Casemiro ruled out of Villa showdown

The Brazil midfielder was booked in the second half of the dramatic 4-4 draw with Bournemouth at Old Trafford, for a trip on Marcus Tavernier, as the Cherries man advanced towards goal.

To make matters worse, Tavernier scored from the resulting free-kick to edge the visitors 3-2 ahead.

It was a fifth caution in the top-flight campaign for Casemiro this term, ensuring he is out of Sunday's 16:30 GMT encounter at Villa Park.

The experienced midfielder, who also scored with a far-post header on Monday night, is a key figure in Ruben Amorim's side but he was also banned for the game at Brentford in September, which we lost 3-1, following a red card in the home win over Chelsea.

Case will return for the Boxing Day assignment against Newcastle United, the side he netted against in the 2023 Carabao Cup final, as the Magpies come to Old Trafford for a 20:00 GMT kick-off.

Head coach Amorim will need to decide who replaces the 33-year-old in the engine room. Kobbie Mainoo came on for the South American against the Cherries, while Manuel Ugarte is another obvious option.

Benjamin Sesko made his return from injury as a substitute but the Reds are now without the services of Amad and Bryan Mbeumo, in addition to Noussair Mazraoui, due to the Africa Cup of Nations.

Central defenders Matthijs de Ligt and Harry Maguire have been sidelined, so we await an update on their progress.

Villa do not have any players away at AFCON at the moment, although Evann Guessand is on standby for Ivory Coast, but Jadon Sancho is definitely unavailable, due to the fact he is on loan from the Reds.