Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard will still be without three of his key players this afternoon as the Villans host struggling Watford.

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According to Birmingham Live journalist Ashley Preece, the trio of Marvelous Nakamba, Bertrand Traore and Ezri Konsa will all miss the Hornets' visit.

Preece tweeted: "Traore, Konsa & Nakamba still out. Steven Gerrard on #avfc bouncing back: "If we don't hit a certain level when it comes to desire, commitment & grit, we'll have some issues. I'm looking forward to seeing how we come out of the blocks tomorrow."

Nakamba has been absent since December with a knee injury and isn't expected to return to action until April, whilst Konsa is serving a suspension having been sent off in the 3-3 draw against Leeds United last Wednesday.

However, it's Traore's situation that will be particularly frustrating. The Burkina Faso international has only managed to make six league appearances for the West Midlands outfit this season, having been injured from mid-October to mid-December.

The 26-year-old did return to the side over the festive period, making a cameo against Chelsea and starting against Brentford, but was then called up by Burkina Faso to compete in the African Cup of Nations.

Most recently, a hamstring injury has kept the winger out of action, with hope that Traore will be back for Villa by the end of the month.

Gerrard will be seething

Last week was certainly underwhelming for the 41-year-old's side, dropping points against Leeds having led 3-1 and losing 1-0 at Newcastle United.

The Villans are 12th going into their meeting with Watford, whom they were beaten 3-2 by on the opening day of the season at Vicarage Road.

Since then, the Hornets have sacked two managers with veteran Roy Hodgson set to be in the opposing dugout this afternoon with his side in desperate need of points.

Villa's visitors are six points from safety in 19th, making the match a good opportunity for Gerrard's side to regain some distance on those in the top half, with tenth surely being the minimum finish targeted.

Without three of his best players, it won't be an easy task, however, there should be enough depth in the Englishman's squad for them to secure what would be an important victory.

In other news: Aston Villa heading for summer transfer catastrophe that’ll surely have Gerrard fuming - opinion