Steven Gerrard will face seventh placed Brighton for his first game in charge of Aston Villa this SaturdaySteven Gerrard will face seventh placed Brighton for his first game in charge of Aston Villa this Saturday
Steven Gerrard will face seventh placed Brighton for his first game in charge of Aston Villa this Saturday

Is this Steven Gerrard's strongest starting XI as Aston Villa prepare to face Brighton on Saturday?

New Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard has some crucial decisions to make this week as he selects his first starting XI to face seventh placed Brighton this Saturday

Gerrard was installed as the new manager at Villa Park after previous boss Dean Smith was dismissed following a run of five consecutive Premier League defeats.

Smith has since found gainful employment at bottom of the league Norwich but Gerrard will hope to get off to the best possible start against a Brighton team who have impressed this season.

One of Gerrard's priorities will be to get the best from new summer arrivals Leon Bailey, who came in from Bayer Leverkusen, Emiliano Buendia from Norwich City while Danny Ings joined from Southampton.

Scroll down and click through to see how Aston Villa could line-up for the first match of the Gerrard era.