Aston Villa v Manchester City preview, predictions & confirmed XIs
Manchester City will look to keep up their strong run of form when they travel to Aston Villa on Sunday.
Pep Guardiola’s men have won each of their four games since that damaging 3-2 loss away at Wolves in December but remain 14 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool.
Villa’s plight is far more desperate, with Dean Smith’s men hovering just one place and one point above the relegation zone, although they did pull off an important 2-1 win away at Burnley in their last Premier League game.
Can City keep up their momentum or will the Villains upset the applecart? Read on for our preview, predictions, team news and TV coverage information.
When is Aston Villa vs Man City and where can I watch live?
Competition: Premier League
Venue: Villa Park
Date: Sunday, 12 January 2020
Kick-off: 4:30 PM (UK time)
TV coverage (UK): Sky Sports Premier League & Sky Sports Main Event
Last five meetings: Aston Villa vs Man City
26 Oct 2019: Man City 3-0 Aston Villa (Premier League)
05 Mar 2016: Man City 4-0 Aston Villa (Premier League)
30 Jan 2016: Aston Villa 0-4 Man City (FA Cup)
08 Nov 2015: Aston Villa 0-0 Man City (Premier League)
25 Apr 2015: Man City 3-2 Aston Villa (Premier League)
Aggregate Score: Aston Villa (LLLDL) 2-14 Man City (WWWDW)
Team news
Aston Villa
Danny Drinkwater makes his debut following his loan switch from Chelsea, while Anwar El Ghazi continues to lead the line as Dean Smith struggles with injuries up top.
Likely in an effort to stifle the City midfield, Smith has opted to field five men across the middle, with Neil Taylor and Ahmed Elmohamady operating as wing-backs.
Confirmed XI: Nyland; Konsa, Mings, Hause; Elmohamady, Taylor, Drinkwater, Luiz, Hourihane, Taylor; Grealish; El Ghazi.
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Man City
Guardiola has made the bold choice of dropping Sterling to the bench and fielding both Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus up front, with Riyad Mahrez operating the hole behind them.
With Aymeric Laporte still not ready for action, City’s back-three is made up of midfielders Rodri and Fernandinho, alongside John Stones.
Confirmed XI: Ederson; Rodri, Fernandinho, Stones; Cancelo, De Bruyne, D. Silva, Mendy; Mahrez; Aguero, Jesus.
Squawka prediction
City will head to Villa Park brimming with confidence after their Manchester derby win on Tuesday and if they can match that performance once again, it’s hard to see Dean Smith’s men having a chance of a result, despite their need for points.
Guardiola’s far superior attacking talent should expose the cracks in Villa’s defence and tip the scales.
Scoreline prediction: Aston Villa 0-3 Man City
Check out more of Squawka’s Premier League predictions here.
