Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace predicted line-ups: 13 ruled out and two doubts ahead of Premier League clash
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Aston Villa will round off their Premier League campaign with a clash against in-form Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon. The Villans can rest easy knowing that they have already qualified for the Champions League next season, and that fourth spot is concretely theirs.
Unai Emery’s men drew 3-3 with Liverpool in midweek thanks to two late goals from Jhon Duran, and that result, coupled with Tottenham’s defeat to Manchester City, was enough to book their place at the top table despite being in the midst of a winless streak of three matches.
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Hide AdBy contrast, Palace are flying at the moment, winning four out of their last five top flight matches and climbing to 12th in the table. The highest Oliver Glasner’s side can finish this term is 10th, provided they win against Villa and results elsewhere go their way.
But how will both sides line up at Selhurst Park this weekend? We’ve taken a closer look at their respective team news and predicted XIs below...
Aston Villa Team News
Villa have more than their fair share of injury issues to deal with as they head into the final game of the season. Tyrone Mings, Emiliano Buendia, and Boubacar Kamara all remain sidelined with serious knee injuries, and are not expected back until later in the year. Jacob Ramsey continues to struggle with a persistent toe complaint, and will not play on Sunday.
Elswhere, Morgan Rogers is suffering from a hamstring strain, Nicolo Zaniolo is carrying a knock, and Matty Cash has a calf issue. All three are likely to miss out. In better news, however, Alex Moreno should have a good chance of featuring in some capacity. Speaking last week, Emery said: 'Alex Moreno will need a few days and maybe could be available [for Liverpool].' The full-back missed out on Monday, but may be fit enough for selection on Sunday.
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Hide AdAston Villa Predicted XI
Emiliano Martinez; Ezri Konsa, Diego Carlos, Pau Torres, Lucas Digne; Youri Tielemans, Douglas Luiz; Leon Bailey, Moussa Diaby, John McGinn; Ollie Watkins.
Crystal Palace Team News
Similarly, Palace are facing a number of injury issues too. Goalkeeper Sam Johnstone is sidelined following elbow surgery, while Rob Holding, Cheick Doucoure, and Matheus Franca are also expected to miss out. Speaking about the latter at the end of March, Glasner said: 'Matheus has a problem with his groin. It's a little bit more difficult because when we increase the intensity of his training, he gets pain again. I cannot tell exactly when he will be back.'
Will Hughes picked up a knee injury during the win over Wolves last weekend, and will now face a fitness test. Discussing the midfielder, Glasner said: 'We hope that it's not that serious. It was a crash knee-to-knee, but I hope that his leg was in the air so that nothing happened with a tear. He has pain, so we will see.' Naouirou Ahamada is suspended following a sending off in that match.
And finally, Jefferson Lerma should be in contention to feature. Speaking last weekend, Glasner said: 'Jefferson took part in the last two sessions, so it is too early for him, but he will be back for Aston Villa.'
Dean Henderson; Nathaniel Clyne, Joachim Andersen, Marc Guehi; Daniel Munoz, Adam Wharton, Chris Richards, Tyrick Mitchel; Michael Olise, Eberechi Eze; Jean-Philippe Mateta.
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