Tottenham Hotspur vs Aston Villa
English Premier League, KO: 14:00 Jan 1, 2023, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
BOTH Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa will be looking to return to winning ways in the Premier League when the pair do battle on New Year's Day.
Spurs resumed their top-flight campaign by recovering from a two-goal deficit to grab a point in a barnstorming 2-2 draw Brentford on Boxing Day.
That stalemate across town means Antonio Conte's fourth-placed team have seen their lead on the chasing pack cut to just a point.
As such, Tottenham will be keen to get back on track when they take on Aston Villa in the opening Premier League fixture of 2023.
Villa felt the full force of the new manager bounce upon Unai Emery's arrival as the Spaniard steered his side to back-to-back victories over Manchester United and Brighton before the season was halted for the World Cup.
However, the Villians were brought firmly back down to earth with a bump as Liverpool inflicted a first defeat on the new Villa boss with a 3-1 victory last time out.
Outright Betting
Despite losing two of their last three Premier League home games, Tottenham enter this contest as 4/6 (Bet 365) favourites.
Aston Villa, who have triumphed in just one of their last nine top-flight road trips, arrive in North London as 17/4 (BetVictor) outsiders while a point apiece has been priced up at 3/1 (Bet 365).
Betting Angles
I've successfully highlighted Harry Kane to score in several of my match previews this season and I’m more than happy to start the new year with the same selection here at even-money (1/1) with PaddyPower.
The England captain made a scoring return to domestic action by Boxing Day by scoring a brilliant header in the aforementioned 2-2 draw with Brentford, and in doing so, Kane, has now notched 13 Premier League goals this season – a tally only topped by Man City goal-machine Erling Haaland.
What’s more, the Spurs sharpshooter has made the net ripple in nine of his last 11 top-flight appearances, including each of his last seven outings at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
While Aston Villa have demonstrated marked improvement since appointing Unai Emery, they have failed to keep their sheets clean in 13 of their 16 Premier League matches this term, a sample that includes seven of their eight outings away from Villa Park.
It's also worth pointing out that the aforementioned Kane has fared well when faced with Aston Villa in recent years, having netted seven times in 10 top-fight appearances against the West Midlands outfit.
With all this in mind, backing Tottenham's top scorer and penalty-taker to strike on Sunday makes plenty of appeal at even-money (1/1) with PaddyPower.
Switching gears, I’ll also have a nibble on Aston Villa left-back Lucas Digne to be carded at 15/4 with Bet 365.
The fiery Frenchman is no stranger to Premier League referees' notebooks and he could have his hands full here given the directness and trickery of Dejan Kulusevski, who is likely to be his direct opponent.
This English Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa will be played on Jan 1, 2023 and kick off at 14:00. Check below for our tipsters best Tottenham Hotspur vs Aston Villa prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
