Aston Villa: Steven Gerrard must unleash Morgan Sanson against West Ham | OneFootball

Aston Villa are back on the road once again this afternoon with a Premier League clash against West Ham United after securing their third consecutive league win in a row in midweek thanks to a 3-0 victory against Leeds United at Elland Road.

On the chalkboard

In terms of which players Steven Gerrard could select in his starting XI to take on the Irons, who will be aiming to arrest a three-game losing streak in all competitions, one man who didn’t start against Leeds but we feel should be in from the beginning today is Morgan Sanson.

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Despite not starting against Leeds, the Frenchman – who is currently picking up £59k-per-week according to Salary Sport – did show what he can offer to this Villa side in his 19 minutes on the pitch after coming on for Danny Ings.

With 15 touches of the ball, Sanson completed all 10 passes he attempted (including one key pass), also winning four of his five duels and making one tackle and interception each, highlighting what he’s capable of producing on and off the ball.

Having not started in the league since Villa’s 2-2 draw against Manchester United in January, that Gerrard has selected him to come on as a second-half substitute for their past three league games suggests that the 41-year-old may be ready to put the midfielder in from the start this time.

Labelled an “ultimate professional” by Gerrard, the 27-year-old has also been described as having a “big-game mentality” by former Villa manager Dean Smith. That is exactly what the Midlands club will need against David Moyes’ side, who are looking to break into the top four this season.

Should Gerrard start Sanson against West Ham?

Taking all this into account, and with the Leeds game finishing less than 70 hours ago, there’s every chance that Gerrard will be thinking of potentially making some changes to his team to avoid fatigue or injury to some players. That could work in Sanson’s favour if his manager thinks he has done enough in recent weeks to warrant a place in the starting XI today.