Preview: Manchester City Women vs. Aston Villa Women - prediction, team news, lineups

The Women's Super League will return from the international break with a meeting between Manchester City Women and Aston Villa Women on Saturday.

City will have the chance to claim consecutive victories, while the Villans are looking to bounce back from a defeat to Everton.

Match preview

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Man City are currently sitting in third place after winning five, drawing one and losing two of their eight league games.

After beginning November with back-to-back defeats against Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion, the Citizens got back on track in their final two games prior to the international break.

They claimed a statement 3-1 win over rivals Manchester United, before they hammered Tottenham Hotspur 7–0 in a game where Bunny Shaw netted a first-half hat-trick.

Lauren Hemp and Jill Roord found the net in quick succession to make it five, and Laura Coombs went on to round off the dominant display with a brace.

As a result of their impressive display, Man City are the joint second-highest scorers in the top flight, while they also boast the best defensive record in the WSL with just five goals conceded.

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Aston Villa, meanwhile, began the 2023-24 campaign with a woeful run of results, losing their opening five matches across all competitions.

Fortunately for Carla Ward's side, they managed to turn the tide with four successive victories, including WSL wins over Bristol City and West Ham United.

Although they experienced an upturn in fortunes, the Villans were unable to carry their winning run into the international period after they were beaten by Everton in their final game before the two-week break.

Rachel Daly managed to cancel out Anna Patten's own goal, but there was to be no coming back when Nathalie Bjorn netted a 74th-minute penalty to condemn Aston Villa to a 2-1 home defeat, leaving them in 10th position and two points above the only relegation place.

While the Villans face a tough test in their final away fixture of 2023, they do have the chance to finish the calendar year with three consecutive away wins in the WSL.

Team News

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Having reported no fresh injury concerns, Man City boss Gareth Taylor could have a full complement of players to choose from for Saturday's contest.

After seeing his side sweep past Tottenham before the international break, Taylor may decide to name an unchanged starting lineup.

Shaw will be hoping to add to the six league goals that she has scored this season when she leads the line for the hosts.

As for Aston Villa, they could welcome Lucy Parker back into the matchday squad following a spell on the sidelines.

After dropping down to the bench for the defeat to Everton, Laura Blindkilde could return to the lineup for Saturday's away fixture.

Having scored seven goals in her last five club appearances, Daly will be looking to pick up from where she left off before the international break.

Manchester City Women possible starting lineup:

Keating; Aleixandri, Kennedy, Greenwood, Ouahabi; Hasegawa, Angeldahl; Hemp, Roord, Kelly; Shaw

Aston Villa Women possible starting lineup:

Van Domselaar; Mayling, Patten, Turner, Pacheco; Dali, Corsie, Blindkilde; Leon, Hanson, Daly

We say: Manchester City Women 3-1 Aston Villa Women

Although Aston Villa have won four of their last five competitive matches, we think that they will fall short against a Man City side that has lost just one of their 23 home league games.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.