"Outstanding" £100k-p/w ace starts, "elegant" £2.2m-rated dud axed: AVFC predicted XI - opinion

Aston Villa will be looking to spoil Manchester City‘s party this afternoon with the Premier League title still to be won on the final day of the season.

Either City or Liverpool will be crowned champions of England today, with former Reds captain Steven Gerrard undoubtedly keen to give his boyhood club a helping hand as he takes his Villa team to the Etihad.

But how will Gerrard opt to set up his team this afternoon, having played as recently as Thursday when the Villans drew 1-1 with Burnley? Here is how Football FanCast expect the West Midlands outfit to start at the Etihad:

Aston Villa XI vs Man. City: Martinez, Digne, Mings, Chambers, Cash, Ramsey, Luiz, McGinn, Buendia, Ings, Watkins

There are no changes in goal or in defence with Calum Chambers once again filling in for Ezri Konsa who has been ruled out for up to 16 weeks with a knee injury.

Moreover, there had been concerns regarding Martinez’s fitness prior to the clash with the Clarets, however, the Argentine recovered in time and appears set to make his 37th league appearance of the season, missing just one league game this term.

The same applies in midfield with the regular trio of Jacob Ramsey, Douglas Luiz and John McGinn all linking up.

However, could this be the last time the three all start together in the Premier League with plenty of talk regarding new midfielders coming in at Villa Park this summer?

The only change comes in attack with Carney Chukwuemeka dropping out for Danny Ings.

Labelled as “elegant” by former Villa player and Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson, the £2.2m-rated 18-year-old undoubtedly has an exciting future ahead of him.

However, having been given the opportunity to impress from the start against Burnley, it seems incredibly likely