Aston Villa vs Arsenal: Prediction, Preview & Betting Tips

Both teams come into this one on the back of opening day victories. Arsenal will be fighting for the title this year whilst Villa will hope to replicate their achievements of last season by finishing in the top four. We expect this to be a very competitive and entertaining game, but there will be nothing to split the pair as they share the points.

Goals should be a feature in this one, with the hosts without a clean sheet in their last five. Arsenal are usually very strong at the back, but have also not kept a clean sheet in their previous five against Villa, including in both games last season which Unai Emery’s side won.

The BTTS market has landed in five of Arsenal’s last six games, whilst Villa have conceded the first goal in four of their last five. The Gunners have struggled at Villa Park in recent seasons, losing three of the last five meetings away from home. They should fare better this time, though may have to settle for a draw – Aston Villa 1-1 Arsenal

Arsenal make the tricky trip to take on Aston Villa in their second game of the season, with both sides looking to continue their perfect starts.

Date: 24/08/24

Kick-off time: 17:30

Venue: Villa Park

Both Aston Villa and Arsenal enjoyed excellent campaigns last year, and continued where they left off last weekend. Villa will be playing in the Champions League this season after finishing in the top four, and they began their battle to retain that spot with a huge 2-1 victory away at West Ham. It was the perfect start with an important performance for new summer recruit Amadou Onana, who scored the first goal on his debut.

Unai Emery’s side has plenty of attacking talent that will trouble the Arsenal backline, just as they did last season. Ollie Watkins led the way with 19 goals, and is set for another fantastic season. He is supported by the likes of Leon Bailey and Morgan Rogers, who is hoping for a breakout campaign. Arsenal were the league’s best defence last year as they finished runners up to champions Manchester City. They will be desperate to get over the line this time around after ending second best for a second consecutive season. They too got off to the perfect start with a 2-0 win at home to Wolves. However, this fixture will be a significantly tougher test for the Gunners.

Going forward, they have a number of different options to threaten the Villa defence. Kai Havertz opened his account last weekend, continuing his strong form to end last year. Bukayo Saka also scored, and as expected will be their most dangerous outlet. Mikel Arteta’s team found the net 91 times last season and allowed just 29 goals. Their elite strengths at both ends of the pitch is a key reason why they are seen as the team who could finally end the dominance of Man City.

Villa inflicted a crucial defeat on Arsenal last season, their 2-0 win at the Emirates in April proved to be a huge blow to the Gunners’ title hopes. Two late goals from Bailey and Watkins secured the big three points. It meant that Emery’s team completed the double over their opponents following their 1-0 victory at Villa Park earlier in the season. John McGinn scored the winner early on in that game. These two sides have exchanged winning runs in recent years, with the last two victories snapping a four-game losing streak for Villa. This stretch followed another run for Villa in which they won three in a row in the Premier League.

Aston Villa vs Arsenal will be available to watch on Sky Sports Main Event & Sky Sports Premier League.

Aston Villa

Aston Villa have no new injury concerns following their opening game, but remain without Boubacar Kamara and Tyrone Mings. Goalkeeper Robin Olsen could be in line for a return to the squad after suffering from a head injury.

Arsenal

Takehiro Tomiyasu is a long-term absentee as he deals with a knee injury. Kieran Tierney is also out. Fabio Vieira could make a return to the squad, whilst Jakub Kiwior may miss out again as he deals with his future.

Aston Villa:

In their last five games, Aston Villa have won two and lost three. It was an underwhelming pre-season for Villa in terms of results, but they started the campaign in perfect fashion with a 2-1 win away at West Ham. Amadou Onana netted the opener on his debut, before Lucas Paqueta equalised with a contentious penalty. Jhon Duran scored the winner off the bench late on, despite links with a move away.

Their pre-season preparations ended with three defeats in four. The first game of this run was a 2-0 loss against German side RB Leipzig on their USA tour. Andre Silva and Lois Openda scored the goals. Another defeat followed as they fell 1-0 to Club America. They got back on track in their penultimate fixture with a 3-2 win over Athletic Bilbao. Cameron Archer, who has now left the club, scored a late winner after Villa squandered the lead twice.

A trip to Borussia Dortmund in their final game saw them lose 2-0. Emre Can gave the Germans the lead from the spot, before Julian Brandt doubled the score instantly.

Arsenal:

In their last five games, Arsenal have won three and lost two. It was a positive pre-season for the Gunners, and their campaign got off to the perfect start with a 2-0 victory over Wolves at home. They will be looking to finally win the Premier League title, and goals from Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka ensured they picked up three points in their opener.

Their final four pre-season games resulted in three wins and one loss. The first of this stretch was against rivals Man United, in which they won 2-1 with goals from Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli. They followed this with a defeat to Liverpool by the same scoreline. Mo Salah and Fabio Carvalho gave their opponents a two-goal lead, before Havertz halved the deficit.

They returned home to face Bayer Leverkusen and Lyon in two more friendlies. Arsenal beat Leverkusen 4-1, thanks to strikes from Oleksandr Zinchenko, Leandro Trossard, Jesus and Havertz. Centre-back pairing William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes were the scorers in a 2-0 win over Lyon.

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