Aston Villa and Ipswich Town will be eager to return to winning ways in the Premier League when they face off at Villa Park on Saturday.
Gameweek 25 of the 2024/25 Premier League season is starting on Friday with the game between Brighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea at the Amex Stadium. Leicester City and Arsenal will kick things off on Saturday before the action continues with five simultaneous fixtures, including Aston Villa vs Ipswich Town at Villa Park.
2023/24 was a season to remember for Aston Villa after qualifying for the UEFA Champions League with a top-four finish. However, the Villains have blown hot and cold this season, winning only ten of their 24 Premier League games thus far. However, they are only six points behind fourth-placed Chelsea. In addition, they have qualified for the UEFA Champions League round of 16 while reaching the FA Cup fifth round after beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 last weekend.
Like the home side, Ipswich Town, too, qualified for the FA Cup fifth round after cruising to a 4-1 win over Coventry City last weekend. However, the Tractor Boys have struggled in the Premier League, even though they have shown some resilience. Kieran McKenna’s men are 19th in the standings, although 17th-placed Wolverhampton Wanderers are only three points ahead.
The reverse fixture saw Ipswich Town come from a goal down to hold Aston Villa to a 2-2 draw, with Liam Delap scoring a point-saving brace. The Hard Tackle looks closer at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Aston Villa
Unai Emery has a new injury concern that is hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Aston Villa manager might be bereft of the services of as many as six first-team players vs Ipswich Town on Saturday.
Emery is sweating over Ollie Watkins’s fitness, with Aston Villa’s star striker recovering from a minor groin injury. The Spanish tactician will take a late call on the Englishman’s involvement. However, Ezri Konsa (muscle), Tyrone Mings (knee), Pau Torres (ankle), and Matty Cash (knock) remain on the sidelines. Meanwhile, Ross Barkley (calf) has a chance to be in the matchday squad.
Emiliano Martinez is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Aston Villa lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Ipswich Town on Saturday. The backline should feature Andres Garcia, Boubacar Kamara, Lamare Bogarde, and Lucas Digne.
As for the midfield unit, John McGinn and Youri Tielemans should pair up in the double pivot, with Amadou Onana being a backup option on the bench. Morgan Rogers will reprise the no. 10 role, with Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio being the two wide attackers. Finally, Ollie Watkins should lead the line for Aston Villa against Ipswich Town.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Martinez; Garcia, Kamara, Bogarde, Digne; McGinn, Tielemans; Asensio, Rogers, Rashford; Watkins
Ipswich Town
Like his counterpart in the Aston Villa dugout, Kieran McKenna has a new issue to worry about ahead of the trip to Villa Park. The Ipswich Town manager might be without five first-team players on Saturday.
McKenna is sweating over Sammie Szmodics’s fitness after he suffered a minor ankle issue last weekend against Coventry City. The Republic of Ireland international accompanies Chiedozie Ogbene (Achilles), Wes Burns (knee), Christian Walton (groin), and Conor Chaplin (knee) on the sidelines.
Alex Palmer should take his spot between the sticks, with Ipswich Town lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Aston Villa on Saturday. The backline should feature Axel Tuanzebe, Dara O’Shea, Jacob Greaves, and Leif Davis.
As for the midfield unit, Jens Cajuste should line up alongside captain Samy Morsy in the double pivot. Omari Hutchinson will likely reprise the no. 10 role, with Jack Clarke and Jaden Philogene being the two wide attackers. Finally, Liam Delap will spearhead the Ipswich Town attack against Aston Villa.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Palmer; Tuanzebe, O’Shea, Greaves, Davis; Morsy, Cajuste; Philogene, Hutchinson, Clarke; Delap
Key Stats
- Aston Villa have lost only one of their last 14 top-flight matches vs Ipswich Town (W10 D3), a 1-0 home defeat in March 1994. The Tractor Boys have faced defeat in ten of their 12 most recent away league games against Aston Villa, both exceptions being 1-0 victories (March 1994 in the Premier League, February 2017 in the Championship).
- Aston Villa have lost only one of their last 20 Premier League games against a team in the relegation zone (W13 D6), although that defeat came in the most recent clash in Gameweek 24 against Wolverhampton Wanderers (0-2).
- Ipswich Town have lost their last four Premier League games, their longest losing run this season. The Tractor Boys last lost more consecutive league matches between October and December 2011 under Paul Jewell (7 in the Championship).
- Since the start of the 2023/24 season, only Everton and Brentford have won a larger share of their total Premier League points at home than Aston Villa (60% – 63/105) among current sides in the division. The Villains are unbeaten in their last 11 league games at Villa Park (W6 D5) since losing 2-0 to Arsenal in their opening home game of the 2024/25 campaign.
- Ollie Watkins has been directly involved in ten goals in his last six Premier League starts against newly promoted opposition (G4 A6), scoring and assisting against Ipswich Town in the reverse fixture in September.
Player to Watch
Marcus Rashford
While Ollie Watkins and Liam Delap were viable candidates for this section, we have picked Marcus Rashford as the Player to Watch for the game between Aston Villa and Ipswich Town at Villa Park after his impressive came in the FA Cup clash with Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
Interestingly, Rashford’s four Premier League goals this season have come against sides starting the day 15th or lower, including away to Ipswich Town for Manchester United in November. The last players to score against the same opponent for different clubs in a Premier League season were Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal and Manchester United vs Huddersfield Town) and Olivier Giroud (Arsenal and Chelsea vs Southampton) in 2017/18. Rashford will hope to join that company this weekend.
Prediction
Aston Villa 2-1 Ipswich Town
Toppling Aston Villa at Villa Park is nigh on impossible, especially for a promoted club struggling to remain in the Premier League. In addition, Ipswich Town’s record after going down in a game is horrendous, with only Southampton (1) gaining fewer points from losing positions in the Premier League this term than the Tractor Boys (3).
While Kieran McKenna’s men scripted a solid comeback in the reverse fixture, they might not have enough quality to take anything from Saturday’s game. However, Ipswich Town should give the hosts a run for their money before going down. The Hard Tackle predicts a hard-fought 2-1 win for Unai Emery and his charges.