Predicted Aston Villa XI vs Newcastle United as Marco Bizot makes his debut but three players ruled out

Aston Villa take on Newcastle United in their opening game of the 2025/26 season.

The new Premier League campaign is upon us, and there is a lot of excitement around Villa Park after narrowly missing out on the Champions League last term.

Unai Emery’s side welcome a Newcastle United side who have had a very difficult summer, but they have won three of their last five games against the Villans.

The Birmingham giants did, however, pick up an emphatic 4-1 win the last time the two sides met in the Premier League, and Emery will surely be hoping for a repeat of that on Saturday.

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Predicted Aston Villa XI vs Newcastle United for their Premier League opener

Emery has a few problems ahead of Aston Villa’s opener against Newcastle United.

Emiliano Martinez is unavailable because of suspension after his red card at the end of last season, while Ross Barkley and Andres Garcia are not fit.

However, in what is good news, Morgan Rogers has been declared fit by the Villa boss.

So, Marco Bizot is expected to make his debut in goal following his move from Stade Brestois earlier this summer.

In front of him, we expect a back four of Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres and Lucas Digne.

Boubacar Kamara and Youri Tielemans are likely to start in the middle of the park, with the fit-again Rogers, John McGinn and Donyell Malen set to get the nod ahead of them.

Up front, we expect Ollie Watkins to lead the line again, and Villa fans will be hoping he continues to do so beyond the end of this summer’s transfer window.

READ MORE: Paul Merson has just predicted the result of Aston Villa vs Newcastle United

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Will Jacob Ramsey play for Newcastle United against Aston Villa?

Jacob Ramsey’s future has been in the headlines all summer.

The Englishman has been a key player for Aston Villa in recent years, but as TBR Football revealed in April, Ramsey was someone who could be sold.

A deal has been struck for the versatile attacker to join Newcastle United, and Sky Sports released a video of him landing in Tyneside to complete his move.

However, Ramsey will not play for Newcastle against Villa on the opening day of the new season.

Emery said about Ramsey in his press conference on Friday: “Jacob Ramsey is not with us today, and if he is leaving, we are going to continue our work.

“I was very happy working with him, but now I am focusing on the players we have available for tomorrow, and keep going.”

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