Premier League Q&A LIVE: What to make of Aston Villa’s blistering start, how Unai Emery has got his side playing and more

TOM COLLOMOSSE: That’s the big question! Villa say he wasn’t fit and he has travelled to Holland for Thursday’s game against AZ Alkmaar. But the fact Duran removed a number of references to Villa from his social media accounts has set tongues wagging.

It will be interesting to see how Emery handles the issue at his press conference later, which you can follow on Mail Sport.

TOM COLLOMOSSE: It should be – but the men on the fringes need to perform better. There has been a huge drop off in Villa’s level from the league matches to the cup games.

Emery has chosen to rotate in the cups and he needs more from players like Youri Tielemans and Clement Lenglet.

TOM COLLOMOSSE: It depends where they are in the league. If they are still firmly in contention for top four – and depending on Jhon Duran’s development – Emery may ask for an experienced back-up for Ollie Watkins. They may need to move on fringe players to do so though and January is a difficult time to complete deals.

TOM COLLOMOSSE: It sounds simple, but coaching. Dean Smith did a fine job at Villa but when he was replaced by Gerrard, there was a sense of drift on the training ground and little sign of a plan on the pitch. Now the tactical plan is clear and robust, thanks to hours of work on the training ground and in the analysis room.

TOM COLLOMOSSE: Emery has surprised people a little here. He has had so much success in cup football, winning the Europa League four times, that he was expected to give equal weight to the Conference League and Premier League campaigns.

Instead, he has rotated heavily in Europe and attacked every Premier League game with his best available team. That tells you everything about where Emery thinks Villa can finish this term.

TOM COLLOMOSSE: Yes they can. Don’t forget they are two points off the top of the table despite missing four key players due to injury for most of the season.

Tyrone Mings, Emi Buendia, Jacob Ramsey and Alex Moreno were vital for Unai Emery last season but they have managed to prosper without them. That bodes well for the future.

Cheers Craig! Enjoy the game tonight.

Next we have TOM COLLOMOSSE with us for the next hour answering questions on Aston Villa.

CRAIG HOPE: In Europe, I believe they will make the semi-finals of the Champions League. I honestly feel they have nothing to fear until the very latter stages, although that does depend on a fair draw in the earlier knockout rounds.

Domestically, the aim has to be Champions League qualification, and that could be finishing fifth this season. It is imperative with regards FFP that they remain in Europe’s premier competition. Can they achieve that? Absolutely.

Howe, for me, is among the very best managers in Europe and he has a squad of players totally invested in what he and his coaching staff want. It has taken a month or two for them to hit top speed, but they’re flying now.

CRAIG HOPE: I don’t think so. If anything, they’re the type to group closer together and take strength from it. Howe is learning that, while he is doing a fantastic job, nothing is ever straight forward up here.

Just last month he had his captain, Jamaal Lascelles, involved in a 4am street brawl (albeit acting in self-defence), and now Tonali. But he is the perfect man to navigate such adversity and I really don’t believe this will have an adverse effect on matters on the pitch.

CRAIG HOPE: To win! Newcastle are in such a good place right now that they should fear no-one. I expect one or two changes at most from the team that beat Crystal Palace on Saturday (Almiron and Isak perhaps returning) and Howe knows a victory here will put them in pole position to qualify.

They might even only need one more win from their last three games. Dortmund, I’m told, aren’t an aggressive, in-your-face type team, so it will be interesting to see if Newcastle try to blow them away early on. I expect an early home goal…

CRAIG HOPE: He was expected back around this time in training but he had a setback during the break and, while Howe says it isn’t too serious, he’s yet to train.

I will endeavour to bring you more in the coming days…

He’s a big player for Newcastle, but his loss has been cushioned by the excellent form of Jamaal Lascelles, who remains unbeaten in five matches since returning to the side. Also, Fabian Schar is in the form of his life. To think, he couldn’t get a game under the former manager…

CRAIG HOPE: Like I said earlier, it will be a case of looking at the squad closer to the time.

An injury to either of Isak or Wilson would make striker the absolute priority, and that remains a worry for Newcastle given they’ve both had niggly problems in recent weeks.

Despite Tonali, the one area they’re starting to look well stocked is in midfield.

CRAIG HOPE: Well, Barnes is out until January with a foot injury, so it hasn’t been the best of starts. Even before suffering the injury at Sheffield United he was behind Gordon, who has returned in fantastic form. I said he would in America.

We spoke to him out there, watched him in training and matches and he looked so far ahead of everyone else (along with Elliot Anderson). It was difficult for Gordon last season after arriving from Everton in January. Physically, he was not able to impact and lasted only 45 minutes of one home game. He admits as much himself now.

