Liverpool vs. Aston Villa: How Arne Slot can get the better of Unai Emery in crucial Premier League game at Anfield

Arne Slot should field a physically strong midfield on Saturday against Aston Villa and in future games too, Liverpool expert David Lynch has argued.

With nine matches played in the Premier League the Reds are in seventh place, with the club having lost four consecutive games in the Premier League, as well as six of their last seven in all competitions.

Slot will have to contend with injuries to key players on Saturday against Aston Villa in his side's next top-flight fixture, including to striker Alexander Isak and midfielder Curtis Jones, who has impressed in recent appearances for the team.

While Jones will be unavailable, Lynch insisted that adding physically robust midfielders into the team on Saturday would help improve results, telling Sports Mole: "The aim has got to be the Jones, Gravenberch and Szoboszlai in midfield at some point. The reason that I want that midfield three is I want them to be horrible, be solid.

"Don't give anything away as a starting point on the weekend, and if it can be 0-0 on 60 minutes, then we can throw a couple of players on. Let's go for that, but do not be giving goals away early in the game.

"It doesn't have to be an outlandish, unbelievable performance. They just have to be very solid, and then they've got the quality on the bench to win it. I just want to see solidity and sensibleness, with the team keeping the ball and and almost being too safe at times, but being safe with it and not giving anything away."

Ryan Gravenberch is available for selection, and he is certain to feature, while Dominik Szoboszlai's energy in deeper areas could be vital for the Reds' chances of victory.

Why Arne Slot must be cautious against Unai Emery's Aston Villa

Villa boss Unai Emery presided over a poor start to the 2025-26 campaign, failing to guide his side to a win in the team's opening six games, but they have since won six out of seven matches in all competitions.

The visitors have already managed to beat Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur this term, and they also earned a point when they faced the Merseysiders in February, drawing 2-2 at Villa Park.

Lynch urged the team to play more cautiously than they have in recent weeks in order to stifle Emery's in-form stars, when he told Sports Mole: "The best way to do that is to start smartly and not try to impose ourselves by trying to go out and recklessly attack.

"We've got to create chances to make them nervous, but just stay solid and play sensible football. If the opportunities to counter-attack come up, absolutely go for them because that's a way of getting at Aston Villa."

Aston Villa beat City 1-0 last Sunday thanks to a successful corner routine, whereas Liverpool have struggled to deal with dead-ball situations all season, and it would be a sensible plan to try and limit the number of corners the visitors get.

Can Liverpool beat Aston Villa and ease pressure ahead of next fixtures?

While dropping points against the visitors would not necessarily be disastrous in isolation, the Reds are set to play Real Madrid and Manchester City in their subsequent two fixtures.

A defeat on Saturday would place additional pressure on Slot to win those two games ahead of the November international break, but it would not be surprising if they lost both matches.

Speaking to Sports Mole, Lynch was somewhat optimistic that Villa's playstyle would benefit the Reds, saying: "It helps that it's a late kickoff on Saturday, when the atmosphere should be really good. Liverpool, as much as they've been bad recently, it seems like it's always been away from home in the past weeks.

"Villa aren't an absolutely huge team, so maybe it'll be a bit more of a football game, which would definitely suit Liverpool. If that's the case, then hopefully they can get a positive result, and you'd be feeling a lot better about the team given what's coming on the other side of the match.

"They can be direct at times, and they can hit you on the counter, but the way they play is very different to Brentford and other sides such as Crystal Palace, who are very good on set pieces."

Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 10 clashes with Villa, with the Reds winning seven of those matches, so perhaps supporters should be confident on Saturday.

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