Will the Foxes warm up for the Europa League?
Leicester City represent the Premier League in the Europa League this season and face a real final there next Thursday. The Foxes are top of Group C with one matchday to go, but could theoretically drop to third. Accordingly, the away game at SSC Napoli is already casting its shadow a little way ahead.
First up for the Foxes, though, is a bit of a confidence boost in Birmingham. The Villans have lost six of their last eight league games, so in a way they are a good rebuilding opponent. However, ahead of the Aston Villa-Leicester clash, the odds are swinging in the direction of the home side.
Neither team came away with a treble during the week. The Lions sold themselves dearly at home to Manchester City, but deserved to lose 2-1 in the end. The Foxes, on the other hand, dropped another valuable point in a 2-2 draw at Southampton, which makes betting on the outcome of the Aston Villa v Leicester match all the more difficult.
Given the fact that both opponents are capable of scoring, but have also conceded plenty of goals, we see much more value in betting on more than 2.5 goals.
Aston Villa – Statistics & current form
Aston Villa are based in the Aston area of Birmingham and are now back in the Premier League for the third successive year after three years in the second tier. The Lions recently parted company with their long-time successful coach Dean Smith, for whom a prominent successor, Steven Gerrard, was introduced a few weeks ago.
The results under the new coach are quite impressive. Under Gerrard, the Villans have picked up six out of a possible nine points from their last three league games.
During the week, a 2-1 home defeat to Manchester City
Nevertheless, the overall record is clearly capable of improvement. The West Midlands side have lost six of their last eight league games, and although they kept pace with reigning champions Manchester City during the week, they ultimately suffered their first defeat under their new coach.
Nevertheless, the form curve is showing a slight upward trend again, which is why the Lions are favourites at their own stadium.
Only once in the last ten league games without scoring a goal of their own
The problem, however, is that the Villans’ defence has not been too solid on several occasions, especially at home to Villa Park. Their ten home goals already equate to one of the worst defensive records in the Premier League.
At least the forward play hasn’t been sticky, which makes it all the more sensible to bet on a high-scoring game. Despite their poor results in recent weeks, the Birmingham side have only failed to score in one of their last ten league games: away to defensive specialists Brighton.
Predicted Aston Villa line-up:
Martínez – Targett – Mings – Konsa – Cash – Luiz – Nakamba – McGinn – Buendía – Bailey – Watkins
Last matches played by Aston Villa:
Premier League
12/01 2021 – Aston Villa 1 – 2 Manchester City
11/27 2021 – Crystal Palace 1 – 2 Aston Villa
11/20 2021 – Aston Villa 2 – 0 Brighton
11/05 2021 – Southampton 1 – 0 Aston Villa
10/31 2021 – Aston Villa 1 – 4 West Ham
Leicester – Statistics & current form
Things have been going very well for Leicester City, especially in the last season. The Foxes, who surprisingly won the English Championship under Claudio Ranieri in the summer of 2016, significantly increased their still sparse collection of titles within a few months.
First, the East Midlands outfit lifted the FA Cup for the first time in 2021, and then they followed that up with a Community Shield win over national champions Manchester City in the 2021/22 season opener to lift the trophy for the first time as well.
Naples showdown casts its shadow ahead
However, things did not continue too successfully under Brendan Rodgers. In total, only five of the 14 league games played were won, which means the Foxes are already noticeably behind a starting place for the European competitions
Only one win in their last five group games
Before that, the aim is to secure another treble in the Premier League if possible in order to be allowed to look upwards again at national level. Because only one of the last five league games has been won (two draws, two defeats), betting on an away win for the Foxes at Aston Villa against Leicester is not under the best of stars.
In view of the 25 goals conceded and 22 goals scored, it is even more promising to bet on goals. After all, there have only been less than 2.5 goals in one of the last four duels between the two teams…
Predicted Leicester line-up:
Schmeichel – Thomas – Söyüncü – Evans – Castagne – Ndidi – Soumaré – Barnes – Maddison – Lookman – Vardy
Last matches played by Leicester:
Premier League
12/01 2021 – Southampton 2 – 2 Leicester
11/28 2021 – Leicester 4 – 2 Watford
Europa League Grp. C
11/25 2021 – Leicester 3 – 1 Legia Warsaw
Premier League
11/20 2021 – Leicester 0 – 3 Chelsea London
11/07 2021 – Leeds 1 – 1 Leicester
Aston Villa – Leicester Direct comparison / H2H record
Head to head: 35 – 25 – 44
There have been a total of 104 meetings between the two teams so far and Leicester lead the head-to-head comparison with 44 wins. The Foxes also took the three points in the last meeting at Villa Park on 21 February 2021 (2-1).
Aston Villa – Leicester tip
The overall prediction for Aston Villa against Leicester already goes to the Foxes. However, the coaching change at the Lions could still play a role. Under Steven Gerrard, the results were right after all, with six points out of a possible nine, especially as the Villans scored in all three games and were also able to hold their own against defending champions Manchester City.
In our opinion, it is a good idea to bet on at least three goals in this match. After all, the Foxes have also been on a roll lately, scoring 13 goals in their last three league games combined.
