Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace – 04/03/2023
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Aston Villa and Crystal Palace are in midtable, and the clubs will meet at Villa Park on Saturday with the chance for one of them to move into the top half of the table.
Crystal Palace are 12th in the league and are on a six-match winless streak in the Premier League.
Lockdown @Trezeguet. Clutch. ????
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— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) March 1, 2023
The Eagles drew five of their last six matches in the division, as Patrick Vieira cannot get the side to score goals to win matches.
Aston Villa are 11th in the standings going into the weekend at home. The Villains are coming off a 2-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park.
The win ended a three-match losing streak in the Premier League for Unai Emery’s side.
A win for Aston Villa could see them move ahead of 10th-place Chelsea in the standings. Ten points separate Aston Villa from a competitive relegation battle.
Crystal Palace are just six points above the relegation places.
The Eagles are looking over their shoulders in the table. They took just five points from the last six matches, scoring four goals and conceding five times.
Palace failed their last three matches in the league away from home. The Eagles won just twice on the road in their opening 11 matches.
Aston Villa picked up nine points from the last 18 points on offer in the league. They were outscored 12-10 across the last six matches. Villa are on a two-match losing streak at home ahead of Palace’s arrival. The team has conceded 19 times and scored 19 times across 12 home matches.
Emery is without midfielder Philippe Coutinho due to a thigh injury. Back-up goalkeeper Robin Olsen is unlikely to make the squad.
Centre-back Diego Carlos’ nightmare season continues, as he is unlikely to make the squad due to a calf problem. Back-up goalie Jed Steer is out of action.
Vieira could have Wilfried Zaha back from injury. He is close to returning from a thigh injury and could play. Zaha is expected to leave Palace in the summer, with Tottenham as the likely destination. Sam Johnstone is out of action with a calf injury. Nathan Ferguson could return to the squad from injury.
Aston Villa lost 3-1 to Palace earlier this season at Selhurst Park. With Emery now the manager at Aston Villa, the West Midlands club should get a point from an out-of-form Crystal Palace. The match could finish 2-2 with the teams sharing the points.
