Aston Villa will have turned their attention to the Europa Conference League as Unai Emery prepares to go to battle with LOSC Lille on Thursday night.
Aston Villa will hope to turn their recent form around as the Villans welcome Ligue 1 outfit LOSC Lille to Villa Park on Thursday night.
Unai Emery’s side will play the first leg of the quarter-final at home, giving the squad the chance to impose themselves in front of a home crowd before travelling to France for the decisive second leg.
It’s been a difficult few weeks for the Villans, taking just one win from their previous five in the Premier League, with the chance to now right their wrongs in Europe.
While Villa’s objective is clear, Emery must now work on one crucial thing ahead of facing Lille, who have been incredibly strong in one area that the Villans have been lacking in recent weeks.
Unai Emery must look to mirror one Lille strength at Aston Villa
Sitting five points clear of Nice in the race for fourth place in Ligue 1, the spot looks to be Lille’s to lose this season.
One of the reasons for the successes that Paulo Fonseca’s side has achieved so far is the rigidness of their defence that has leaked just 24 goals in the French top-flight this campaign.
Lille are one of the three clubs still in the competition that are yet to lose in this season’s Europa Conference League, telling of the challenges Emery’s side may face on Thursday.
While Villa’s presence in the Premier League will automatically make them one of the teams to beat in the competition, the Villans may want to take a leaf out of their opposition’s book when it comes to defending.
This campaign, Villa have conceded an eye-watering 49 goals in the Premier League, more than relegation candidates Everton, just to hammer home how frail the Midlands club have been at the back.
Having conceded 12 goals in their previous five Premier League matches, Villa must repair the issues in their backline to mirror the strength of Lille, who have conceded five goals in their previous five Ligue 1 games.
Aston Villa must be at their best to beat LOSC Lille on Thursday
Villa must remain rigid at the back to maintain the threat that their French opposition will exert however, attention must equally be on the club’s ability to find a way to break down Lille’s robust defence.
That’s where the game could become fascinating, with the Villans being the better team when it comes to scoring goals, netting 66 in the Premier League this term to Lille’s 42 in Ligue 1.
It’s not often that sides are able to get the best of Fonseca’s defence although, Villa have the tools to navigate a way to clear such a hurdle.
