Aston Villa will host Liverpool at Villa Park on Wednesday, determined to get their Premier League top-four push back on track.
Aston Villa have dropped quite a few points recently, and they are without a win in the last four Premier League games ahead of the match vs Liverpool at Villa Park on Wednesday.
The home side have dropped down to ninth in the Premier League table, and they will be desperate to get back on track. Unai Emery will demand a strong performance from his players, and it will be interesting to see if Aston Villa can get the job done here.
Meanwhile, Liverpool will look to build on the win over Wolves this past weekend and put together a winning run. An away game at Villa Park is going to be a complicated affair, and Liverpool will have to raise their performance levels to get the job done. They cannot afford to drop points, especially with Arsenal breathing down their necks.
Liverpool have done well vs Aston Villa in recent seasons, and it remains to be seen whether they can grind out all three points. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Aston Villa
Ezri Konsa has a knock, Boubacar Kamara has a thigh injury, Pau Torres misses out with an ankle injury, Ross Barkley has a calf injury, Amadou Onana has a thigh injury and Matty Cash is out with a muscle injury.
Aston Villa will shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Emiliano Martinez in goal. Andres Garcia and Lucas Digne will start as the full-backs. They will look to help out defensively and hit Liverpool on the break. Lamare Bogarde will start alongside Axel Disasi at the heart of the defence.
John McGinn and Youri Tielemans will look to control the tempo of the game and add drive to the middle of the park. Leon Bailey and Marcus Rashford will add pace, flair and creativity to the side from the wide areas.
Meanwhile, Morgan Rogers will start as the attacking midfielder, and he will look to create goalscoring opportunities for his teammates. Finally, Ollie Watkins will lead the line for Aston Villa vs Liverpool on Wednesday.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Martinez; Garcia, Disasi, Bogarde, Digne; McGinn, Tielemans; Bailey, Rogers, Rashford; Watkins
Liverpool
Joe Gomez is ruled out with a hamstring injury, while Cody Gakpo has a knock. Liverpool are likely to shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation vs Aston Villa, with Alisson Becker in goal.
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson will start as the full-backs, and they will look to help out at both ends of the pitch. Ibrahima Konate will start alongside Virgil van Dijk at the heart of the defence.
Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch will add defensive cover and control to the side from the deep. Dominik Szoboszlai will create goalscoring opportunities for his teammates from the number ten role.
Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz will add creativity and goals from the wide areas, with Darwin Nunez leading the line for Liverpool vs Aston Villa at Villa Park on Wednesday night.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Szoboszlai, Diaz; Nunez
Key Stats
- Liverpool have scored at least two goals in 17 of their last 18 matches in the Premier League.
- Liverpool are undefeated in their last 21 matches in the Premier League.
- Liverpool are unbeaten in their last six matches against Aston Villa.
- 20 goals have been scored in the last six meetings between these two sides.
- Aston Villa are unbeaten in five of the last six Premier League matches.
Player to Watch
Mohamed Salah
The Egyptian international managed to find the back of the net in his last outing. He has been outstanding this season. He is the top scorer in the Premier League, and the Liverpool star is our key player to watch out for.
Liverpool will depend on him to create opportunities in the final third and find the back of the net. It will be interesting to see if Salah can step up and help the Reds get the job done. Aston Villa have looked vulnerable at the back recently, and Salah has the quality to punish them with his quality.
Prediction
Aston Villa 1-1 Liverpool
Both teams will be desperate for a win here, and this is likely to be a closed contest. Regardless of their recent form, they are capable of beating each other, and this should be a cracking contest. It will be difficult to separate the two teams here and they could cancel each other out.
The last matches between these two sides at Villa Park ended in a draw, and this one is likely to follow suit. The two teams are likely to share the spoils here. The Hard Tackle predicts a 1-1 stalemate for Wednesday’s Premier League game between Aston Villa and Liverpool.
