By 
Follow us on Twitter @claretandview // Words by Mark Jirobe (@VillaMarkPGH)
After a decisive 5-0 victory against Bristol City, Aston Villa are now tasked with taking on Peterborough United in the third round of the FA Cup. Peterborough currently sit 8th on the table in League One, with 39 points from 26 games. Posh, as Peterborough are commonly referred as, have won three of their last five games. Although they have drawn and lost the last two they have played in League One, Peterborough should still be considered a formidable opponent especially in front of a bigger crowd at Villa Park. Posh will also be bringing a decent away showing to Villa Park, an impressive 4,300 supporters.
Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce was asked about what it is like to come up against a League One squad in the FA Cup, to which he replied: “We’re at home to a League One team, but I’ve been in it long enough to know it’ll be Peterborough’s big day. We’ll have to guard against that. Hopefully we’ve got enough to get through.”
Peterborough United’s main goalscorer this season has been centre-forward Jack Marriott. Marriott has 21 goals in 34 apps this season, with 17 goals coming in league play. The 23 year old English attacker isn’t very tall in stature, but he sure makes up for it in goal scoring ability. His has scored 3 goals in 4 matches in the FA Cup, but he has not come up against a side who has a defensive arrangement like Aston Villa does. And none of those teams had John Terry returning to the lineup, as well.
That’s right, Villans. According to Steve Bruce and multiple reports, John Terry will be in the side for Aston Villa in this FA Cup match. Andre Green is also said to be ready to appear, coming back from a leg injury that saw him miss a substantial fraction of the beginning of the season for Villa. Henri Lansbury is expected to get a bit of playing time as well, and will most likely start on the bench for Villa. Steve Bruce might field a squad that is a mixture of youth and experience for this specific match, and it will be a breath of fresh air for anyone who bleeds Claret & Blue. While a Cup run isn’t necessarily a high priority for Villa this season, it will be promising to see players return from injury as well as seeing some of the younger talent at the Club get proper minutes.
Aston Villas’ lone FA Cup meeting with Peterborough came in the 1960-61 season. The fixture wound up in a replay after a 1-1 draw, and Villa won the second game 2-1 in the fourth round of the competition.
While there is a lot more in his fixture for Peterborough than Villa, it would not be a shock on the day to see Villa have a bit of a showing off of what their youth system has become in recent years. Such players as Rushian Hepburn-Murphy, Jake Doyle-Hayes, Easah Suliman, and Callum O’Hare would like nothing more than to prove they are ready to play in the first-team at a moments notice. Again, it will be a breath of fresh air for all Villa supporters to see exactly what all of the buzz is surrounding the youth system.
