We have a great game to look forward to in the battle for the top four. Aston Villa assume Tottenham Hotspur at Villa Park this afternoon.
Villa comes into the game after a 0-0 draw against Ajax in their European League round of 16 clash on Thursday night, so they are in good shape to reach the quarter-finals. Unai Emery's men are also well placed to qualify for the Champions League since they occupy fourth place in the first division table after beating Luton Town last weekend.
The Villans have a five-point lead over fifth-placed Tottenham, and although Spurs have a game in hand, Villa can still cement their place in the top four with a win today.
Emi Martínez once again starts in goal, while Villa's defense is made up of Enzo Konsa, Clement Lenglet, Pau Torres and Lucas Digne. Matty Cash is also remembered to start along with John McGinn. Douglas Luiz has been excellent for Villa this season and the Brazilian will hope to put in a dominant performance in midfield this afternoon.
Ollie Watkins will look to continue his excellent form by scoring today as he leads the Aston Villa forward line. Leon Bailey and Youri Tielemans support Watkins in attack.
As for Tottenham, they stayed in touch with Villa with a comeback win over Crystal Palace last weekend, so they will look to give their top four hopes a big boost with a win at Villa Park.
Vicario once again starts in goal while Destiny Udogie, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven join Pedro Porro in the Tottenham defense after recovering from injury.
Rodrigo Bentancur drops to the bench as Yves Bissouma and Papa Sarr start in midfield, while James Maddison is in the advanced midfield position.
Hueng-min Son starts in attack along with Dejan Kulusevski and Brennan Johnson. Timo Werner drops to the bench.
Here are the confirmed lineups:
Aston Villa
Martinez; Konsa, Torres, Lenglet; Cash, Luiz, McGinn, Digne; Bailey, Tielemans; Watkins.
Substitutes: Carlos, Alex Moreno, Diaby, Zaniolo, Durán, Olsen, Rogers, Kesler-Hayden, Iroegbunam
Tottenham
Vicar; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bissouma, Sarr; Kulusevski, Maddison, Johnson; Son.
Substitutes: Austin, Royal, Dragusin, Davies, Hojbjerg, Bentancur, Lo Celso, Werner, Scarlett.
