Unai Emery has confirmed his Aston Villa starting eleven for this afternoon's crucial Premier League encounter with leaders Arsenal at Villa Park.
Martinez Returns in Key Villa Changes
The Villa manager has made a couple of alterations to the side that secured a dramatic 4-3 victory away at Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday night. The most significant news is that goalkeeper Emi Martinez is fit to start against his former club, having successfully overcome a back injury.
Martinez will take his place between the posts, shielded by a back four of Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres, and Ian Maatsen. In midfield, the double pivot consists of Boubacar Kamara and Amadou Onana.
Attacking Threat Aiming for Home Record
Ahead of them, captain John McGinn is joined by Youri Tielemans and Morgan Rogers in supporting lone striker Ollie Watkins. This attacking unit will be tasked with extending Villa's formidable home record.
Aston Villa are chasing their ninth consecutive home victory in all competitions. Their form at Villa Park in the league has been exceptionally strong, with just one defeat in their last 25 Premier League matches there. That solitary loss came against today's opponents, Arsenal, over fifteen months ago.
Title Implications on the Line at Villa Park
The visitors arrive in Birmingham with an impressive away record of their own. Arsenal have lost only one of their last 21 Premier League away fixtures – a 1-0 defeat at Liverpool in August. Notably, each of their last three away defeats have been by a 1-0 scoreline, and they are unbeaten in 30 away games when scoring at least once.
The stakes are high for this clash. A victory for Aston Villa would see them close the gap to Arsenal at the summit to just three points, applying significant pressure before the Gunners' trip to West Ham United next weekend.
Aston Villa starting XI vs Arsenal: Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Maatsen; Kamara, Onana; McGinn, Tielemans, Rogers; Watkins.
Substitutes: Bizot, Lindelof, Digne, Garcia, Bogarde, Hemmings, Buendia, Malen, Sancho.
