Here we go again. For the 32nd time, Aston Villa stand in anticipation at basecamp of a new Premier League season. It’s fair to say this one will be unlike an of the 31 that came before it.
Villa can accurately be described as ‘new-look’ for a while, which isn’t quite where they wanted to be after winning the Europa League having already a return to the Champions League by finish fourth in the Premier League last season.
They start the new season against Brighton & Hove Albion at the Amex Stadium on Sunday and there’s every likelihood some of the starting line-up will be playing together for the first time.
Villa won both matches against the Seagulls last season, ending their good home start with a bananas 4-3 win at the Amex in early December and grabbing a 1-0 win thanks to an own goal (sort of) at Villa Park in February.
The previous visit to Falmer was also a Villa victory. Marcus Rashford, Marco Asensio and Donyell Malen all scored in the second half of a 3-0 win. No player who scored or assisted that day is still at the club.
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Aston Villa team news
Tammy Abraham – No update since his substitution in the friendly at Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Alejandro Garnacho – Status unknown regarding his clearance through concussion protocols.
Brian Madjo – Likely to be unavailable until September due to injury.
João Gomes – Expected to be out for two or three weeks with a calf injury at the start of the season.
Johan Manzambi – Still carrying a knock after the World Cup.
Amadou Onana – Long-term injury from the World Cup.
Predicted line-up
Formation: 4-2-3-1
Starting XI: Zion Suzuki; Matty Cash, Victor Lindelöf, Pau Torres, Ian Maatsen; Boubacar Kamara, Lamare Bogarde; George Hemmings, Emi Buendía, John McGinn; Ollie Watkins.
Where the hell do we even start?
Villa’s position at the start of the season is truly extraordinary. Nothing in my lifetime supporting the club has been remotely like it.
The aftermath of winning a trophy has been more brutal than expected but at least it has come with a trophy. It’s possible to be sanguine about the extent of the changes knowing that the road took Villa to a destination that actually mattered, but it’s been an intense transfer window for sure.
Losing so many senior players at once so soon after Villa’s best season in generations has been a bizarre experience.
Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, Lucas Digne, Ezri Konsa. It’s quite a list. Emiliano Martínez needs to be added to it. Ollie Watkins needs not to be, but might be anyway.
It’s a quite astounding turnover, not to mention a sad coda, no matter how positive we might be about the flow of players coming in to replace them.
Each one of these departures was likely to happen this summer, or the next, or the next. That’s obvious but it’s important. Villa have expedited their evolution by design and happenstance this summer and the sudden nature of it might not be such a terrible thing in the long run.
Villa have been creeping towards the need to get younger, cheaper, and more profitable in the transfer market.
Bringing that day forward a bit, stocking up with players who can give Emery their best years and still be sold for mega money down the line isn’t going to hurt Villa at all.
The risk is more immediate. If Villa can get through this season relatively unscathed, they could be in a vastly improved spot this time next year. It’s the ‘if’ that’s the concern, and it’s a justifiable one.
Brighton haven’t had the same level of upheaval but there has been a lot of movement in and out of the Amex, not least in defence. Jan Paul van Hecke was sold to Tottenham Hotspur; Pascal Struijk and Luka Vušković signed for Brighton.
Along with Danny Welbeck, now at Chelsea, Brighton have also said goodbye to James Milner, Adam Webster, Solly March and Joël Veltman. It’s not a revolution but there is an element of the changing of the guard.
One thing Villa and Brighton have in common is that they’re two of only a handful of Premier League clubs not to have hired a new manager this summer. In Emery and Fabian Hurzeler, they’ll hope that continuity and consistency will help them ride the wave of change.
Villa have a decent record against Sunday’s opponents. They’ve won three and lost none of the previous four meetings, and have lost just once in the last eleven. Since Villa returned to the Premier League, they have won 30 points from games against Brighton.
How to watch Brighton v Villa
Brighton & Hove Albion v Aston Villa is a 2.00pm kick-off on Sunday 23rd August.
📺 Sky Sports Premier League
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