This article is part of our Game Previews series. Aston Villa will be aiming to return to the win column after a midweek Champions League defeat at the hands of Monaco. Aston Villa sit eighth in place on 36 points, just two points back of fifth place in a crowded Premier League table as they challenge for European qualification. The Hammers sit in 14th place on 26 points with a comfortable point cushion between themselves and the drop zone.
Since that time, West Ham have won five meetings, drawn four and lost just three. However, Aston Villa has defeated the Hammers in three of their last four meetings. West Ham lead the all-time series over the Villans narrowly, having won 45 times, drawn on 36 occasions and having suffered 41 losses. Over the unbeaten stretch, the Villans are averaging 1. Aston Villa are likely to line up in their familiar and well-drilled under Emery.
West Ham lined up in a for Potter's first two fixtures before the Englishman experimented, much to the team's detriment, with a in their most recent fixture that resulted in the team going down a man in a loss to Crystal Palace. I would expect Potter to revert to his roots and match the opponent's shape. Manager Unai Emery will face key decisions in the midfield as he determines how to most effectively deploy the Aston Villa starting XI. John McGinn hamstring , Amadou Onana hamstring and Ross Barkley calf will be unavailable for the fixture as they continue to ramp up their fitness levels ahead of their respective returns.
Key defender Pau Torres foot remains weeks away from a return. Lucas Digne and Ian Maatsen have alternated starts at left full-back over Villa's last five fixtures, though Digne has been the preferred option for Premier League fixtures this season. Matty Cash is the most apparent selection for Emery on the right side of the defensive unit, having started and played the full 90 minutes in each of Villa's last five fixtures.
In the midfield, Emery's most trusted name on the team sheet is Boubacar Kamara , who has made 14 successive starts across all competitions in the holding midfield role. In weathering the aforementioned midfield injuries, Kamara was partnered in the midfield double-pivot with Youri Tielemans , who dropped back a line, in Villa's most recent fixture, a midweek loss to Monaco in the Champions League.
