Key Highlights :
1. Aston Villa have confirmed their participation in the Premier League’s new USA Summer Series this July.
2. Unai Emery will take his players to the United States for a tournament in which Villa will play Premier League rivals Newcastle, Brentford and Fulham.
3. They will take on Newcastle in Philadelphia on July 23, Fulham in Orlando, Florida, on July 26 and then travel to Landover in Maryland for their final fixture against Brentford four days later.
4. Aston Villa prospect Aaron Ramsey proved to be Middlesbrough’s saviour on Monday. The 20-year-old headed to the Riverside on loan in January after initially starting the season at Norwich City. Since joining Michael Carrick’s side, alongside Villa striker Cameron Archer , Ramsey has scored four goals and provided an assist in 10 games for Boro, who look set to be part of the play-off picture in the Championship.
5. Boro headed to Bristol City on Easter Monday and got off to a slow start at Ashton Gate. The home side found themselves 2-0 up by 49 minutes before Ramsey sparked his side into life. Tommy Smith floated in a cross towards the back post and the young Villa midfielder responded with a diving header to kick-start Boro’s fightback.
6. Traore revival helping dreams come true Bertrand Traore is enjoying a revival in his Aston Villa career and has fuelled the team’s hopes of a surprise charge for a European place. The winger proved to be Villa's unlikely hero as they battled through a tough week and emerged with nine points. Villa headed into April in 11th place. Just eight days later they found themselves in sixth, in no small part due to Traore’s vital goal contributions. And his out-of-the-blue stunner at Leicester City last week gave Villa more than just another three points on the road.
7. Dean Smith makes Villa comparison Dean Smith has pointed to his experience with Aston Villa as he attempts to keep Leicester City in the Premier League. The 52-year-old was appointed interim manager by the Foxes on Monday until the end of the season. He has been joined at the King Power Stadium by former Villa coaches Craig Shakespeare and John Terry as they bid to lift Leicester from 19th in the table and avoid relegation. Smith led Villa to play-off glory and guided them to a League Cup final during his time at Villa Park but it is his experience of surviving in the top-flight that the Foxes are relying on. A four-game unbeaten run at the end of the 2019-20 season saw Smith’s Villa side stay up and he has been tasked with repeating that feat with Leicester.
Aston Villa have confirmed their pre-season tour of the United States and the BirminghamLive team have all the details.Former Aston Villa midfielder Mile Jedinak has enjoyed a second wind at Villa Park and is looking forward to the new season.The club has also confirmed their pre-season tour of the United States and the dates are as follows:- July 10- July 14: training in Arizona- July 17- July 20: game against LA Galaxy in Tucson, Arizona- July 23- July 26: game against Minnesota United in Minneapolis- July 29- Aug. 2: game against San Jose Earthquakes in Santa Clara- Aug. 5- Aug. 8: game against Houston Dynamo in Pasadena- Aug. 11- Aug. 14: game against Portland Timbers in Sandy, OregonAston Villa's first game of the season is against Birmingham City on August 17.