As I have written previously, his brain was writing cheques that his body could not cash. But as for Barnes, I’ve always liked him. During my (many) bans from St James’ Park under the previous regime, I was often sent to cover Leicester. I thought Barnes was direct, efficient and never got the credit he deserved.

However, it’s been the worst possible start for him up here given the untimely injury and he will have a bit to prove when he does return, especially as Gordon has now made the left-wing position his own.

CRAIG HOPE: Probably not. Miley is still behind Bruno, Longstaff, Willock, Joelinton and Anderson in the midfield pecking order. He is also still recovering from glandular fever and will not be ready to play until well into next month at the earliest.

I think it will be a season of existing around the squad for Miley, with the odd substitute appearance here and there. He started in the EFL Cup against Man City and was replaced after 45 minutes. He’s a talent, and I love the way he plays (see all the coverage of him from the States in July) but I don’t think his time is now.

CRAIG HOPE: The visits to Saudi are becoming more frequent and all manner of club matters will be discussed, including the planned return of Eddie Howe and his team in January.

The word, at least before the Tonali affair, was that January spending would be limited to loan deals only and only in an emergency would summer spending be brought forward.

The next two months will be informative in that regard. I still think they’re a central defender short in terms of depth, while a third striker is something the club have been looking at for a while now, it’s just a case of identifying the right player at the right price. With Wilson and Isak rotating well, it would need a younger player perhaps happy to act as back up in the short term at least.

CRAIG HOPE: Newcastle are awaiting confirmation of the length of the ban from Italy. We expect this to be 10 months plus further commitments to rehab and anti-gambling initiatives.

This, I feel, is a very good outcome for Tonali and the club, considering the starting point for betting on your own team is three years. His lawyers have, it seems, negotiated a suspension that will have him back by the end of August and one that will also likely allow him to train with Newcastle. Going forward, the club are now exploring all manner of legal avenues.

The one key question, and a difficult one to prove, is what did Milan know at the point of sale in July? There is also the question of paying Tonali’s wages during the ban, with some suggestion there is a clause allowing them not to do so.

The club aren’t commenting on this but there will be a lot more fallout from this story in the coming days and weeks. In the short term, it leaves Newcastle without a £52million midfielder. However, as Sean Longstaff said on Tuesday, they suddenly have a lot of options in that position and there is a feeling his loss will not impact as much as it would in other areas. They could, though, explore a January move for Kalvin Phillips, especially if available on loan. From an FFP perspective, the Tonali issue is a nightmare for Newcastle, for it leaves a big hole in their accounts with nothing to show for it during the next 10 months at least.

Thanks to Chris for his answers on United there.

On to another United now and CRAIG HOPE is with us to discuss all the latest at Newcastle.

CHRIS WHEELER: In a word, yes. Rashford’s form has clearly dipped again – I don’t think that shot into the Stretford End last night has come down yet. His body language isn’t great either, which was the problem a couple of seasons ago. he’s someone who finds it very hard to hide his emotions.

People talked about his form for England when he scored last week, but he’s playing alongside Bellingham and Kane. United don’t have those calibre of players. Rashford signed a £300,000-a-week contract in the summer. He’s a big player for United now and he needs to step up for the team.

If he doesn’t improve soon then it wouldn’t surprise me if Ten Hag looked for other ways to incorporate Mount and Garnacho into the starting line-up.

CHRIS WHEELER: Based on the season so far, probably not in January now. The injuries to Varane, Martinez and Shaw have hit United hard. Fair play to Maguire, he backed himself to stay in the summer and it seems to be working out for him (*once more an asterisk about Man City on Sunday!)

I’m genuinely pleased for the guy because he’s been through a lot, most of it unwarranted. My concern for Maguire is that I think Ten Hag fundamentally doesn’t rate him in the way Southgate does. What Ten Hag says about Maguire and what he does are two different things. Despite his recent revival, I still think it would be better in the long-term if he moved on next summer.

CHRIS WHEELER: Tough one. I think the history of this whole process tells us that it will take longer than people think. The amount of speculation – most of it wrong – over the past year is also an indication that it is taking place behind the scenes.

This is not like signing a player, and there are huge complexities. Hopefully Ratcliffe’s investment will be ratified and, who knows, by the New Year we might see some tangible proof that he is pulling some strings in the football operation.

CHRIS WHEELER: The team? He has to. United are clearly some way off yet. Whatever the debate about where the Glazers get their money – and, believe me, I fully understand the fans’ views – the club have always spent on new players. £400m so far under Ten Hag already, and that has to continue if you want to compete at the top.

The infrastructure is a more difficult question to answer. Obviously, something has to be done, but whether that takes the form of a brand new stadium or upgrade remains to be seen. I’m sure someone like Ratcliffe sees the commercial benefits of both. Carrington needs a bit of work too.

