Aston Villa missed out on the chance to secure four consecutive Premier League wins in a row yesterday after losing to West Ham United at the London Stadium with the home side winning 2-1.

Next up for the Midlands club is a home clash against another London club as Arsenal will be making the trip to Villa Park on Saturday afternoon.

In terms of who could be available and who Villa manager Steven Gerrard could pick to be in his starting XI to take on Mikel Arteta's side at the weekend, we think one rarely seen figure at the Midlands club should be in line for some action.

Opportunity knocks

Taking into account how Marvelous Nakamba is still out on the sidelines with a knee injury he picked up back in December and Douglas Luiz is set to have surgery on a facial injury he sustained during the recent defeat in east London, this could give Gerrard the chance to finally unleash Tim Iroegbunam if the previously mentioned midfield duo aren't able to play on Saturday.

Having been an unused substitute in 11 of Villa's 12 previous league games, the 19-year-old, who has been labelled as being "raw" by his manager, has only played four minutes of Premier League action this season, which came during the club's 2-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion last month.

Described as having a "fantastic profile for a number six" by Gerrard, the teenager could finally show everyone at the Midlands club what he's capable of by getting his first start of the campaign against the north London club this weekend.

With the Gunners scoring ten goals in their past five league games, it would certainly be a tough test for the youngster to come in for his first full game of his senior Villa career. However, if he were able to express himself on the pitch and help his side keep Arsenal out and ultimately pick up a positive result for the Villans, this would certainly show Gerrard he has what it takes to be a regular performer for the club.

Moving forward, depending on what the injury situation is by the time Saturday rolls around, starting Iroegbunam should definitely be in the 41-year-old's thoughts when deciding his team.

In other news: Major blow: Ashley Preece drops fresh Villa injury update, Gerrard will be gutted - opinion