Aston Villa host Tottenham in this round of the League Cup. Both teams are expected to make massive changes due to fitness concerns over numerous amount’s of players. Aston Villa progressed into this round by beating Rotherham 3-0, while Tottenham automatically qualified due to their Premier League position last season.
Paul Lambert may give starts to Steer, Sylla, Bennett, Helenius and Kozak who are yet to start in the Premier League this season, Lambert has mentioned that he will prioritise the League over the League Cup. Tottenham manager Villas-boas plan’s to do the same, he was furious at the scheduling of the Tottenham game, which resulted in the team play 3 games in 6 days. He mentioned that no one from Sunday’s game will feature tonight due to fitness concerns.
Team News:
Aston Villa have several injury concerns ahead of this game. Christian Benteke will miss this game due to a hip injury suffered in last weekends Norwich game. While Agbonlahor, Delph, Luna and Clark have all picked up slight knocks and may also miss out. Westwood remains a doubt. Okore, N’Zogbia and Gardner all remain out through long-term injuries.
Tottenham will rotate the squad, but only Rose and Defoe remain serious injury doubts.
Match Facts:
The two clubs have met four times in the League Cup, with Aston Villa winning on the last two occasions in 1987 and 1994.
Aston Villa haven’t beaten Tottenham since September 2008, they have played 9 times since then.
They have only conceded one goal to date – Olivier Giroud’s winner for Arsenal.
Predicted Lineups:
Steer
Lowton-Vlaar-Baker-Bennett
Weimann-Sylla-El Ahmadi-Tonev
Helenius
Kozak
Kane
Lamela-Chadli-Lennon
Sandr0-Holby
Naughton-Kaboul-Chiriches-Walker
Friedel
Predictions:
Aston Villa 0-2 Tottenham
Tottenham are favourites for a reason, I change the entire Spur’s first team and it’s still really strong. Aston Villa might’ve had an extra day of rest but if a young, inexperienced defence has to face Lamela, Chadli and Lennon it’s never going to be easy. I hope Aston Villa can get a good result and continue their League Cup run, but it’s going to be massively difficult. Aston Villa even play worse at home!
Absolute disgrace on the feld again last night. The most boring match I’ve seen us play in a while, completely outplayed in every department, dominated. Decided to try and play after we were 2-0 down haha and that still didn’t work.
I’ll say again, we are playing worse football than this time last year. We’re fecking going backwards.
Reading through this I can totally see both sides of the argument, and both are correct, in a way.
Its true, we aren’t very good, and it doesn’t look like we are going to be world beaters anytime soon, Lerner is in it for the money, after-all, he’s a businessman, Lambert doesn’t have a big budget, not his fault, so he tries to do the best he can with it. Imagine if he spent it all on one or two quality players, we would be picking from the youth side now with all these injuries.
Yes, we lost to a “second string” still worth over £70m (hardly a ‘B’ team then), with a near squad of benchwarmers, but we are only 5 games in, 6 points from a crazy set of starting fixtures….not bad IMO….. Therefore definitely too early to be calling for heads.
Last night was dead, I thought being in K5 at least I would be able to sing my heart out and enjoy the game a bit, but I was wrong. I think its a disgrace to not go and support (even when its looking a bit gloomy) that extra buzz around the park can really lift players, especially at 0-0 / 0/1, and at that time, we weren’t too bad.
Most people were more interested in their mobiles, taking pics and kissing their misses.
OK, so after the game, have a whinge and a moan, if deserved, but while your in that seat, play your part and support the team!!!
Well said.
The 12th man is missing.
Hi everyone tough game for Villa last night with injuries but i get the feeling that was going to be Lamberts plan for last nights game all along.I think he is going to have a go to see how high up we can finish in the league an evaluation of if you will.So we are out the cup.If we are mid table by xmas i will be happy as we will have progressed from last season.If we are bottom six at xmas then ask questions.Home form piss poor sort it out Lambert.Away slightly better.Early days yet but i fear against Man Citeh we will get spanked badly.UTV
Haven’t read the comments.. i know what side of the fence some will be sitting on..
