Steven Gerrard hints at Villa experimentation, giving ‘opportunities’ to fringe players before end of season

Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard has hinted at the possibility of a bit of a shake up at Villa Park prior to the end of the campaign with many players, bluntly speaking, playing for their Villa futures.

The defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday was the fourth in a row and it’s evident for all to see, nobody more than Gerrard, that change is required.

At this point many would argue that certain individuals have had their chance and with nothing bar pride to play for for the remainder of the season, others, whether that be youngsters or fringe payers deserve a chance to impress.

Speaking prior to the Spurs game this weekend, the former England skipper made it clear that he and the team were still very much set on a top 10 finish but whilst that remains the priority, he alluded to wanting to try new things before season’s end.

“I have to get the balance right because it doesn’t feel good at the moment to be on the back of three defeats and certainly made my feelings known in terms of what I felt, in terms of putting ourselves in a difficult position last week,” Gerrard explained.

“I’ve got to get the balance right and think about the now in terms of finishing the season as strong as we can. I see it as an opportunity to try and finish in the top 10 which I see as a real positive because it hasn’t happened for many many years here.

“At the same time, I want to give people opportunities, I want people to see the people that they haven’t seen much i.e. people that have been injured or people who haven’t had opportunities to play.

“But at the same time I can only give them opportunities and be true to them people if they deserve them on the training pitch so as a manager you pick the players that you trust and who you think are the best players to get you the results that you need.

“I’m also aware that where we’re at in the job, where we want to get to in the job, that certain individuals are seen as well.”

Villa are now not back in action until 23rd April when they make the short trip to the King Power Stadium to take on Leicester City.

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