Aston Villa head to Amsterdam on Thursday evening for the first leg of their UEFA Conference League tie against Ajax.
The European clash kickstarts a pivotal week for Unai Emery’s side, with Tottenham Hotspur heading to Villa Park on Sunday.
Aston Villa have been boosted by the return to training of Diego Carlos and Jhon Duran. The duo follow Ezri Konsa and Pau Torres out of the treatment room.
The return of Konsa, Torres and Carlos could see the Spaniard rejig his backline. Clement Lenglet has been ever-present since the turn of the year and could be well-deserving of a rest ahead of a busy schedule.
One concern is midfielder Jacob Ramsey.
And talking in his latest press conference, Emery confirmed the “very important” midfielder would miss the trip to Amsterdam.
Jacob Ramsey out of Aston Villa v Ajax
The Express and Star’s Matt Maher wrote via his personal X account: “Positive news for Aston Villa on Jacob Ramsey. He’ll miss tomorrow’s match v Ajax but not yet ruled out v Tottenham on Sunday. Unai Emery says it isn’t a serious injury.”
Emery added on the midfielder’s fitness: “He is not available for tomorrow. He doesn’t have a big injury, but we have to wait every day to see how he is progressing to be available for the next match on Sunday.
“But it’s good news it’s not again a big injury like he had before.”
Ajax are also dealing with a number of injury issues. Former Tottenham winger Steven Bergwijn is expected to miss out after spending time on the touchline with a hamstring injury. Defender Josip Sutalo is also out of Thursday’s clash, and Anton Gaaei and Steven Berghuis are both doubts.
Will Emery rotate his Aston Villa starting XI?
As previously alluded to, it wouldn’t be a complete shock to see one or two starters given a rest for the first leg.
The beauty of European knockout football is there is always a second leg to right any wrongs.
With a huge match against Tottenham three days later, keeping the squad fresh will be vital, especially with Ange Postecoglou’s side having a free week beforehand.
The weekend clash feels like a significant moment in the season. An away win will put Spurs just two points behind Villa with a game in hand.
