Aston Villa v Man Utd – Preview, Predictions, and Best Bets

Aston Villa host Man Utd on Sunday The hosts beat Bayern Munich in midweek and have lost just once in nine matches this season. United are winless in four matches and have already suffered three league losses.

Aston Villa Form

Villa are enjoying another strong season with just one loss so far. They were beaten 2-0 at home by Arsenal in round two, but five successive wins followed, starting with a 2-1 victory at Leicester, a 3-2 home win over Everton, and a 3-0 triumph at Young Boys in the Champions League.

A 3-1 home win over Wolves came after two late goals, followed by a 2-1 win at Wycombe in the Carabao Cup. Villa led 2-1 at Ipswich last weekend but were outshot 15-7 and ended up drawing 2-2. In midweek, they claimed a famous 1-0 home win against Bayern Munich, despite having just 30% possession and being outshot 17-5.

Aston Villa Team News

Villa have some issues in midfield for this match. John McGinn is out, and Jacob Ramsey is a major doubt. Leon Bailey went off injured in midweek and is unlikely to be available.

Long-term injury absentees Tyrone Mings and Boubacar Kamara remain sidelined. Amadou Onana has a tight hamstring and had to be substituted against Bayern. Ian Maatsen and Ross Barkley are on standby to start.

Aston Villa Motivation

Villa are coming off an emotionally draining win. They should be able to motivate themselves for this big match.

Emery’s side can adopt a defensive approach with low possession numbers or take the game to their opponents. Either way, they will aim for a win here, benefiting from an extra rest day compared to United.

Man Utd Form

United are currently in poor form and are winless in four matches. In the league this season, they’ve already lost 2-1 away at Brighton in round two and 3-0 at home to Liverpool a week later. A 3-0 win over Southampton and a 7-0 thrashing of lower-league Barnsley haven’t provided a consistent platform for improvement.

They visited Crystal Palace and missed five big chances in a 0-0 draw. A 1-1 draw at home to FC Twente followed, despite leading 1-0. Last Sunday, they were humiliated 3-0 at home by Tottenham, playing with ten men, allowing 4.59 xG and conceding nine big chances. On Thursday, a late goal was needed to rescue a 3-3 draw away at FC Porto.

Man Utd Team News

Luke Shaw, Leny Yoro, and Tyrell Malacia are all unavailable in defense. Harry Maguire is fit and could start after scoring off the bench in Porto on Thursday.

In midfield, Mason Mount and Kobbie Mainoo are major injury doubts. Bruno Fernandes is available after his red card against Tottenham was overturned. Christian Eriksen is set to play in midfield, and Rasmus Hojlund is battling Joshua Zirkzee for the number nine role.

Man Utd Motivation

United are still fighting hard for their manager, but the team looks disorganized tactically and vulnerable defensively.

Ten Hag needs a positive result here, even if it’s just a draw. The pressure is mounting, and he may consider starting Casemiro and Ugarte, possibly parking the bus at Villa Park.

Key Stats

Aston Villa have lost just 1 of their last 9 matches (7 wins)

Aston Villa have conceded 19 goals in their last 11 matches

Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins has scored 4 goals in his last 5 matches

Man Utd have lost 3 of their last 5 league matches

Man Utd have failed to score in 3 of their last 7 matches (all competitions)

Verdict

Rarely has a match between these sides looked like such a clear home win. The one factor that could level the playing field is if Onana is absent in Villa’s midfield. Otherwise, a home win is the likely outcome.