The Aston Villa change Steven Gerrard must make for Wolves clash

Steven Gerrard must revert back to the formation which saw his Aston Villa side succeed against the likes of Southampton, Brighton and Leeds United in recent weeks if he is to get back to winning ways this weekend.

Villa will travel to the Molineux Stadium on Saturday (3pm kick off) to face their midlands rivals, Wolverhampton Wanderers this weekend. Gerrard's men will be keen to send a reaction to their fans after a disappointing 1-0 loss to Arsenal prior to this international break. If they are to do this, a return to the 4-3-1-2 formation could provide them with their best chance.

The issues against Mikel Arteta's men were clear to see, Villa recorded an expected goals (xG) value of just 0.4 xG in the 1-0 loss, which was a stark contrast to the impressive and free flowing football they had displayed in recent weeks. The difference in opponent must of course be taken into account, but even in the defeat to West Ham United prior to this loss, Villa recorded 1.1 xG on the afternoon and were unlucky to not take the lead through efforts from Danny Ings and Philippe Coutinho at the London Stadium.

Villa returned to the 4-3-2-1 formation against Arsenal, star man Philippe Coutinho attempted to spark activity for Villa but was ultimately subdued by a solid Arsenal defence. He recorded one key pass and Villa's only shot on target on the afternoon, therefore hinting he missed the space the pairing of Ollie Watkins and Ings created ahead of him in previous games.

Villa's second most creative game of the season came with the two strikers playing ahead of Coutinho in the 3-0 victory at Elland Road. Gerrard's team recorded a total of 27 shot creating actions on this occasion, with Coutinho contributing six of them - the