Premier League: 10 things to look out for this weekend

28.04.2023 - 07:37 theguardian.com

People are no longer ignoring the massive turnaround Unai Emery has performed at Villa Park. There were not many personnel changes in January; teenage striker Jhon Durán was signed from Chicago Fire, Bertrand Traoré was recalled from loan at Istanbul Basaksehir and, most importantly, Alex Moreno joined from Real Betis.

Lucas Digne has been deposed from the defence and Villa have only lost twice in Moreno’s 15 appearances, with the Spaniard quickly becoming integral to the system.

He is popular off the pitch too, ingratiating himself with fans with a recent interview in English, smiling throughout despite not yet having a full mastery of the language.

Moreno will enjoy the prospect of facing Antony, which will be a key battle with the Villa man keen to test the Brazilian’s defence as well as attack. Will Unwin Manchester United v Aston Villa, Sunday 2pm (all times BST) It is hard to shake the feeling that if there is a loser in this match that team will be staring at the end of the road when it comes to their top-flight status.

Football Arsenal Chelsea Things Aston Villa Sean Dyche Unai Emery Julen Lopetegui Lucas Digne Álex Moreno Bertrand Traore Britain Manchester Brazil Chicago Istanbul

Sean Dyche was asked about the difference between preparing for Manchester City, Everton’s opponents on Sunday, and Brighton, who they’d clattered 5-1 in midweek. He observed that City play in various ways whereas Brighton have a particular method – and how well it’s serving them. Roberto De Zerbi has done an incredible job since replacing Graham Potter, all the more so as he’s refined their style mid-season. Next year, though, he’ll be facing opponents who know what to expect having seen various tactics deployed against it – and in all likelihood, will have European competition to contend with having lost a big player or two to richer rivals. So there’s a lot of work for the club to do: identifying replacements, signing reinforcements, and developing different ways of playing. But in the meantime, their destruction of an admittedly tired Arsenal is just the latest evidence of an almost perfectly run football club; one that should inspire others at every level. Daniel Harris

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