Aston Villa vs Stoke City preview
Stoke City will hope to build on their victory over Bournemouth by collecting maximum points when they take on Aston Villa on Saturday.
The Potters have historically relied on their home form in the top-flight division, but Villa Park is one of their favourite stadiums as they usually collect points when they visit.
Stoke are undefeated in their last five games at Villa and they have taken more points there than anywhere else in the league, save for The Hawthorns. Mark Hughes’ men need to extend that record because they have had an underwhelming start to the season.
They needed a 2-1 victory over Bournemouth last weekend to jump out of the relegation zone. While the Potters did not perform particularly well, the victory lifted pressure on Hughes and his side, who will hope to distance themselves further from the drop-zone by adding three more points on Saturday.
Stoke’s climb in the table last weekend was at the expense of this week’s opponents as Tim Sherwood’s men dropped into the bottom-three after a 3-2 defeat at Liverpool.
That recent loss to Liverpool, plus the preceding Midlands derby defeats to Leicester City and West Bromwich Albion, have increased pressure on Sherwood. He is dealing with a situation that can be difficult for even the most experienced managers having lost the spine of the team during close-season. Fabian Delph, Ron Vlaar, Tom Cleverley and Christian Benteke all played key roles to ensure Villa’s survival last term, but have all now left.
Now the Villans are looking for their first win since the season opener. They spent more than £40m on transfer fees to secure six players from France and Spain. Most of those players are still adjusting to the pace of the English game, which has affected Villa’s performances.
Aston Villa team news
- Gabriel Agbonlahor (calf) and Jose Angel Crespo (groin) are both doubts.
- Jores Okore (knee) and Gary Gardner (ankle) remain sidelined.
- Adama Traore had an hour of football for the Under-21s on Monday so he should be ready to start if needed.
Stoke City team news
- Xherdan Shaqiri picked up a thigh muscle strain in the 2-1 victory over Bournemouth, so the Swiss playmaker could miss out.
- Marc Wilson is also a doubt because of a calf injury.
- Ryan Shawcross continues his long-term recovery from a back problem.
Aston Villa vs Stoke City prediction
Sherwood could set his side up in a 4-3-3 formation, with Ashley Westwood, Carlos Sanchez and Idrissa Gana as the central midfielders. They will attack with some positional rotation, but Gana is likely to be the main ball player who frequently pushes forward.
Up top, Jack Grealish and Traore could start as wide forwards, drifting inside to support Rudy Getsede. Jordan Amavi and Leandro Bacuna should be the full-backs, pushing beyond the halfway line to provide crosses to Gestede.
Mame Biram Diouf could be recalled to the Potters’ side should Shaqiri miss out. If Diouf starts, he is likely to lead the attack in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Jonathan Walters could be the right attacking midfielder, making diagonal runs inside from the flank to be the second striker in the box, while Marko Arnautovic keeps the width on the left flank.
Bojan Krkic may freely float between the lines in the number 10 position, while Charlie Adam frequently breaks from the base of midfield to help the former Barcelona playmaker.
Both sides have much better quality than recent performances have suggested. Neither side has been particularly solid at the back, but both teams have goals in them so this could be an entertaining score-draw.
Score prediction
Aston Villa 2-2 Stoke City
