Unai Emery’s Aston Villa travel to Old Trafford on Boxing Day, where they will take on Manchester United. The Red Devils have won the last two meetings between the two sides, but they will be in for a tough evening against Villa.
Man Utd
In truth, Man United have been alarmingly poor this season, completely underperforming on every front. The Red Devils have won one of their last five Premier League matches, and they have failed to score in four consecutive games for the first time since 1992. To sum up their season, across all competitions, they have lost more games than they have won, and they sit eighth in the Premier League with 28 points.
Erik ten Hag's biggest issue has been in the final third, with only one team in the Premier League scoring less than them this campaign. Their tally is 18 goals, which is embarrassing for United's standards. Despite that, they have been relatively strong at the back, conceding just 1.23 goals per game, and Andre Onana has the joint most clean sheets.
Last time out, West Ham handed the Red Devils their eighth league loss of the season, as they beat the visitors 2-0. Manchester United never looked like scoring, with confidence in front of goal at an all-time low. Some form of change is desperately needed.
Aston Villa
On the other hand, Aston Villa have been absolutely incredible with Emery at the helm this season, and after 18 matches, they sit in third with 39 points. Only Arsenal have won more games than the Villans this campaign, which just highlights how much they've developed.
Their attack has been on fire, with Ollie Watkins scoring nine and assisting six already. Villa have scored the second most goals in the Premier League, 38, which averages to 2.11 per game. They're also a difficult unit to breach, as they operate a high line that has conceded just 22 goals this season.
However, Villa may be slightly deflated going to Old Trafford after they threw away the opportunity to go top of the Premier League on Friday evening. Aston Villa's first slip-up at home this season was this week's 1-1 draw to bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United. The hosts dominated the game, and the Blades didn't even register a shot in the first half, but Villa struggled to break down the stubborn backline until the 97th minute.
Verdict?
Man United are yet to draw a game at home this season, winning five of their nine matches at Old Trafford. Villa are also weaker on the road, having won four of their nine away games, which should set us up for a fiesty, close tie. Not much will separate the two sides, but you have to fancy the visitors on this occasion.
The final prediction is Man Utd 1-2 Aston Villa.
