Manchester City travel to the Midlands on Sunday in a bid to maintain their place at the top of the table as they clash with a struggling Aston Villa side. City have Manchester United breathing down their necks and with their rivals playing on Saturday, City could go into the game in 2nd place. Man City brushed aside Villa 4-1 at Eastlands earlier in the season. But Roberto Mancini’s side aren’t in the same vein of form and will be happy to take three points by any means.
Aston Villa have had a rough time off late, winning only one of their last five Premier League games. Interestingly they have won only three of their last ten fixtures and all three of those victories have come away from home. Villa haven’t lost at home to Man City since 2006 but City hold the overall advantage, winning four of the last six clashes.
Aston Villa
It has been a lean winter at Villa Park as the pressure grows on Alex McLeish, especially from the fans who have already called for a protest against their manager this weekend. Their home form has been close to atrocious this season and a record of three victories from 12 games speaks volumes. They have picked up a mere 13 points from a possible 36 at Villa Park and hence the discontent amongst the fans. They haven’t won a game in front of their own fans since the first week of November, when they edged out Norwich 3-2. They sit in 13th spot, eight clear of the relegation zone but a fair distance from the European spots.
The players have to take a share of the blame as some of their stars have been woefully short of form. Charles N’Zogbia has been very poor since his arrival and he even stated last week that he had stopped enjoying football! Their strikers haven’t been banging in the goals either, with the trio of Emile Heskey, Gabriel Agbonlahor and Darren Bent contributing just 15 Premier League goals.
The arrival of Robbie Keane has been the one big boost for Villa and he has been their best player over the last few weeks, scoring three goals in four games. The former Spurs striker looks every bit the player who once lit up the Premier League, with this movement and passing range giving Villa a new dimension. Sadly for Villa though, a loan extension request has been turned down, and his match against Man City is likely to be his last in the Premier League for some time to come.
Villa should have a few players back from injury this weekend as Marc Albrighton, Agbonlahor and James Collins all returned to training. Stephen Ireland, who suffered an ankle injury against Newcastle, is also expected to be fit for Sunday’s game.
Man City
Roberto Mancini’s side might not be playing at their fluent best but as long as they keep accumulating points and stay ahead of their arch rivals, the Italian will be a contented man. They put in a professional performance to beat Fulham 3-0 at home last time around as they bounced back from the loss to Everton. City’s problems have been on the road, as indicated by the 12 dropped points away from home. All three of their losses this season have come away from the Etihad Stadium and more worryingly they have picked up three points on their travels only twice since beating United 6-1.
Mancini will be eagerly awaiting the return of Yaya Toure as the midfield giant has left a gaping hole in City’s side ever since he departed to the African Cup of Nations. Gareth Barry and Nigel De Jong can match the Ivorian for work ethic but both lack the engine to play box-to-box and hence Mancini has been forced to use James Milner in central midfield in a bid to add a runner.
They have been scoring freely at home though, scoring three goals in each of their last four home games. But Mancini would like to see more from his wide players, especially the likes of Samir Nasri and Adam Johnson who have blown hot and cold all season. On the injury front, Vincent Kompany will make a return after missing the last game with a knee injury while Nasri is still on the mend after picking up a knock during the Fulham game.
Head-to-Head:
15th Oct, 2011: Man City 4-1 Aston Villa
22nd Jan, 2011: Aston Villa 1-0 Man City
Form Guide:
Aston Villa (LDLWD):
5th February, 2012: Newcastle 2-1 Aston Villa
1st February, 2012: Aston Villa 2-2 QPR
29th January, 2012: Arsenal 3-2 Aston Villa (FA Cup)
21st January, 2012: Wolves 2-3 Aston Villa
14th January, 2012: Aston Villa 1-1 Everton
Manchester City (WLDWW):
4th February, 2012: Manchester City 3-0 Fulham
31st January, 2012: Everton 1-0 Manchester City
25th January, 2012: Liverpool 2-2 Manchester City (Carling Cup)
22nd January, 2012: Manchester City 3-2 Tottenham
16th January, 2012: Wigan 0-1 Manchester City
Probable Line-Ups:
Aston Villa (4-4-1-1): Given (Gk), Hutton, Dunne, Cuellar, Warnock, N’Zogbia, Clark, Petrov, Ireland, Keane, Bent
McLesih looks likely to stick with his 4-4-1-1 formation, with Keane playing off Darren Bent. Ciaran Clark and Stiliyan Petov have established a strong central midfield partnership and they will be flanked by Ireland and N’Zogbia. At the back, it will be Richard Dunne and Carlos Cuellar in the centre, with Alan Hutton and Stephen Warnock occupying the full-back slots.
Man City (4-2-3-1): Hart (Gk), Richards, Kompany, Lescott, Kolarov, Johnson, Barry, Milner, Silva, Aguero, Dzeko
Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko will continue up front in the absence of Mario Balotelli while David Silva and Adam Johnson start on the wings. Former Villa stars Barry and Milner look likely to be partnered in the centre of midfield ahead of a back four expected to comprise of Micah Richards, Vincent Kompany, Joleon Lescott and Aleksander Kolarov.
Prediction: Villa have the strikers to trouble City’s defence but it remains to be seen which Villa turns up, the one that hammered Chelsea 3-1 or the side that succumbed to a 2-0 loss to Swansea. City will be patient in their build-up and will pick their moments to throw bodies forward. Aguero will be the main threat once again as the Argentine will look to maintain his goal scoring run.
Predicted Score: Aston Villa 1-2 Man City
(TheSportsCampus)
