Gomes over Goretzka, Jackson up front: Aston Villa predicted lineup vs Barcelona

Unai Emery should trust Joao Gomes over Leon Goretzka at Camp Nou tonight, and keep faith with a Nicolas Jackson who has already scored eight times in his first 12 games for the club.

Aston Villa go to Spotify Camp Nou on Tuesday evening (8pm UK time) for matchday four of the Champions League league phase with a perfect record: three games, three wins, nine points. Only holders Paris Saint-Germain sit above them after three rounds.

The form coming into it is less tidy. A 2-1 win over Manchester City was followed by a 3-0 EFL Cup defeat at Bournemouth and a 1-1 home draw with Fulham, so Villa arrive on a two-game winless run. The good news is that the injury list hasn’t grown.

Aston Villa predicted lineup vs Barcelona

Aston Villa predicted lineup vs Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Suzuki; Cash, Lindelof, Torres, Maatsen; Kamara, Gomes; McGinn, Manzambi, Buendia; Jackson

Three players are missing: Amadou Onana (knee), Matteo Ruggeri (thigh) and Aaron Wan-Bissaka (thigh). There are no doubts beyond that, so Emery can pick close to his strongest side.

Who protects the back four?

Zion Suzuki: the number one

There is no debate in goal. Villa need Suzuki sharp, because Barcelona have failed to score at least twice only once this season, in the 2-1 Clasico defeat to Real Madrid.

Matty Cash: no Wan-Bissaka, no question

With Wan-Bissaka out with a thigh problem, Cash takes the right-back spot. Discipline matters more than adventure here: Barcelona bounced back from two straight defeats with a 6-1 thrashing of Alaves on Saturday.

Victor Lindelof and Pau Torres: the pairing in the middle

Ezri Konsa is an Arsenal player now, so Lindelof and Torres are the centre-backs. Torres knows what is waiting for him, and he spoke this week about the Real Madrid move that nearly happened before this trip to Catalonia.

Ian Maatsen: the left side is his

Ruggeri’s thigh injury leaves Maatsen without a rival for the left-back place, and he could have Lamine Yamal for company, fresh from two goals and an assist against Alaves. Villa will still want him getting forward when they can, because Barcelona have shipped at least one goal in nine of their last 10 games in all competitions.

Gomes or Goretzka?

Boubacar Kamara: the anchor

With Onana out with a knee injury, Kamara is the one holding midfielder Emery can’t do without. If Pedri and Rodri start together for Barcelona, as we expect, his positioning will be tested all night.

Joao Gomes: the safer call

This is the one real selection question. Leon Goretzka made his first Premier League start against Fulham, and he knows the feeling of beating Barcelona, having been part of the Bayern Munich side that won 8-2 in 2020. We still think Emery will be cautious with the German and go with Gomes, whose energy suits a night when Villa will spend long spells without the ball.

Can the front four hurt Barca?

John McGinn: the experience on the right

McGinn starts on the right of the three behind the striker. Nights like this need his experience, and Barcelona are without a clean sheet in five, so his runs from deep can hurt them.

Johan Manzambi: the link in the middle

Manzambi gets the central role, the player asked to find Jackson between the lines when Villa win the ball back.

Emiliano Buendia: the left-sided creator

Buendia completes the trio. Villa’s 12 Champions League goals are the joint second-most in the competition, behind only PSG’s 14, and they need his final ball to keep that going in a stadium where Barcelona are unbeaten in 15 UEFA home games against English teams.

Nicolas Jackson: fit and firing

There were worries last week when Jackson wasn’t pictured in training, but he started and scored against Fulham. That made it eight goals in his first 12 games in a Villa shirt, and there is no case for leaving him out.

How Barcelona line up

Barcelona are without Xavi Espart (ankle), Andreas Christensen (thigh), Roony Bardghji (ACL), Eric Garcia (thigh), Dani Olmo (adductor) and Jules Kounde (ankle). Olmo tore an adductor muscle in the 4-2 defeat to PSG and is expected to be out until after the next international break.

We expect Hansi Flick to go with J. Garcia; Cancelo, Martin, Cubarsi, Balde; Pedri, Rodri; Yamal, Lopez, Gordon; Raphinha. Yamal is level with Kylian Mbappe on 13 Champions League goals as a teenager, so one more tonight gives him the record outright.

Verdict: start Gomes and stay compact

Villa have won only one of their four meetings with Barcelona, and the last competitive one was the 1983 UEFA Super Cup final, which they won 3-1 on aggregate. Their +9 goal difference is the best in the league phase alongside PSG’s, but they have conceded at least twice in three of their last five away games.

That is why Gomes edges it for us. Emery knows this ground, and the side that drew with Fulham needs more legs in midfield, not fewer, against a Barcelona attack this sharp.

Aston Villa predicted lineup vs Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Suzuki; Cash, Lindelof, Torres, Maatsen; Kamara, Gomes; McGinn, Manzambi, Buendia; Jackson