Dean Smith has confirmed that he will take advantage of Aston Villa’s squad depth for today’s Carabao Cup game against Chelsea.
Villa travels to Stamford Bridge for a clash in the third round of the Carabao Cup and is looking to advance to the final 16 of the competition after beating Barrow 6-0 in round two.
Villa tied with a 3-0 Premier League win over Everton and head coach Smith believes the Cup game will give him an opportunity to switch squads.
“We have to make some changes,” he told avfc.co.uk.
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“We have some players who need playing time, some very good players. We have a strong squad now and there is a chance to give some of these players a few more minutes after a handicapped preparation.
“But they are ready to get minutes and make sure that first of all we try to move forward in this competition, what we want to make it a really competitive game, but also to get them for the ‘season ahead of us that we still have have a lot more games. “
Smith added: “We have people like Bertrand Traore coming back from injury, Emi Buendia coming back from the national team and not on the pitch (against Everton). Bert has obviously picked up the last five minutes.
“So now we have players like us who can play in this game and get a few well-deserved minutes.”
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Villa travels to Stamford Bridge less than two weeks after beating the Blues in the Premier League and suffered a 3-0 defeat thanks to a brace from Romelu Lukaku and Mateo Kovacic earlier this month.
When asked if he expected a different Chelsea than the one in the league on Wednesday, Smith said: “Personnel but not in terms of the way they play and the way they approach games.
“They are a football club that wants to win, and while the Carabao Cup won’t be high on their list, it will certainly be on the list because it is a competition they are in.
“But we also have a proud history and we look forward to testing against Chelsea again.”
“Our approach will be similar, and I think Chelsea’s will. They also have a very large roster of players and will be trying to win Thomas (Tuchel’s) eye.
“With their Champions League victory last season, people want to come into the team and show what they can do.”
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