Aston Villa v Man Utd – Premier League Betting

The action seems all non stop in the Premier League at the moment, with a full midweek fixture list, which throws up some fascinating match ups. Red hot Manchester United travel to Aston Villa in one of the feature matches, in a dress rehearsal for the Carling Cup final. Martin O’Neill has turned Villa into a force to be reckoned with, backed up by a strong England presence of the likes of James Milner, Emile Heskey, Gaby Agbonlahor and Ashley Young. They could be without Heskey as he picked up a knock in their 0-0 draw with Tottenham on the weekend. Martin O’Neill has adopted an attacking frame of mind this season, with an emphasis on width, which is an entertaining joy to watch most of the time. Villa have played their way into Champions League contention, but have had some slip ups against Liverpool and Arsenal fairly recently, which means they are mired in a tough dog fight.

Villa do have the chance to gain an impressive double over Manchester United, as they travelled to Old Trafford earlier in the season, and ran out 1-0 winners. Despite their nice width, Villa have really built on the defence of their team, proving to be extremely stubborn and watertight. That is what won them the impressive victory at OT, managing to shut out Wayne Rooney, which at the moment seems like mission impossible. If there is one criticism of the new and improved Villa, its that they aren’t finding the back of the net enough. Just 17 goals at home is a long, long way short of the six teams which stand above them in the league. Still, they are enjoying a great season, have the Carling Cup to look forward to, are still challenging in the FA Cup, and that all important Champions League spot is still up for grabs.

For United, the one man show of Wayne Rooney continues to fire on all cylinders, putting the England striker on a mantle with the best players in the world. His form is incredible. He has already matched his best goals tally for a season, and in the last 23 matches, he has scored 21 times. United have a great record against Villa, and will be looking for revenge over the defeat inflicted upon them on their home turf. United have slowly gotten stronger over the season, and seem to be hitting top form just when it matters, and it could be a busier night for the Villa defence, than even the game at Old Trafford. Rooney is the key man to shut down, as it is hard to refute the claims that Manchester United are a one-man team.

United briefly got back to the top of the league, but Chelsea reclaimed top spot with a two point advantage after they beat Arsenal on Sunday. United have been let of the hook so many times, that they look set to carry forward the defence of their title with a gale force blowing behind them. Chelsea should have been out of sight by now, after United put in some dismal performances in the first half of the season, but still only a two point gap separates them. They come up against a Villa defence who have kept out the opposition, 8 times out of their last 10 games. Their defence hasn’t been great on the road, but whether Villa’s limited goal power, with only Agbonlahor weighing in heavily with 10 goals in the league.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Man Utd 0, Aston Villa 1
Man Utd 3, Aston Villa 2
Aston Villa 0, Aston Villa 0
Man Utd 4, Aston Villa 0

Last 5 Match Goals
Aston Villa: 2 For, 1 Against
Man Utd: 16 For, 2 Against

Last 10 Form
Aston Villa: W5, D3, L2
Man Utd: W7, D1, L2

Win Percentage
Aston Villa have a 50.0 win percentage at home
Man Utd have a 62.5 win percentage away from home

Match Prices:
Aston Villa to win: 10/3 at Coral
Draw: 13/5 at SkyBet
Man Utd to win: 10/11 at Bet365

Betting Advice: United don’t draw many games, so it’s generally good advice to not go for that when it comes to them. However, Villa are lean at the back, and lean up front, so again if they are going to get three points out of this, it’s fair to assume that it will be by just the odd goal. Therefore leaning towards Aston Villa with Asian Handicap head-start, could be a good idea, as they should be stubborn enough for a draw:
Aston Villa +0.5 Asian Handicap: 39/40 at Bet365