Steven Gerrard has had a busy summer. After guiding Aston Villa to a comfortable 14th place finish last season and threatening to spoil Manchester City‘s party on the final day, he has set about strengthening his squad as the Villans look to push up the table.
The Midlands side have clung on to key players and brought in some solid first team additions such as Boubacar Kamara (free) and Diego Carlos (£26 million). They also picked up Scottish wonderkid Rory Wilson (£350,000) who has the potential to become a world beating forward.
As the start of the Premier League approaches, Sportsmail looks at how Aston Villa could line up next season.
Goalkeeper – Emiliano Martinez
The Argentine stopper finally appears to have settled at Villa after struggling to establish himself elsewhere. Having never played 20 league games in a season before, Martinez has played 74 of a possible 76 games in his two years at Villa Park.
Swedish international Robin Olsen will provide cover after signing a permanent deal following his loan at the club last year.
Steven Gerrard has had a busy transfer window in his first summer in charge of Aston Villa
Left Back – Lucas Digne
Digne impressed last season after singing in January, and could be more important than ever now that Matt Targett has signed permanently with Newcastle.
The France international has experience playing at huge clubs from his time at Barcelona and PSG, and may help Villa with the mentality they will need to challenge more established Premier League clubs.
Sevilla’s Ludwig Augustinsson has been linked with Villa as back up for Digne.
Centre Back – Tyrone Mings
It has been quite the career trajectory for Mings since Southampton told him he was too small to be a centre back.
Now 6ft 5in, the Villa captain is one of the most aerially dominant defenders in the league, and a key cog in Gerrard’s machine. He has also settled nice into his role as a rotation centre back for England, scoring twice in 17 games for the three lions.
The impressive Ezri Konsa will cover for Mings if needed.
Centre Back – Diego Carlos
The newly signed Carlos arrives with an impressive CV after hardly missing a game for Sevilla over the past three years. He won the Europa League with the cub in 2020, although the fact that he gave away three penalties in the knockout stage may be cause for concern.
He looks an experienced and solid addition though, and should form a good partnership with Mings.
Emiliano Martinez…