Blackburn vs Aston Villa – Carling Cup Semi Final (First Leg)

Blackburn v Aston Villa
Tuesday, January 5th
Kick Off: 8pm

After meeting in the FA Cup on the weekend, there is the rapid return of Blackburn v Aston Villa in cup action, this time in the semi final of the Carling Cup. The FA Cup third round tie at Villa Park ended in a 3-1 victory for the home side, after Blackburn were reduced to 10 men. Things weren’t all plain sailing though, as Blackburn made Villa work hard for their victory. Both sides were much changed from their regular league line ups, with both managers, Martin O’Neill and Sam Allardyce gearing up for the semi final of the Carling Cup. Odd that it would take so much preference, but key players were rested as they are on the threshold of a Cup Final appearance.

Villa needed the win to restore some confidence, after having a difficult festive period, which included a  heavy defeat to Arsenal and then a cruel injury time loss against Liverpool. But Aston Villa are riding high and there is a lot of optimism in the air that they are really pushing on. Despite their two losses over Christmas, Villa are still in the mix in the race for a top four finish. A cup final appearance would certainly be a big step in the right direction for Martin O’Neill and his attacking team.

Both managers will throw out more experienced teams for the Carling Cup semi final, as silverware for both clubs will mean a lot. Blackburn are a lot closer to the relegation zone than they are to a top six finish, and this would ease some nerves and some pressure of the management team. It will signal a nice return to Sam Allardyce too, who has only recently returned to action after undergoing heart surgery. One of the biggest characters in the game, it would be hard for anyone to feel aggrieved about him lifting the trophy in the final.

Villa largely have the upper hand over Blackburn in terms of recent meetings, but there is all to play for in a Cup Semi Final, and that is generally where form and status gets thrown out of the window. Villa though, will be confident of the same result as the FA Cup one, and therefore become the real pain in Blackburn’s Cup Ambitions side for the season.  Can Blackburn cling onto something for the season and leave Villa with just the FA Cup. There would be some kind of parity about all that, but with both teams fielding strong sides, Villa should still have the slight edge, although there will not be much between them on the night. They would probably be happy to come away with a draw to take back to Villa Park for the second leg.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Aston Villa 3, Blackburn 1
Blackburn 2, Aston Villa 1
Blackburn 0, Aston Villa 2
Aston Villa 3, Blackburn 2
Aston Villa 1, Blackburn 1

Last 5 Matches Goals
Blackburn – 5 For, 10 Against
Aston Villa – 6 For, 5 Against

Last 10 Matches Form
Blackburn – W0, D6, L4
Aston Villa – W6, D2, L2

Match Prices
Blackburn to win: 15/8 at Boylesports
Draw: 12/5 at Boylesports
Aston Villa to win: 13/8 at Victor Chandler