With the 2026/27 Premier League season just one day away, Aston Villa may be feeling slightly understaffed.
The Villans, who won the UEFA Europa League last season, have seen a mass exodus of players, with just five of the starting XI from their 3-0 win in the final against Freiburg available for selection in their season opener.
Signings have been made to plug most of the gaps, but badly timed injuries mixed with players returning late from the 2026 World Cup have caused even more chaos.
So far, Lucas Digne, Youri Tielemans, Morgan Rogers, Jadon Sancho, Harvey Elliott, Andres Garcia and Douglas Luiz have all departed from last season's squad, while Ezri Konsa looks set to join Arsenal this week. Not to mention that Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins have both been heavily linked with an exit this summer.
Joao Gomes, Johan Manzambi, Alejandro Garnacho, Matteo Ruggeri and Zion Suzuki have all joined the club, with West Ham right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka also close to moving to Villa Park.
All of this has led to questions over just who might feature for Aston Villa in their Premier League opener against Brighton, let's take a look.
Brighton & Hove Albion v Aston Villa match info
Match | Brighton & Hove Albion v Aston Villa |
Competition | Premier League |
Venue | Amex Stadium |
Date | Sunday 23rd August 2026 |
Kick-off time | 14:00 BST |
Odds |
Who might not feature against Brighton?
Despite the season being yet to get underway, Unai Emery already has a number of injury headaches.
Amadou Onana, who suffered an ACL injury at the 2026 World Cup, is set to miss the entirety of the season as Villa's only current long-term absentee.
New signings Joao Gomes and Johan Manzambi are both unavailable, with both players set to miss a week of action, while Alejandro Garnacho is a doubt, having missed Villa's last three matches, including their 2-1 defeat to PSG in the UEFA Super Cup.
Brian Madjo, who became the youngest scorer in Super Cup history, is reportedly unavailable for around a month due to an injury sustained in that contest.
Striker pairing Ollie Watkins and Tammy Abraham are both doubts for Sunday's match, with Watkins the subject of multiple bids from Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal and Abraham an injury worry, having limped off in the Villans' final pre season match.
Ezri Konsa won't feature either, with his move to Arsenal likely to be completed before Sunday's contest.
Aston Villa Predicted XI vs Brighton
(4-2-3-1): Suzuki; Cash, Lindelof, Torres, Maatsen; Barkley, Kamara; Hemmings, Buendia, McGinn; Watkins.
Bench: Bizot, Wright, Ruggeri, Mings, Cisse, Bogarde, Garnacho, Alysson, Abraham.
