England Premier League
Friday 22nd December 2023
Kick off at 8pm GMT
Venue: Villa Park
Match Preview:
Aston Villa’s brilliant form continued at the weekend as they came back against Brentford and won 2-1 and while we are not even at the halfway stage of the season the talk of a possible surprise league title for the Villains is gathering pace. Only goal difference is keeping Villa from 2nd place as with 38 points they have the same amount as Liverpool and are only a point behind league leaders Arsenal. Who would have thought that as we approached Christmas that Unai Emery’s side would be four points ahead of Manchester City?
There is a long way to go but current form has been irresistible from Villa who come into this game having won their last 3, two of those victories were against the teams who finished 1st and 2nd last season in Manchester City and Arsenal. There have been some wobbles away from home but at home there is now only one club who have a 100% win record and that is Emery’s team. With 25 goals scored they are averaging 3 a game and have only conceded 5 goals at Villa Park- only Newcastle with 4 have a better defensive home record.
Sheffield United need to stay upbeat because new returning manager Chris Wilder has already lost 2 of the 3 games he’s been in charge of. However fixtures haven’t fallen kindly for Wilder’s return which has seen the club have to play Liverpool and this past weekend travel to Chelsea. Sandwiched in between those games was the clubs 2nd win of the season as they beat Brentford. With 8 points the Blades are bottom of the league and are six points from safety. On the road the club has yet to win and have the worst away record in the league with just 1 point won.
Team News:
Aston Villa: Boubacar Kamara is suspended due to being sent off last weekend and will now miss the rest of the year. Youri Tielemans will be assessed due to a recent knock; it is the same situation for Pau Torres. The following players remain out; Tyrone Mings, Bertrand Traore, Robin Olsen and Emiliano Buendia who isn’t due back until February.
Sheffield United: Rhian Brewster and Rhys Norrington-Davies remain doubts due to fitness issues. The absentee list for long term injuries remains at the club with Chris Basham, Tom Davies, Daniel Jebbison and John Egan all out.
Aston Villa vs Sheffield Utd Head to Head:
The clubs have not played each other in this fixture for 3 years when Aston Villa won 1-0.
Aston Villa have only managed one victory over Sheffield United in the last six meetings.
The last 4 meetings in a row have all seen under 2.5 goals.
Aston Villa vs Sheffield Utd Prediction:
So this fixture comes down to the best home record in the league against the worst away record in the league. It is true that in the last decade Sheffield United have had the better of results but this Villa team are a million miles from even a few years ago and are a well drilled machine under the guidance of Unai Emery. The bookmakers think the same and Villa are huge odds on to win the game and we can’t see many if any touching the direct win market.
We know that there are goals in this Villa side especially at home and so a better choice here would be to back the ht/ft market. Sheffield United to credit them are not getting slaughtered week in and week out and they will, at times, be able to frustrate Villa we believe but it would feel like a surprise to see anything but a comfortable home win and Villa should be able to keep that feel good confidence factor going as we head into the Christmas period rush of games.
Aston Villa vs Sheffield Utd Betting Tips:
Half Time/Full Time: Aston Villa/Aston Villa at 1.62
Anytime goalscorer: Ollie Watkins at 1.66
Correct Score: Aston Villa to win 2-0 or 3-0 at 6.00 and 7.00
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