Harvey Elliott decision made: Aston Villa team news for Premier League game at Newcastle United
Manager Unai Emery has named his team for Aston Villa’s Premier League match against Newcastle United this afternoon.
Villa are looking for their first win at St James’ Park since a dramatic and notorious 3-0 victory in the Premier League in 2005. They’ll try to do so with something approaching a first choice eleven albeit backed up by a substitutes’ bench that is less than ideal.
Emery has made five changes to his starting line-up from Thursday’s win in the Europa League but the most noteworthy names both appear among the replacements, not the starters.
Winger Leon Bailey is named in the squad for the first time since returning from a truncated season-long loan in Serie A with Roma, while there’s also a surprise place on the bench for Harvey Elliott, whose future at Villa appears doomed. He hasn’t been involved since October.
Five changes for Villa against Newcastle
Goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez is restored to the side after missing the midweek trip to Istanbul with an injury and the bulk of Emery’s five changes are to include the three defenders who sat out the game against Fenerbahçe.
That means starts for Ian Maatsen, Pau Torres and Ezri Konsa, who captains the team again in the absence of injured midfielder John McGinn.
With McGinn and Boubacar Kamara both out, Villa are boosted by the availability from the start of Amadou Onana, who replaces Lamare Bogarde in the middle. Bogarde drops to the bench.
Villa team news in full
Starting XI: Martínez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Maatsen, Onana, Tielemans, Sancho, Buendía, Rogers, Watkins
Substitutes: Bizot, Lindelöf, Digne, Mings, Bogarde, Hemmings, Bailey, Elliott, Guessand
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