develop an equally formidable partnership with Tyrone Mings, giving Dean Smith plenty of defensive firepower to optimize his back line as the season closes.
Predicted Aston Villa Starting XI: Steer, Elmohamady, Tuanzebe, Mings, Taylor; Hourihane, McGinn, Grealish; El Ghazi, Abraham, Green.
Substitutes: Šarkic, Whelan, Kodjia, Adomah, Davis, Jedinak, Lansbury
I think Hourihane gets the nod here, if only to give Whelan a bit of a rest considering he had to play the full 90′ on Saturday. Adomah and Kodjia have performed admirably in their substitute roles, and I don’t see that changing.
WHEN: 10 April, 2019 @ 19:45 GMT / 2:45 p.m. EST
WHERE: New York Stadium
PREDICTION: 3-1 Villa (Abraham, McGinn, Kodjia)