BUT let’s be honest we have issues ESP in midfield.. it is worrying.. 4-0 at home isn’t acceptable.. three home defeats on the bounce now..
No one knows IF Bacuna is a RB RM or CM.. we need to give the lad a run in one position otherwise how will we know how good he is.. rather then keep moving him around..
Our best two players are out injured.. Tonev isn’t ready.. Helenius looks shit ( sorry but he does )
Realistically we spent 17M in the summer and brought in one first teamer in Okore..
Even thou Benteke is injured i still rather have had a play maker and Barry on loan then Kojak.. simply because Gabby and Weimann can do play up top and we need a solid midfield which we don’t have..
I am still patient and will stick with PL but that is in the hope that next summer we have 40M to spend on four players.. ST AM DM and a defender If that is not the case then i am in the Ooh aah camp lol
Completely agree Lionheart £17m on one first team player, problem is it may be too late by next season as we might be in Championship !!
Hindsight… Okore 4M.. Luna 1.5M.. the rest of the dosh on a AM and DM..
Tough couple of months ahead could be touching cloth by xmas get the Andrex at the ready try not to leave any tank tracks Lambert UTV
If Alex McLeish had had that result last night then we would want his head on stick. Lambert is getting away with it lightly. He is totally incompetant, tactically clueless and doesn’t inspire. The bloke is totally out of his depth. Trying to make a silk perse out of a sous ear. Fact, the bloke has spent nearly £40m in the last two summers with no improvement. We have a squad full of ‘tryers’ but no skill. Excluding Benteke his signings have been poor.
Lambert out!
For £20m, what players would please you???
Shawcross
Agree again but do think Okore would have been a good sigh if he wasn’t injured 🙁
Any players that can pass to another team mate and control a football. So that’s most players apart from the crap that Lambert has lumbered us with.
Why are people always sticking up for this incompetent fool? He still can’t put a team together that can at least compete in a home game. Its dire.
Which players would these be then?
Should of got Barry what a difference he would if made. And def should of kept bent. And before u slate me I was one of the few that was against bent going I was not calling for him to go
Agree with Barry, missed a trick there, the Bent situation was a little different though, he didn’t want to be a bench warmer unfortunately, i’d have kept him if he’d been happy to play second fiddle.
Me to could really use those 2 now 🙁
Agree lambert out but unfortunately lambert is here to stay for a few more months at least. Also if he went then who comes in that’s any better? I can’t think if anyone right now it’s not like we would get mourunho it would be someone like pd canio etc
I think we should have kept Bent, with Gabby and Albrighton up front, Ireland tucked in behind, Delph and someone else in midfield and Warnock and Dunne in defence, with a couple of other defenders bought in and Given in goal. The alternative I suppose was to completely rebuild the team using new and academy players and with just Gabby and to a certain extent Albrighton remaining. Delph would count had he ever played before. The idea, presumably, being to build a team into which new players could be injected where necessary (see: Okore and Luna). £40million or whatever it is has rebuilt the team and we’re in 13th.
Had we won the Chelsea match we’d have been in seventh, would it be “Lambert out” and talk of Championship or league football then? I’m the first to admit though that my crystal ball is nowhere near as good as those of many on here.
But we didn’t win it if this if that means nothing
Ireland? you are joking i assume? 🙂
What do you think? Damn, I forgot Bannan. The whole team needed rebuilding, then you need to work out who to keep and who needs replacing. While remaining in the PL. Which is where we are.
For what it’s worth, I think Vlaar is doing ok too.
Ha. was going to say, you’re one of the most rational posters on here, thought for a minute the world really had gone mad.
Oh dear, WBA & Swansea go out of the Cup too, with only Swansea a point ahead of us and WBA a point behind in the league, surely both managers are due for the chop now too???????
Personally, I’m glad we’re out of the cup.