ASTON VILLA v PRESTON NORTH END
Tuesday 2nd October 2018 – Kickoff: 1945hrs
Football – England – Championship Betting Tips
Under-fire Aston Villa boss, Steve Bruce, desperately needs a win on Tuesday night when his Aston Villa side take on Preston North End as the betting tips continue in the Championship.
Bruce has seen his Villa side slide down the Championship league table in alarming fashion following just one league win from their last eight matches in the second tier. They now find themselves just one league position higher than their local bitter rivals, Birmingham City, albeit with a four-point cushion over their neighbours.
A 2-0 home win over Rotherham United at Villa Park has been their only success in recent weeks, and Tuesday night’s clash with Preston North End has now become a ‘must-win’ match for Bruce and his players – failure to do so could see Bruce edge closer to the axe.
Villa have usually been very consistent at Villa Park, but two wins from their last eight on home turf has resulted in the natives getting restless, and even a draw here may not be enough for a stay of execution for Steve Bruce.
On the subject of draws, Aston Villa have been involved in five stalemates to date already, but Bruce will be hoping the likes of Abraham, Kodjia and El Ghazi can fire them up the table with a win tonight.
Preston North End suffered another agonising defeat on the weekend, this time to West Brom when they lost 3-2 at Deepdale. That loss to The Baggies became Preston’s fourth league defeat on the trot and with the visitors sitting bottom of the table, time may also be running out for Preston’s manager, Alex Neil.
Losses to Reading, Leeds United, Sheffield United and West Brom have resulted in Preston propping up the division, while an appalling away record of 0-0-5 2/11 includes Preston failing to hit the back of the net in 4 of their 5 away matches to date.
In addition, Preston have kept just two clean sheets from their last 13 matches on their travels, and they could struggle to keep a clean sheet again at Villa Park on Tuesday night.
These two teams are really struggling right now, but my betting tips lean towards Villa with the handicap here as I just can’t pull the trigger on a straight home win.
Pick: Aston Villa AH-0.25 @ 1.61 Bet Victor
