The State of Play
Coached by Unai Emery, Aston Villa have enjoyed a very impressive campaign as they look almost certain to qualify for the UEFA Champions League, especially with the expansion and new format of the competition meaning that the top five will qualify for Europe’s elite club competition. The Villains do have the distraction of a UEFA Europa Conference League quarter-final against Lille next month.
Gary O’Neil has also done a brilliant job at Wolverhampton Wanderers as they begin the match day sitting just a point outside of eighth place, with the top eight likely to get European football this season. Wolves did, though, suffer a shock 3-2 defeat at home to Coventry City with two late goals in that FA Cup quarter-final a couple of weeks ago. They have managed three wins in their last four Premier League matches.
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Team News
Unai Emery and Aston Villa has been dealing with long-term absentees throughout the campaign and the likes of Tyrone Mings, Boubacar Kamara and Emi Buendia remain unavailable. John McGinn is also missing through suspension.
Wolves were able to welcome Matheus Cunha back into first-team training this week but he remains doubtful alongside Craig Dawson and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde. Pedro Neto and Hwang Hee-chan are still unavailable.
Expected Line-ups
Aston Villa: Martinez; Konsa, Carlos, Torres, Digne; Tielemans, Douglas Luiz; Bailey, Ramsey, Diaby; Watkins
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Sa; Semedo, Kilman, Toti, S. Bueno, Ait-Nouri; Joao Gomes, Doyle, Lemina; Sarabia, Fraser
What they Said
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery said ‘the point is important’ after their draw with West Ham but he is waiting until later in the season before tweaking their season’s expectations.
Gary O’Neil was at the centre of a furore after Wolves’ defeat to Coventry, describing Mark Robins’ celebration as ‘disgusting’ after the Sky Blues’ late winner.
When and How to Watch
This match will be played at Villa Park at 17:30 on Saturday March 30th and will be shown live on Sky Sports in the UK. It will also be televised live on the Sky Go app in the UK.
Prediction
This midlands derby has the potential to be a bit of a thriller on Easter Saturday. The home team are going for UEFA Champions League qualification whilst their local rivals have already massively overachieved. Wolves have proved themselves to be excellent problem solvers against some of the better sides in the league and given Villa’s high-line, should be confident of exploiting their opposition. Both teams scoring seems a good bet for this one.
