Aston Villa seem to be coming to life and can hope to continue their good run against Nottingham Forest as they seek their first Premier League win of the season.
The Villans have had a somewhat shocking start to the season, managing just one goal in their first three matches.
Whilst it’s fair to say that facing Brighton and Arsenal might have been a tough ask, they weren’t even close to victory against Hull City either.
But during the week, they finally showed their true potential with a 3–2 away win at Club Brugge.
Nottingham Forest are in a slightly better position in the Premier League, although they, too, are still searching for their first win of the season.
However, it’s fair to say they’ve had a tough run of fixtures to start with, including matches against Liverpool and Tottenham. On a positive note, they managed to pick up a point against both of those top teams.
How the bookies view it: Aston Villa have the edge, but not by much
The bookmakers don’t seem particularly confident about this match, which is why the odds are relatively close, although the Villans have a noticeable advantage.
At the moment, you can back Aston Villa at 5/4, whilst Nottingham Forest are available at 11/5. Both teams have drawn their recent matches, so you can also back that outcome at 12/5.
Recent head-to-head: The Villans won the last five home H2Hs
Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest have a rich history stretching back decades, but in recent years the Villans have certainly had the upper hand in their meetings.
Last season, the sides played each other four times in total, as they also met in the Europa League semi-finals.
The key takeaway from those fixtures is that Aston Villa won both their home matches by a large margin. Overall, they have five consecutive home H2H wins, whilst Nottingham’s last away victory dates back to 1994, which was 13 attempts ago.
Players to watch: Has Jackson finally found his place?
Scoring goals has definitely been Aston Villa’s biggest problem so far, but they have enough decent strikers in their squad for us to see a performance more like the one against Bruges and less like the one against Hull City.
Ollie Watkins’ departure was a major blow for the team, but Villa have replaced him with Nicolas Jackson, who scored his first goal for the club against Brugge.
Perhaps Jackson will show his best form under Unai Emery, and Nottingham Forest’s defence looks like the perfect opportunity for him to prove himself.
Probable line-ups
Aston Villa: Suzuki, Maatsen, Torres, Lindelof, Wan-Bissaka, Kamara, Barkley, Hemmings, Buendia, McGinn, Jackson
Nottingham Forest: Sels, Murillo, Cunha, Milenkovic, Munoz, Schlager, McAtee, Williams, Jesus, Gibbs-White, Delap
Anything else catch the eye?
This really is a very difficult match to predict, given the poor start both teams have had. It’s entirely possible that Nottingham could secure their long-awaited victory away at Villa, but I find it hard to really picture that happening.
The Villans have always been a tough side to beat at Villa Park, and I reckon it’s time they delighted their fans with a Premier League win.
But given the gaps in their defence, I expect it to be a closer match than usual, with a result along the lines of 2–1.
GambleAware