One member of his Aston Villa squad has sent Unai Emery a clear message with his recent performances that he cannot ignore.
The international break provided both positives and negatives for Aston Villa. Certain individuals thrived for their country, while the club also faces huge fitness concerns as Premier League action returns.
After a mixed start to the season, Emery will be keen for his team to start building some momentum heading into the busy winter period in a bid to climb up the division.
Aston Villa are currently 13th in the table, and a far cry away from the European positions they’d ideally like to take up at the end of the season, placing pressure on the squad now club football has resumed.
That is why the upcoming game against Tottenham Hotspur is going to be an important one, but Emery will have one big decision to make on his starting line-up.
Unai Emery needs to start Evann Guessand against Tottenham Hotspur
One of the big concerns for Emery heading into the weekend’s game against Tottenham Hotspur will be surrounding who is starting up front.
While Ollie Watkins would typically be the obvious answer to that question, he suffered an injury while playing for England, which could rule him out of this fixture.
Watkins is a doubt for the weekend, which could leave Emery with no other option than to turn to Evann Guessand to start up front.
Aston Villa signed Guessand for £30.5 million during the summer transfer window, but they have typically used him out wide, rather than at the top of the pitch.
Guessand has had a difficult start to life in the Premier League, having yet to register a goal or an assist for the club, but the international break was good for him.
The 24-year-old scored for Ivory Coast and showed Emery exactly what he can offer when playing as a striker, which should lead to him getting some minutes against Spurs.
The international break started perfectly for Watkins as he got himself on the scoresheet against Wales and proved to be a nuisance for Craig Bellamy’s team.
However, Watkins then suffered a leg injury after colliding with the post, which led to him being replaced at Wembley Stadium.
Watkins wasn’t used in England’s next fixture against Latvia, which has led to concerns over how long he could be out of action.
Thomas Tuchel provided an update on Watkins’ status during his press conference on Monday, where he made it clear that the striker is focusing on trying to play this weekend.
“Ollie left camp unfortunately. It was too painful. He could not train with us. He is in treatment with his club. He is trying to get ready for the weekend.”
Given the injury he sustained and the lack of training he’s completed since then, there’s a good chance that even if Watkins is fit, he won’t be able to start the game, which means Emery needs to look elsewhere.