Unai Emery choosing the Aston Villa squad for Legia Warsaw at a late hour
To find a balance between fielding a team that can win the tie and managing workload, the manager was scheduled to meet with his team this morning before deciding on a starting XI.
If Villa defeats their Polish opponents by two goals or more, they can win the group and advance to the competition’s last-16, avoiding a further play-off round against a team that has been eliminated from the Europa League.
Although Emery is eager to choose his best team and is conscious of the significance of the match, he is also concerned about the strain that will be placed on the players during a busy period that includes Villa’s upcoming 10-day Premier League matches against Bournemouth, Manchester City, and Arsenal.
He clarified, “We have to be clinical in how we take minutes because we are going to play a lot of matches.” “After the effort on Sunday (at Tottenham), some players may feel a little bit tired, while others are recovering from injuries. We are meeting at the hotel in the morning, and I will make the final decision.
“We are aware of how crucial tomorrow is to us. We have to win if we hope to place first in the group. My opinion of the players we’ll use tomorrow remains unchanged. Our players have my faith and confidence, and I look forward to seeing great performances from each of them.I’m going to make a decision while attempting to create a balanced starting lineup.
After missing Sunday’s victory over Tottenham due to a minor injury, Nicolo Zaniolo is back in the lineup. Emery has hinted that Boubacar Kamara, who is suspended for the weekend’s trip to Bournemouth, will start.
“We are discussing how we can handle it, keeping in mind the plan for the upcoming week, with the players, doctors, and physiotherapists,” stated Emery. However, we must play tomorrow with a strong starting lineup, so that is the only thing to do.
