Liverpool‘s clash away from home against Aston Villa has fallen kindly to the Merseysiders given the hosts have injury issues and have struggled for form, Reds expert David Lynch has claimed.
Arne Slot‘s side are set to take on Unai Emery‘s Villa on Wednesday in the Premier League, and a victory would see the Reds move 10 points ahead of second-placed Arsenal in the top flight.
Villa are ninth in the league and will be missing several key players on Wednesday, including midfielders Amadou Onana and Boubacar Kamara, as well as centre-backs Ezri Konsa and Pau Torres.
Though Lynch acknowledged that the Merseysiders will likely face a difficult test at an atmospheric stadium, Slot should be confident of victory, telling Sports Mole: “It’s looking a little bit less tough of a fixture than it would have two or three months ago. Their injuries and their form – [no wins] in four games in the Premier League and that last one against Ipswich was extremely disappointing.
“But alongside that, you’ve got to say that it’s never straightforward going to Villa Park, particularly under lights. They generate a great atmosphere there. I love going to that ground, it’s one of the best in English football. It can be on it in these big games, so Liverpool have got to be very careful, but I don’t predict that Liverpool’s poor performances that we’ve seen in the last two will continue.
“A game like this, where you have to be on it, you’re in a tough place to go – it’s a really good opportunity for them to put a marker down. In terms of what’s on offer, a 10-point lead at the top of the Premier League is huge [with] what that could do to Arsenal and their mentality.”
Liverpool beat Aston Villa 2-0 in the reverse fixture, but it would not be surprising if they scored more than once considering the home team’s absentees.
Should Jones come into the XI?
Curtis Jones was dismissed after the final whistle against Everton on February 12 but is now available for selection, and there is an argument that he should come straight into the starting lineup.
Liverpool’s midfield looked somewhat disjointed and tired against Wolverhampton Wanderers last Sunday, so perhaps Jones should be given a place in the XI to provide the likes of Ryan Gravenberch or Alexis Mac Allister with rest.
Speaking to Sports Mole, Lynch had no issue with the idea of throwing Jones into the team to try and freshen the midfield, saying: “The problem the manager’s got here is he’s so big on the Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Gravenberch three, and you’re thinking Villa away, tough one on paper, you’d love to put what is your best midfield out.
“In that last couple [of games] there’s been a bit of leginess, so in the central area it would be nice – [Slot’s] got Curtis Jones back, he’s fresh, he’s ready to bring him in, but the big question is do you lose Szoboszlai’s incredible engine by taking him out? Can you afford to lose Mac Allister, who I think is Liverpool’s most important midfielder? I think the manager would say that.
“Or do you mix things up in that holding role and take Gravenberch out, who’s been so key? That’s the tough decision there – who does Curtis Jones come in for? But I wouldn’t be against seeing him in the starting lineup at all.”
Gravenberch is one of three Liverpool players to have started all 25 of the club’s Premier League games so far this term, while Mac Allister has started 22.
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Nunez: Start or bench?
While Slot has been boosted by the availability of Jones, he has been hampered by the injury to Cody Gakpo, who could return to face Manchester City on Sunday.
Gakpo’s absence on the left side of attack will almost certainly mean that Luis Diaz will start on the opposite flank to Mohamed Salah, and that would leave Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez in a straight battle for a starting spot as the team’s striker.
However, while Lynch believes that Nunez would theoretically be more suited to playing against Aston Villa, it is difficult to start him based off of his performance against Wolves.
Lynch told Sports Mole: “In that central area, you would have looked at this and thought this is one that suits Darwin Nunez, and yet I looked at his performance off the bench at the weekend and he’s played himself out of it. He was quite poor when he came on. He’s shown some improvements in his form of late, but it was really disappointing what he produced when he came on against Wolves.
“[He] didn’t even seem to be pressing with his usual intensity. I wonder, was he a little bit disappointed he didn’t start when it looked like that would have been a good opportunity for him to do so? Was there a bit of sulking going on there? You never know. Or was it just Liverpool were under pressure? It wasn’t really his fault.
“I wouldn’t be surprised to see Jota start again. I didn’t think his performance was perfect. I don’t think anybody’s performances in centre-forward for Liverpool this season have been perfect, but with Diaz being on that left-hand side, the way that the manager spoke about Jota in his pre-match press conference and the role he played in the first goal against Wolves, that might be enough to squeeze him into the starting 11.”
Nunez has only started seven Premier League games for Liverpool in 2024-25, and though Jota has started just eight, his appearances have been restricted by injuries rather than performance level.
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