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Aston Villa logo
Premier League | Gameweek 27
Mar 6, 2021 at 5.30pm UK
Villa Park
Wolves logo
Aston Villa
0 - 0
Wolves

Sanson (27')
FT

Preview: Aston Villa vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's Premier League clash between Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Both Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers will both be looking to bounce back from defeats when they lock horns at Villa Park in the Premier League on Saturday evening.

Villa will enter the contest off the back of a surprise 1-0 defeat to bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United, while Wolves suffered a 4-1 loss to runaway leaders Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.


Match preview

Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins shoots at goal during the Premier League clash with Sheffield United on March 3, 2021© Reuters

Villa's top-six hopes took a hit on Wednesday as they went down 1-0 at Sheffield United, with David McGoldrick's first-half effort proving to be the difference between the two sides at Bramall Lane.

A total of 39 points from 25 matches has left Dean Smith's side in ninth position in the table, level on points with eighth-placed Tottenham Hotspur and four points behind sixth-placed Liverpool, with a game in hand on the Reds, although the gap could be more by the time that the home side take to the field for this match.

Villa have won 12 league games this season, which is the same as Chelsea and Liverpool ahead of Thursday's fixtures, but they have lost 10 times, which is high considering their position in the table.

Smith's team will now be looking for back-to-back wins against Wolves and Newcastle United ahead of a home game with Tottenham on March 21, and it will be fascinating to see whether they are capable of finishing in a potential Europa League spot, which would represent an excellent season.

Villa, who have won five, drawn one and lost five of their home 11 league games this term, recorded a 1-0 victory when they travelled to Molineux for the reverse game back in December.

Wolverhampton Wanderers celebrate after Leeds United's Illan Meslier scores an own goal in the Premier League on February 19, 2021© Reuters

Wolves, meanwhile, will enter Saturday's contest off the back of a 4-1 defeat at Man City; the two sides were actually level heading into the final 10 minutes, but Pep Guardiola's side scored three times in the latter stages at the Etihad Stadium to continue their sensational winning run.

Nuno Espirito Santo's side have only lost one of their last six in the league - beating Southampton and Leeds United in two of their last four - while they drew 1-1 with Newcastle United last weekend.

Wolves have thus far not been able to challenge for a Europa League spot this season, but they are an improving side and currently sit just five points behind Villa, although Smith's side have two games in hand over their opponents here.

The 2017-18 Championship winners have also found it difficult on their travels this season, winning just four of their 14 matches and suffering seven defeats; that said, they recorded a 1-0 win at Villa Park when they travelled to Villa at the end of the 2019-20 campaign.

Aston Villa Premier League form: LWDLWL

Wolverhampton Wanderers Premier League form: WDWWDL
Wolverhampton Wanderers form (all competitions): DLWWDL


Team News

Jack Grealish in action for Aston Villa on February 3, 2021© Reuters

Villa will again be without the services of Kortney Hause and Matty Cash this weekend through injury, while Wesley will also not be involved despite recently returning to full-contact training.

Jack Grealish was again absent against Sheffield United on Wednesday night as he battles a shin problem, and the England international is also unlikely to be available for selection here, meaning that Anwar El Ghazi should retain his spot in the side.

Smith is expected to make changes from the side that started against Sheffield United, with Douglas Luiz and Ross Barkley coming back in, but Ollie Watkins will again operate at the tip of the attack.

As for Wolves, Nuno is expected to have the same squad available from the Man City game, with Fernando Marcal, Raul Jimenez and Daniel Podence all still on the sidelines through injury.

Willy Boly was back on the bench against the league leaders and is now in contention to start, but Leander Dendoncker could retain his spot at the back alongside Conor Coady and Romain Saiss.

Willian Jose was left out of the XI against the Citizens but should return to the side here, with Ki-Jana Hoever likely to drop out, and Adama Traore and Pedro Neto are set to continue in the final third.

Aston Villa possible starting lineup:
Martinez; Elmohamady, Konsa, Mings, Targett; Luiz, McGinn; Traore, Barkley, El Ghazi; Watkins

Wolverhampton Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Patricio; Dendoncker, Coady, Saiss; Semedo, Neves, Moutinho, Jonny; Traore, Willian Jose, Neto


SM words green background

We say: Aston Villa 1-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers

Villa will be determined to return to winning ways following a disappointing result against Sheffield United, but Wolves are certainly an improving team despite their heavy defeat at the Etihad Stadium; we are expecting a close contest on Saturday evening and are struggling to separate the two sides.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a double chance bet on a home win or an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home/Away:data


Video prediction

Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:


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Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Aston Villa win with a probability of 40.09%. A win for Wolverhampton Wanderers had a probability of 33.96% and a draw had a probability of 26%.

The most likely scoreline for an Aston Villa win was 1-0 with a probability of 9.74%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.62%) and 2-0 (6.81%). The likeliest Wolverhampton Wanderers win was 0-1 (8.82%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.32%). The actual scoreline of 0-0 was predicted with a 7% likelihood.


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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal28204470244664
2Liverpool28197265263964
3Manchester CityMan City28196363283563
4Aston Villa29175760421856
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs28165759421753
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd28152113939047
7West Ham UnitedWest Ham2912894650-444
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2811985044642
9Wolverhampton WanderersWolves28125114244-241
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle281241259481140
11Chelsea27116104745239
12Fulham29115134344-138
13Bournemouth2898114152-1135
14Crystal Palace2878133348-1529
15Brentford2975174154-1326
16Everton2887132939-1025
17Luton TownLuton2957174260-1822
18Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest2967163551-1621
19Burnley2945202963-3417
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd2835202474-5014

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