Aston Villa will be looking to bounce back from their recent slump when they host struggling Crystal Palace at Villa Park.
Unai Emery’s men had suffered four consecutive defeats in all competitions before the international break, including a 2-0 loss to Liverpool last time out.
Emery has been working harder than ever on the training ground to put that right while most of his first-team stars have been playing for their respective countries.
The Spaniard saw Amadou Onana injure his foot on Belgium duty and will be out for two to three weeks, while Ian Maatsen, Pau Torres and Matty Cash were all spotted in training.
Villa will hope the trio will play some part against Palace, especially given one of the Eagles stars looks set to return.
Eberechi Eze set to return for Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace superstar Eberechi Eze suffered a hamstring injury in their Carabao Cup victory over Villa at the end of October.
The 26-year-old missed the clashes against Wolves and Fulham as a result while he was forced to watch on as England clinched back-to-back Nations League victories over Greece and the Republic of Ireland.
Oliver Glasner praised Eze as ‘unbelievable’ in September after he scored and assisted in a 2-1 victory over QPR in the EFL Cup.
Eze has become arguably Palace’s most influential player, especially following the departure of Michael Olise to Bayern Munich, and the attacking midfielder could now return this weekend.
A story from the Daily Mail last week suggested that the Eagles medical staff are optimistic the England international will be fit to take part at Villa Park.
Eze actually scored in their previous outing against Aston Villa before coming off injured after just 18 minutes, and he’s proven to be Villa’s nemesis over the years.
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Eberechi Eze’s record vs Aston Villa
Palace’s No.10 is inarguably one of the most talented playmakers in the Premier League, as showcased by his rise to stardom at Selhurst Park.
Rio Ferdinand once labelled Eze ‘unique’ for the creative energy and spark he provides to his side. He’s capable of ghosting past his markers at speed and being incisive with his end product.
Eze has more often than not produced the goods against Villa, with his goal and assist record speaking volumes of the joy he has in this fixture.
| Eze’s record vs club | Goals | Assists |
| Sheffield United | 5 | 1 |
| Aston Villa | 4 | 2 |
| Wolves | 4 | |
| Leeds United | 3 | 1 |
Should the Englishman be deemed fit enough to start by Glasner, Emery will have to be wary of his threat, as he scored twice and assisted in their 5-0 hammering of Villa in May.
