Aston Villa will take on Liverpool at Anfield in a Premier League showdown this Saturday.
Liverpool
Liverpool enters this match after an impressive 4-0 Champions League win over Bayer Leverkusen. In that game, Liverpool controlled 47% possession and fired 22 shots, with Luis Díaz scoring a hat-trick (61′, 83′, 92′) and Cody Gakpo adding a goal (63′).
Although Liverpool has conceded goals in recent games, their offense has been strong, netting 11 goals over their last six matches and conceding 6. Liverpool has a favorable record against Aston Villa, remaining unbeaten in their last seven league encounters, including the last three played at Anfield.
Aston Villa
Aston Villa, meanwhile, looks to recover after a 4-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in their previous Premier League match. Villa held 49% possession, taking 12 shots, with Morgan Rogers scoring their only goal.
Tottenham responded with goals from Brennan Johnson, Dominic Solanke, and James Maddison. Under Unai Emery, Villa has scored eight goals in their last six matches, averaging 1.33 goals per game, though they have not won at Anfield in their last six league visits.
Head-to-Head
Looking back at their last six meetings since December 2021, Liverpool has dominated, winning 67% of the games, while Villa has yet to claim a victory. Liverpool has scored 13 goals across these encounters, while Villa has scored 6, with an average of 3.17 goals per match.
Their last face-off ended in an exciting 3-3 draw, with Villa scoring through an Emiliano Martínez own goal, Youri Tielemans, and Jhon Durán, while Cody Gakpo and Jarell Quansah netted for Liverpool.
Team News
Liverpool is set to be without Harvey Elliott (broken foot) and Alisson (hamstring injury). Manager Arne Slot is expected to use a 4-3-3 formation featuring Caoimhin Kelleher, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jarell Quansah, Virgil Van Dijk, Kostas Tsimikas, Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Mohamed Salah, Darwin Núñez, and Cody Gakpo.
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery faces a few injuries as well, with Boubacar Kamara, Kortney Hause, and Tyrone Mings unavailable.
Villa may line up in a 4-4-1-1 formation, including Emiliano Martinez, Ezri Konsa, Diego Carlos, Pau Torres, Lucas Digne, John McGinn, Amadou Onana, Youri Tielemans, Jacob Ramsey, Morgan Rogers, and Ollie Watkins.
Prediction
Aston Villa might find a way to score, but it likely won’t be enough to secure a win. A 2-1 victory for Liverpool is expected, with both teams to score and the total staying under 3.5 goals.
