Aston Villa will host Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Saturday, hoping to bounce back from the recent defeats with .
Aston Villa were in outstanding form for several months after Unai Emery took over, but they have now crashed to two consecutive defeats in the Premier League ahead of the visit of Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.
Losses against Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers will have deflated the side to a certain extent. But Aston Villa have the quality to bounce back strongly and pick up all three points here.
Villa are currently eighth in the league table, and they are pushing for European qualification. They cannot afford to keep dropping points and it remains to be seen whether the home side can get back to winning ways.
Tottenham Hotspur are sixth in the league table, and they have to look for a win in the last three matches to secure European qualification. They are likely to miss out on a top-four finish but cannot afford to miss out on Europa League qualification.
The North London giants bounced back from the defeat against Liverpool with a win over Crystal Palace at home, and they will look to build on that and put together a winning run now. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Back on the road 🛣
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— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) May 10, 2023
Team News & Tactics
Aston Villa
Unai Emery will be without the services of goalkeeper Jed Steer. Other than that, Aston Villa should be able to field a full-strength lineup. The home side are likely to shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Emiliano Martinez in goal.
Ashley Young and Alex Moreno will be deployed as the full-backs, and the two players will look to contribute offensively apart from the defensive responsibilities. Ezri Konsa will start at the heart of the defence alongside Tyrone Mings.
John McGinn will start alongside Douglas Luiz in the midfield pivot. While McGinn will look to add work rate and drive to the midfield, Luiz will look to win the ball back for his side and control the tempo of the game.
Leon Bailey and Jacob Ramsey will be operating as the inverted attacking midfielders, and the two players are likely to drift wide from time to time in order to create goal-scoring opportunities for their side. Emiliano Buendia will be deployed as the central attacking midfielder and he will be expected to link the midfield with the attack. Ollie Watkins will lead the line for Aston Villa.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Martinez; Young, Konsa, Mings, Moreno; McGinn, Luiz; Bailey, Buendia, Ramsey; Watkins
Tottenham Hotspur
The visitors will be without the services of Rodrigo Bentancur and Hugo Lloris because of injuries. Tottenham Hotspur are likely to line up in a 3-4-2-1 formation, with Fraser Forster in goal.
In the back three, Emerson Royal will start along with Cristian Romero and Clement Lenglet. Pedro Porro and Ben Davies will be deployed as the wing-backs and the two players will look to make their mark during transitions as well as cover the central defenders.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg will start as the central midfielder alongside Oliver Skipp. The two players will look to keep the side defensively compact and dominate proceedings in the middle of the park.
Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski will be the attacking midfielders and they will be expected to add width and creativity to the side. Harry Kane is set to lead the line for Tottenham.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Forster; Royal, Romero, Lenglet; Porro, Skipp, Hojbjerg, Davies; Kulusevski, Son; Kane
Key Stats
- Tottenham have won their last eight away matches against Aston Villa in all competitions.
- Tottenham have scored at least two goals in their last eight away matches against Aston Villa in all competitions.
- Tottenham have picked up just one win in the last five league matches.
- 19 goals have been scored in the last six matches between these two sides.
- Aston Villa are unbeaten in ten of their last 12 Premier League matches.
Player to Watch
Ollie Watkins
The Aston Villa striker has been in outstanding form this season, scoring 15 goals across all competitions. He is our man to watch out for on Saturday afternoon. Watkins will help create opportunities and he will look to get on the scoresheet himself.
The 27-year-old could prove to be a handful for Spurs at Villa Park tomorrow. He has six goals and two assists in his last ten league outings.
Prediction
Aston Villa 1-1 Tottenham
The last time these two sides met in the league, Aston Villa picked up a 2-0 win away from home. They will be looking for more of the same here. However, their confidence will have dropped after the last two outings and Spurs will look to take advantage of that.
This is likely to be a close encounter and the two teams will end up cancelling each other out The Hard Tackle predicts a 1-1 draw.
