Aston Villa could be inspired to hand Morgan Rogers a start against West Ham United this afternoon, with Unai Emery expected to make a number of changes to his starting XI.
Aston Villa will be even more motivated to beat West Ham United this afternoon after seeing Tottenham fumble the opportunity to claim fourth place.
Unai Emery’s side were stripped of their confidence last week courtesy of the North Londoners, who left Villa Park with three points after scoring four second-half goals to stun the Villans.
Spurs’ 3-0 defeat to Fulham yesterday meant that Villa can now extend their lead in the top-four race to five points, with West Ham now posing a difficult challenge for the Midlands club to overcome.
Aston Villa team news vs West Ham
Villa rebuilt their belief on Thursday with an emphatic 4-0 win over Ajax to reach the Europa Conference League quarter-finals.
Just like Emery’s side, West Ham were impressive that evening with a 5-0 win over Freiburg in the Europa League, making this afternoon’s fixture an interesting duel to watch unfold.
Emery could be tempted to make a few changes to his side, particularly with the latest injury news placing doubts over the availability of both Ollie Watkins and Jacob Ramsey.
Watkins was taken off just after the half-hour mark against Ajax after sustaining a cut to his knee, while Ramsey was out of contention due to his ongoing injury woes.
John McGinn will today begin his three-match ban following his sending-off against Spurs last week, with the opportunity there for a host of talent to now make their mark in the starting XI.
Morgan Rogers should start against West Ham this afternoon
One player who could benefit from Emery’s injury list is Morgan Rogers, who took the place of Ramsey against Ajax on Thursday.
The Englishman was hauled off at half-time due to concerns over him already being on a yellow card however, the January arrival was impressive prior to his exit.
Completing 100% of his passes against Ajax, Rogers pulled off two key passes in the early stages of the contest, via Sofascore, showcasing just how dangerous he can be in the final third.
Once lauded as “terrific” for his playmaking aura by former coach Michael Carrick, the 21-year-old could now make his Premier League debut this afternoon in a bid to impress Emery.
One element that Villa miss through Ramsey’s absence is his ability to carry the ball upfield, something that the former Middlesbrough ace can equip the front line with due to his strengths in possession.
It could be the chance for Rogers to fully impose himself on Villa at a critical point in the season, with the opportunity there for the £15m signing to show his worth in the top-flight this afternoon against the Hammers.
