Manchester City are in the mood to score more goals in their desire to pick up a fifth win of the 2022/23 Premier League season against a dejected Aston Villa team losing four of their five games.
City crushed Nottingham Forest 6-0 with Erling Haaland scoring successive hat tricks while Steven Gerrard’s were very much the second best in the 2-1 loss to leaders Arsenal.
AVL vs MCI Match Details
Date: Saturday, 3 September 2022
Time: 17:30 (BST) / 22:00 (IST)
Venue: Villa Park, Birmingham
AVL vs MCI Match Preview
Steven Gerrard will be very frustrated with his side conceding moments after Douglas Luiz’s stunning equalizer straight from a corner on the back of some shoddy defending allowing Arsenal’s flashy winger Gabriel Martinelli to score the winner. Villa went behind in the first half in the same manner, goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez saving a deflected cross straight to Gabriel Jesus to score comfortably. The 2-1 loss meant Aston Villa have suffered a third straight defeat in the Premier League this season placing them in the second-bottom position with only three points in the back. The scenario Gerrard didn’t expect on the back of an excellent summer window and a strong preseason. There was little chance the disastrous form will be replaced in the match but Villa’s lack of defensive awareness to guard their box like in previous matches is a race against time for manager Steven Gerrard to solve in order to stop conceding cheap goals and save his job in the process. Gerrard admitted he is walking on a thin line if the results don’t improve in the coming weeks. The headache is that the schedule does not favor the Villans following their defeat to the Gunners with Premier League holders Manchester City visiting their place next. Pep Guardiola’s team thrashed Nottingham Forest in the midweek and has not left the field without scoring a goal in their last 15 games. Not a keen look for Aston Villa who haven’t kept a clean sheet in their last 10 league games although not conceded more than two in that period until they did against City themselves in the dramatic 3-2 win for the Sky Blues on the last day of last season that handed them their sixth Premier League title in history. The club secured two more signings on the deadline day, midfielder Leander Dendoncker from Wolves and Jan Bednarek from Southampton. The latter’s arrival is noteworthy as he replaces long-term absentee Diego Carlos and bring more experience in the backline.
Norwegian goal-machine, Erling Haaland scored back-to-back hat tricks in a Premier League game to guide Manchester City to a massive 6-0 victory over Nottingham Forest at Etihad Stadium in their first-midweek league game of the season and overtaking Sergio Aguero’s record of eight goals in his first five Premier League games by scoring nine in the same period. Haaland found the back of the net three times from four shots in only the first 26 minutes of the game in a mind-blowing performance. This comes after the 22-year-old scored his first hat trick only days ago to save City’s downfall from two goals down against Crystal Palace at home as well. He was not alone as another summer arrival Julian Alvarez got into the act with a brace in the second half with right-back Joao Cancelo rifling one on the top corner. The win of this margin meant City have bagged more than two goals in each of the five games so far and in the last nine games of the previous season in the Premier League. City will fancy their chances to continue their unbeaten streak against Aston Villa next at the weekend, an opposition they haven’t lost against for nine years since a 3-2 loss at Villa Park in 2013. Under Pep Guardiola, City have not lost or failed to score in the fixture spelling another positive result on the road. The last defeat in an away league game was the 1-0 loss in the first match of last season leading to a fascinating streak which few clubs can dream of. More points on the board is important to keep the pressure on Arsenal at the top, only team carrying a 100% record, with just two points separating the pair and taking a positive result into the first Champions League group stage game against Sevilla. It will also extend their unbeaten record to 18 league games. The new arrival of Manuel Akanji from Dortmund means City have added five international caliber defenders in their ranks and will help them get tighter at the back.
Recent Form (League)
AVL: LLLWL
MCI: WWDWW
AVL vs MCI Team News
Aston Villa managed to keep Douglas Luiz in their ranks beyond the transfer deadline day by rejecting multiple bids from Arsenal a night after he scored against them. He is likely to begin the game against City in the midfield with Boubacar Kamara and Jacob Ramsey. No other changes are expected from the midweek game with Diego Carlos remaining the only player missing on a long term. Gerrard will be counting on the two late arrivals on the deadline day, Dendoncker and Bednarek to thrive against City in their debut at some stage in the game for Aston Villa.
Manchester City were also busy on the deadline day in completing the transfer of defender Manuel Akanji from Borussia Dortmund. He will soon be a key member of the squad. With Aymeric Laporte serving an extended period on the sidelines, Nathan Ake injured and John Stones still not at his best, the signing is presumably an important one. Jack Grealish with his knee injury is a doubt while the shoulder injury for Kalvin Philips will keep him out of the game.
AVL vs MCI Predicted Lineups
AVL: Emiliano Martinez; Matty Cash, Jan Bednarek, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne; Douglas Luiz, Boubacar Kamara, Jacob Ramsey; Leon Bailey, Ollie Watkins, Emiliano Buendia
MCI: Ederson; Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, John Stones, Joao Cancelo; De Bruyne, Rodri, Gundogan; Julian Alvarez, Erling Haaland, Phil Foden
AVL vs MCI Dream11 Team Prediction
GK: Ederson
DEF: Cancelo, Dias, Bednarek, Cash
MID: De Bruyne, Gundogan, Ramsey
FW: Alvarez, Haaland, Watkins
