Aston Villa will be looking to maintain their push for a top four finish as they travel to Bournemouth for a Premier League fixture on Sunday. The Cherries have been in good form lately and can make things difficult but Villa appear to be playing at a higher level and should have the superior quality over their hosts.
Bournemouth claimed a 3-2 victory over Sheffield United in their previous Premier League fixture. They raced to a three-goal lead thanks to a brace from Marcus Tavernier and a Justin Kluivert effort before the Blades struck an injury time consolation.
That was the second straight win for Bournemouth, who also claimed a 2-1 victory over Newcastle United in their previous fixture. They are slowly easing themselves away from trouble and are now seven points above the relegation zone.
While things are undoubtedly looking up for Bournemouth, they are still a bit erratic at the Vitality Stadium. Andoni Iraola’s men have picked up just two wins in their last five home matches across all competitions, suffering three defeats in that run.
Aston Villa appear to be constantly improving as the season progresses and are now up to fourth on the Premier League standings. They travel to the Vitality Stadium off the back of four straight wins across all competitions.
The Villans picked up an impressive 2-1 victory at Tottenham Hotspur in their previous Premier League fixture. They followed that up with another 2-1 victory over Legia Warsaw to secure a place in the next phase of the Europa Conference League.
Aston Villa have also impressed on their recent travels, claiming three wins and a draw from their last five away matches. However, defending appears to be a major problem for Unai Emery’s men, who have kept just one clean sheet in their last eight away matches across all competitions.
How the bookies view it
Aston Villa have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at evens by Coral to claim the win. Despite their recent good form, Bournemouth are still considered outsiders with a home win valued at 5/2 by BetVictor while a draw is set at odds of 3/1 by bet365.
Head to head
Aston Villa have a 4-3 edge from seven previous matches against Bournemouth. Both teams won their home fixture last season with the Cherries winning 2-0 at the Vitality Stadium while the Villans picked up a 3-0 victory at Villa Park.
Players to watch
Dominic Solanke failed to get on the score sheet last time out but remains the most dangerous attacker for Bournemouth. The striker has seven Premier League goals this season and is priced at odds of 9/4 by bet365 to get in the score sheet on Sunday.
Ollie Watkins will be the man tasked with providing the attacking spark for Aston Villa as he looks to add to his six Premier League goals this season. The striker has also found the net five times in the last seven matches across all competitions for Villa and is priced at 11/8 by bet365 to maintain his scoring run.
Anything else catch the eye?
There were over 3.5 goals in Bournemouth’s previous fixture and a similar outcome is priced at 13/10 by BoyleSports. Both teams often make fast starts and could be backed to score in the first half at 11/4 with bet365.
Aston Villa have scored in both halves in their last three matches across all competitions and could be set for a repeat at 8/5 with BoyleSports.
This English Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth and Aston Villa will be played on Dec 3, 2023 and kick off at 14:00. Check below for our tipsters best AFC Bournemouth vs Aston Villa prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
