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

Man Utd host Aston Villa at Old Trafford in the Premier League on Sunday. The hosts are hit by injuries and have had a few disappointing recent results. Villa are in sensational form with eight wins in their last ten. A win for Unai Emery’s team could close the gap to the top four to just three points. They won 2-1 in the reverse fixture and 1-0 at Old Trafford in 2021.

Man Utd Form

United have had a recent dip in results and performances. In their last five matches in all competitions, they’ve only won once with three draws. They led 2-0 at home to Sevilla but could only draw 2-2. An impressive 2-0 win at Nottingham Forest followed before being dumped out of the Europa League after a 3-0 defeat in Sevilla in the second leg.

A 0-0 draw in the FA Cup semi-final saw them progress on penalties. On Thursday, they led 2-0 vs Tottenham at half-time having dominated. In the second half, they were thoroughly outplayed and lost the second period 2-0 for a 2-2 draw at full time. At home, Man Utd are 26 matches unbeaten with 23 wins.

Man Utd Team News

Erik Ten Hag has plenty of injuries to deal with. At the back, Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane were already injured and Harry Maguire joined them on the sidelines. Assuming the latter doesn’t recover, it’ll have to be Luke Shaw and Victor Lindelof as the pairing once again.

Bruno Fernandes shook off an injury to start in midweek. If the midfield needs to be freshened up, then Fred or Marcel Sabitzer could allow Christian Eriksen a breather. In attack, Anthony Martial could be recalled so Jadon Sancho, despite a goal at Spurs, could drop to the bench.

Man Utd Motivation

United have a six-point buffer over the teams below them, as well as two matches in hand. They will play to win this match for sure at home and take a big step towards a top four finish.

A draw would not signal a crisis but with one win in five, it could hit confidence quite hard. Ten Hag will want to eke out any sort of victory here against a Villa side who are flying.

Aston Villa Form

Unai Emery took over a side in 16^th place with seven defeats in 11 matches. Since his appointment, Villa have 13 of their 20 league matches with 43 points accrued. Only Man City and Arsenal (both 44 points) have picked up more in that time. After three league defeats in a row in February, the Villains have won eight and drawn two of their 10 league fixtures, shooting them to sixth in the table.

They’ve had several outstanding performances including winning 2-0 at Chelsea and then 2-1 at Leicester. A 2-0 home win vs Nottingham Forest preceded their best performance of the season, beating Newcastle 3-0 at home. Last weekend, they went to Brentford and scored late to rescue a 1-1 draw. In midweek, they allowed Fulham just one shot all match in a solid 1-0 home victory.

Aston Villa Team News

Right back Matty Cash remains injured so Ashley Young will play in that role. Boubacar Kamara is out and so are attacking midfielders Leon Bailey and Philippe Coutinho with hamstring complaints. The team is pretty settled otherwise with Alex Moreno being preferred to Lucas Digne at left back.  

In midfield, it’s John McGinn and Jacob Ramsey in the narrow roles on the flanks. Emi Buendia is playing in close support to Ollie Watkins, who is in top form. With the injuries, Emery has no real options to change things up.

Aston Villa Motivation

Villa secured safety a while ago and have certainly not dropped in motivation or intensity since then. They’re playing with freedom, focus and confidence right now.

On the road, they tend to be a bit more defensive and less possession-focused. They will go all out to win this match though, with nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Key Stats

Man Utd’s last 24 home matches have seen 20 wins and 4 draws

Man Utd have scored 2+ goals in 19 of their last 21 home matches (all competitions)

Man Utd have won 1 of their last 5 matches in all competitions (DWLDD)

Aston Villa have won 8 of their last 10 PL matches (2 draws)

Villa’s Ollie Watkins has 11 goals in his last 14 EPL matches

Aston Villa are unbeaten in 3 league matches vs Man Utd (WDW)

Verdict

This should be a really good game. United are looking a bit stale and very tired. Villa are playing with incredible momentum and have a good recent record against Man Utd, including winning 1-0 at Old Trafford in 2021. Both sides should score in this one but don’t discount a Villa shock win.

Best Bet: Both Teams to Score + Over 2.5 goals at 2.00

Alternative Bet: Both Teams to Score + No draw at 2.30

Value Bet: Aston Villa win at 4.15

Goalscorer Tip: Rashford and Watkins to both score anytime at 6.35

James O'Connor

James is a football analyst who writes about the tactics of the PSL and English Premier League. He holds the UEFA A coaching licence and has previously worked for several clubs in analysis roles.Twitter: https://twitter.com/footy_analysis