This weekend, Unai Emery could hand Tammy Abraham the opportunity to stake his claim for a regular starting place
Aston Villa's Tammy Abraham(Image: PA)View Image
Aston Villa’s fourth-round FA Cup tie against Newcastle United could give several members of Unai Emery’s squad the opportunity to impress.
It is expected that Emery will make changes to the starting XI he selected to face Brighton on Wednesday night.
Although he made only a few alterations in the third round against Tottenham, the season-ending injury suffered by Boubacar Kamara will be in the back of his mind when choosing his team for Saturday.
Tammy Abraham is one player who could come into the side and make his second start since returning to the club.
At the start of the month, Abraham started against Brentford and was denied a dream second debut when he thought he had equalised in the second half, only for VAR to rule it out after determining the ball had gone out of play 19 seconds earlier.
The 28-year-old striker did not return to the Premier League to be a backup option to Ollie Watkins and is relishing the chance to stake his claim as Emery’s first-choice number nine.
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This weekend’s FA Cup fixture could provide Abraham with the perfect opportunity to force his way into Emery’s thinking ahead of important Premier League matches against Leeds United and Wolves.
Last season, Emery surprised fans by using Marcus Rashford as a striker, preferring him to Watkins in several key games.
After making his debut against Tottenham in the fourth round of the FA Cup, the Manchester United loanee then started against Cardiff City and Preston North End in the following two rounds, giving him the chance to impress Emery.
He played out wide against Cardiff but scored twice at Preston as a centre-forward, giving Emery food for thought heading into the final weeks of the season.
Rashford started all four of Villa’s Champions League knockout matches against Club Brugge and Paris Saint-Germain, while also starting league games against Brighton, Southampton and Manchester City, scoring at both the Amex and the Etihad.
Rashford and Abraham are very different players, but Watkins will know his place in the starting XI is not guaranteed.
Emery often rightly praises Watkins for his work at the top of the pitch, but scoring goals is also vitally important - something Abraham does best.
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