Emiliano Martínez and Pau Torres decision made: Aston Villa team news against West Ham United

Manager Unai Emery has named his team for Aston Villa’s Premier League match against West Ham United this afternoon.

Villa have won their last eight matches in all competitions and will be looking for a second consecutive victory against West Ham at the London Stadium.

Emery has been forced into two changes from Villa’s win over Arsenal last weekend. Emiliano Martínez and Pau Torres both missed the Basel game in midweek through injury and remain unavailable this afternoon.

That means goalkeeper Marco Bizot and defender Victor Lindelöf come into the side as they did in Switzerland on Thursday. Elsewhere, the eleven reverts to the team that started against the Gunners last Saturday lunchtime.

Defensive injuries are starting to bite for Villa

I’m certainly not going to panic with the team in third place in the Premier League table but it’s noteworthy that Villa, who have been relatively fortunate with injuries over the last month or so, have significant absentees piling up at one end of the pitch.

The state of the squad as I see it is that Villa can manage an injury at centre-back as long as it’s to one of the players on the left of the back two – as they have been – or, at a push, at full-back.

Lose Torres and Tyrone Mings at the same time or Ezri Konsa at all, though, and they’ve got a problem.

Lindelöf has looked reliable enough in the Europa League when he’s been on his more comfortable right-hand side but there’s no escaping that today’s back four, with a second-choice goalkeeper behind them, is going to be targeted by the opposition.

Young goalkeeper James Wright has been named on the bench this afternoon.

Villa team news in full

Starting XI: Bizot, Cash, Konsa, Lindelöf, Maatsen, Kamara, Onana, Tielemans, McGinn, Rogers, Watkins

Substitutes: Wright, Digne, Bogarde, García, Hemmings, Buendía, Malen, Sancho, Guessand

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