Emery faces Diego Carlos dilemma as winger benched - Aston Villa predicted XI v Bournemouth - gallery

Here’s how we predict Aston Villa’s starting lineup to look against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League on Saturday.

Aston Villa return to Villa Park on Saturday afternoon as they round off their Premier League fixtures before the international break with a game against AFC Bournemouth. Very much still on the fringes of the top half, The Villans have been in good form and will be eager to continue that in front of home supporters.

Last time out it was two points dropped away at West Ham United, as Ollie Watkins’ first half opener was cancelled out by a Said Benrahma penalty at the London Stadium. Before that, Villa managed a narrow 1-0 win over Crystal Palace and a confident 2-0 victory at Everton.

On paper, with Bournemouth in the relegation zone as it stands, another positive result should be likely on the weekend but The Cherries will be tough to beat. Gary O’Neil’s side surprised everyone as they earned three points against Liverpool last weekend and before that they were very close to getting a result away at Arsenal, losing 3-2.

No side has conceded more goals in the Premier League this season than Bournemouth (51), but they’ve showed they can really perform on their day. They also enjoyed success in the West Midlands just a month ago as they beat an in-form Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0.

With that in mind, we think Emery will respect The Cherries and go near-on full strength on Saturday. Here is our predicted starting XI – in a 4-4-2 formation.

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