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Barclays Premier League Preview: Aston Villa vs Manchester United

Written by: admin on 10th February 2010

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The string of big matches in the Premier League continues this Wednesday with Aston Villa facing defending champions Manchester United at Villa Park. On a day which sees Chelsea also facing a tough away trip to Goodison Park, the outcome of games on 10th February could well have a crucial role to play in deciding which team finishes top of the pile come May. Ofcourse both teams have the added distraction of knowing that they will meet again in a little over two weeks time in the final of the Carling Cup at Wembley, and may use this opportunity to get a huge psychological advantage ahead of that huge encounter.

Aston Villa come into this game fairly low on confidence having failed to pose much of a threat in their two key games over the last fortnight at home to Arsenal and away to Tottenham. Though Villa did leave Craven Cottage last weekend with all three points, courtesy of a brilliant brace by in-form striker Gabriel Agbonlahor, their form in the league prior to that has seen them fall to 7th place. Though 6 points out of a possible 18 over the last couple of months has dented their Champions League ambitions, Villa are just 3 points behind Liverpool, who currently occupy 4th place, and still have a game in hand.

Manchester United meanwhile are in the form of their lives at the moment, their 5-0 hammering of Portsmouth this Saturday bearing testament to that. The weekend before that, they beat fellow title contenders Arsenal 3-1 with some scintillating counter-attacking play, effectively ending the Gunners’ title challenge. The Red Devils are on a roll, and momentum being a very important factor in football, one would not bet against them going all the way this season.The Villans will, however, be buoyed by their result in the reverse fixture earlier in the season, as they achieved a very rare victory at Old Trafford 1-0 courtesy of a first half Agbonlahor strike. Villa are outstanding on the break, and should pose quite a test for the United back four in midweek.

One can expect Martin O’Neill to field more or less the same squad that he has in recent times. Left-back Stephen Warnock, who will be out for some time due to injury, will not feature, while Villa will also be without the services of midfield battler, Nigel Reo-Coker. Emile Heskey is the latest member of Villa’s wafer thin squad to head to the treatment table, and it remains to be seen if the injury that forced him off early in the game against Tottenham will keep him out this weekend. Norwegian targetman John Carew is a natural replacement, but considering their recent run, and the attacking threat that Manchester United possess, O’Neill might just be tempted to go in for a slightly less adventurous line-up and put an extra body in midfield. The talented and pacey Ashley Young and the impressive Stewart Downing should feature on the flanks, while the central midfield duo of James Milner and Stiliyan Petrov will be the engine of the team. Luke Young can be expected to slot in for Warnock with Carlos Cuellar, James Collins and Richard Dunne completing the backline. Dunne has been highly impressive this season, and the able support provided by Collins has made the Villa defence the stingiest in the Premier League so far, having conceded only 18 goals.

Nemanja Vidic is expected to make a comeback to first team action on Wednesday, a calf injury having played havoc with most of his season. Sir Alex is unlikely to risk the Serbian international from the start, especially given a meeting with AC Milan round the corner. Chances are that he will probably stick with the pairing of Wes Brown and Jonny Evans and ease Vidic into the game maybe sometime in the second half. The versatile John O’Shea is still out for several more months due to a thigh strain while new England skipper Rio Ferdinand is facing a suspension following his attempted lash at Craig Fagan in United’s match against Hull City. The talismanic Wayne Rooney will definitely feature up front. Over the past few months he has shown time and again why he is considered one of the world’s best strikers, and is currently the League’s top scorer, and looks to stay that way, with an incredible tally of 21 goals so far.

Sir Alex Ferguson often opts for a 4-5-1 formation for the big games, and it will come as no surprise if Bulgarian international Dimitar Berbatov finds himself reintroduced to the bench on Wednesday. Antonio Valencia and Nani should feature on the wings, with the Ecuadorian winger having shown dramatic improvement after a poor start to his first season in a Manchester United jersey, while the inconsistent Nani has displayed a turn around in form in recent times, moving himself up the pecking order as a result. Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher, who are both highly accomplished and complete midfielders, would be required to share attacking and defensive responsibilities in the middle of the park. Veteran Paul Scholes who was rested at the weekend for the game against bottom club Portsmouth may find himself back in the starting eleven at the expense of Berbatov.

Form Guide:

Aston Villa: (W-2, D-3, L-0)
6/2/2010 – Tottenham 0-0 Aston Villa (EPL) – Draw
30/1/2010 – Fulham 0-2 Aston Villa (EPL) – Win
27/1/2010 – Aston Villa 0-0 Arsenal (EPL) – Draw
23/1/2010 – Aston Villa 3-2 Brighton (FA Cup) – Win
17/1/2010 – Aston Villa 0-0 West Ham (EPL) – Draw

Manchester United: (W-4, D-1, L-0)
6/2/2010 – Manchester United 5-0 Portsmouth (EPL) – Win
31/1/2010 – Arsenal 1-3 Manchester United (EPL) – Win
23/1/2010 – Manchester United 4-0 Hull City (EPL) -Win
16/1/2010 – Manchester United 3-0 Burnley (EPL) – Win
9/1/2010 – Birmingham 1-1 Manchester United (EPL) – Draw

Key Players:

Aston Villa:
Gabriel Agbonlahor – The England striker is in scorching form and can give the United defence a real headache with his blistering pace.
Ashley Young – His creativity will be vital in unlocking the United defence.

Manchester United:
Wayne Rooney – The League’s top scorer is in devastating form and may well prove to be too much for Dunne & Co. to handle.
Edwin van der Sar – The Dutch veteran is always a formidable obstacle to overcome.

Expected Teams:

Aston Villa: Friedel, L. Young, Dunne, Collins, Cuellar, A. Young, Milner, Petrov, Downing, Agbonlahor, Heskey.
Manchester United: Van der Saar, Rafael, Brown, Evans, Evra, Nani, Carrick, Fletcher, Valencia, Scholes, Rooney.

Prediction:

The Villans certainly have it in them to beat the Red Devils on their day. They also have home ground advantage. However, considering the superb form the visitors are in right now, it would be ambitious to expect Villa to get anything from this game.

Scoreline: Aston Villa 0-1 Manchester United

File Photograph Copyright: Dagur Brynjolfsson

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