Unai Emery’s Aston Villa side travel to face Tottenham Hotspur this afternoon, looking to claim their first Premier League victory of the 2026/27 campaign.

The Villans have so far only managed to score once in their first four league games of the new season, but travel to face a side who are yet to find the back of the net.

However, Emery’s men find themselves behind the Lilywhites in the league table, with a win potentially handing the Villans the platform to achieve success this campaign.

But the manager will face a possible selection dilemma, with numerous fresh updates emerging from the pre-match press conference earlier this week.

What Unai Emery said ahead of Spurs clash on Saturday

After weeks of continuous injury issues at Villa Park, manager Emery was able to provide positive updates on the fitness of two of his senior squad members yesterday.

The Spaniard stated that Matty Cash and Joao Gomes are both expected to be a part of the group which will take on Spurs in North London later on this afternoon.

Both players failed to appear during Wednesday’s victory over Coventry City in the Carabao Cup, but are fit enough to return to their place within the squad.

However, it’s not all good news on the injury front for the Villans, as numerous senior members of the side will remain sidelined for the crunch clash with Roberto De Zerbi’s men.

Pau Torres limped off before the half-hour mark of last weekend’s defeat to Nottingham Forest, with the centre-back now absent until after the international break.

He’s not alone in missing the upcoming clash in the capital though, as the likes of Marco Bizot, Ian Maatsen and Leon Goretzka remain on the sidelines with their own issues.

Despite all of the ongoing injury issues in the West Midlands, it may still be a surprise to see one other member of the first-team start the clash against the Lilywhites today.

Why Emery must banish one Villa player alongside Garnacho

Despite arriving on loan with an obligation to buy this summer, Aston Villa winger Alejandro Garnacho has found minutes extremely hard to come by this campaign.

The Argentine has only made three substitute appearances under Emery to date, with the former Manchester United man only appearing for a total of 31 minutes.

He’s failed to feature in any of the last three matches across all competitions, with the 22-year-old an unused substitute during the cup clash in midweek.

It’s evident that the manager does not see the winger as an immediate fit into his senior plans, with the Spaniard needing to take the same course of action with midfielder Lamare Bogarde.

The Dutchman has been handed a more senior role in the first-team over recent months, but it’s safe to say his performances haven’t impressed the fanbase in the West Midlands.

The 22-year-old, who came through the club’s academy, has now made 65 appearances for the Villans, but is still yet to secure his place as a regular starter.

Like Garnacho, he’s barely featured in the Premier League this term, with his only appearance to date seeing him come on for the final 16 minutes of the 4-0 hammering at Brighton.

However, Bogarde did start the cup clash with Coventry earlier this week and his performance highlighted why the manager desperately needs to drop him against Spurs this afternoon.

The Dutchman featured for the entirety of the victory, but could only make three passes into the final third and failed to complete any of his attempted dribbles.

As a result, his lack of quality in possession was called into question, with the youngster still needing to develop that aspect of his game in the years ahead.

Even without the ball, Bogarde failed to deliver at the CBS Arena, subsequently making just one interception and committing two fouls - the joint most of any player in Emery’s side.

Former Aston Villa star Stan Collymore was just one of the people to voice their opinion on the midfielder and described his defending against the Sky Blues as “dreadful.”

After such a showing on midweek, Emery must be left with no choice but to drop the Dutchman from his senior side - especially if they are to claim their first league win of the season.

Emery clearly has a group of players whom he simply can’t trust to provide the goods, which should see Bogarde join Garnacho in being pushed to the side at Villa Park.