Aston Villa and Colchester United go head-to-head later this week.
Just days after kicking off their Championship campaign with a 1-1 draw against Hull City, Aston Villa turn their attention to the EFL Cup this week.
Villa boss Steve Bruce looks set to make plenty of changes, with a promotion push the number one priority this season. Although with some of the club’s stars still recovering from injury it means a few of the players that started at the weekend should do so again on Wednesday.
Recent addition Josh Onomah could make his first start for Villa after coming off the bench against the Tigers, while James Bree should feature at right-back and Chris Samba is likely to replace John Terry in the heart of Bruce’s defence.
Young goalkeeper Jay Steer could step in for Sam Johnstone after having a watching brief on Saturday, while wingers Andre Green and Birkir Bjarnason could be welcomed back into the starting XI after being named as substitutes last time out.
Villa will not want to be dumped out of this competition to lower league opposition, although even at this early stage of the season this match could be seen as something of a hindrance to their real focus.
After all, the prospect of making it three straight seasons in the second tier does not bear thinking about for Villa or their fans.
With all that in mind here is how we expect Villa to line up later this week:
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