Aston Villa’s first team have been hit with an outbreak of Covid-19 and due to that, Dean Smith has only been able to choose from his Under-23 and Under-18 squads for tonight’s FA Cup game with Premier League leaders. 7 Under-23s are appearing with 4 picked from the Under-18 squad and it has lead to some very interesting stats with Opta Joe revealing one of the most interesting.
5 of Aston Villa’s starting XI weren’t even born when James Milner made his FA Cup debut for Leeds. James now starts against Dean Smith’s side at the age of 35. Milner is no stranger to Premier League footballer and has plenty of experience along with most of Klopp’s starting XI tonight.
5 – Five of Aston Villa's starting XI (Sylla, Hayden, Barry, Bogarde, Chrisene) weren't even born when James Milner made his debut in the FA Cup in January 2003 for Leeds United vs Scunthorpe. Opportunities. pic.twitter.com/7SAw1vH084
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) January 8, 2021
Salah, Mane, Wijnaldum, Fabinho and Henderson all start against Villa and Klopp is going for the throat of this weakened side. What do you think the final score is going to be tonight? Is Klopp looking for revenge for last season’s smashing by Villa?