CHRIS WHEELER: It’s still touch and go. Based on the last two games at OT, I wouldn’t bet my house on them getting a result in Copenhagen or Istanbul, but they will probably have to.

It did occur to me that Bayern will almost certainly have qualified at a canter by the time they arrive in Manchester in December and may not be at it 100 per cent, but maybe that’s wishful thinking! United have certainly made life hard for themselves, no doubt about it, but I’ll stick my neck out and say second place – whilst keeping an eye on the Europa League results!

CHRIS WHEELER: They are right to be concerned. United aren’t playing well at all. As I mentioned in reference to Maguire earlier, let’s not get too carried away by dodgy one-goal wins over Brentford, Sheffield  United and Copenhagen – not with Man City waiting around the corner.

A lot has been made about the 16-man injury list, and it certainly hasn’t helped in terms of stability and consistency. But how many of the players currently out of action would walk into this team? Martinez and Shaw? Wan-Bissaka at a push.

I’m sure Ten Hag won’t be getting too far ahead of himself.

CHRIS WHEELER: A massive moment for him. I’m writing a piece on Onana for the website later and his confidence has clearly taken a battering.

He worked hard to get himself right during the international break when he played well against Senegal, and I thought he was solid at Sheffield United as well. He conceded a penalty in both those games, but came good when it mattered against Copenhagen.

It was significant that it came in the Champions League as well because probably his two worst games were against Bayern and Galatasaray. Hopefully he can build on this. Schmeichel and De Gea both overcame shaky starts at United so fingers crossed.

CHRIS WHEELER: A defensive one! It makes no sense to go gung-ho against City. Ten Hag won’t have forgotten that 6-3 at the Etihad a year ago, and it could easily happen again. If memory serves, he played two defensive midfielders in all three derbies with Eriksen at No.10  and Fernandes on the right as a defensive measure, with varying degrees of success.

City were in total control at Old Trafford until Fernandes scored a controversial equaliser in a 2-1 win, and City’s 2-1 win the FA Cup final wasn’t nearly as close as it seems.

I think Ten Hag will go with two defensive mids again on Sunday, probably Casemiro and Amrabat. Whether Eriksen gets a rare start and Fernandes plays right again seems less likely. Onana; Dalot, Varane, Maguire, Reguilon; Casemiro, Amrabat; Antony, Fernandes, Rashford, Hojlund

CHRIS WHEELER: I think so. If Varane came through last night’s game unscathed and is fit to start on the right, then I would expect Maguire to be on the left. Ten Hag prefers left-footed players in that position, but I think Maguire will get the nod ahead of Evans and Lindelof.

If Martinez – and probably Shaw – were fit, it might be a different matter but Maguire has earned his spot after a difficult period. It would make no sense to leave him out when he’s on such a high.

The only caution from my point of view is not to get carried away by the last three games when the opponents have been Brentford, Sheffield United and FC Copenhagen. Man City are a different proposition altogether.

CHRIS WHEELER joins us in five minutes to discuss all the latest goings on at Old Trafford.

CHRIS WHEELER: As the fans filed past the Trinity statue to pay their respects to Sir Bobby Charlton on Tuesday night, one man in a baseball cap stopped and bowed his head as if facing an altar. After a few moments of quiet contemplation he unclasped his hands and crossed himself.

MUFC The Religion, a banner used to declare at Old Trafford, and no-one was worshipped more than Sir Bobby.

Amid the swathe of floral tributes, scarves and jerseys laid out beneath Charlton, Denis Law and George Best flickered a solitary candle.

United fans paid emotional tributes to Sir Bobby Charlton last night following his death at the age of 86.

It was an emotionally charged occasion as fans descended outside Old Trafford hours before kick-off to pay their respects.

How good was Eriksen last night? JOE BERNSTEIN writes that his display has given Erik ten Hag a headache ahead of the Manchester derby…

Here CRAIG HOPE provides the latest on the big story in Newcastle

Here’s a rundown of today’s Q+A session:

Chris Wheeler on Manchester United – 12-1pm

Craig Hope on Newcastle – 1-2pm

Tom Collomosse on Aston Villa – 2-3pm

Jack Gaughan on Manchester City – 3-4pm

The Danish side were awarded a spot-kick in the final minute at Old Trafford after a foul by Scott McTominay, giving Jordan Larsson the chance to secure a last-gasp draw.

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of our weekly Premier League Q+A.

Our experts on Manchester United, Newcastle, Aston Villa and Man City will be joining us over the next four hours to discuss all the latest goings on.

If you want a question answered, drop it in the comments or on our social channels. We’d love to hear from you.