Steven Gerrard will face his biggest test as Aston Villa’s manager when his side host defending champions Manchester City in the English Premier League. Both teams are on winning runs and will look to continue their good form going into this match.
Aston Villa have won five matches and drawn one match this season. They have scored 18 goals and conceded 21. Aston Villa won two matches in a row for the first time this season. Their recent victory came in the game against Crystal Palace, which they won by a scoreline of 2-1.
The team has now scored four goals in two matches under Steven Gerrard. In the last game, the creative zones were towards the wider sides. Most of the threats were created from the left, with John McGinn creating the highest threat rate from his passes.
John McGinn, Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings are the joint top goalscorers with three goals each. Aston Villa will be without striker Danny Ings for this match. Trezeguet and Bertrand Traore remain out due to injuries.
Manchester City won their third game in a row after a convincing 2-1 victory over West Ham United in the previous round of the English Premier League. Pep’s men have now won nine matches, drawn two, and lost two matches. They have scored 27 goals and conceded seven goals.
Manchester City players attempted 17 shots against West Ham and created an xG rate of 2.59. Six shots were on target, and both goals were scored from inside the opposition’s penalty box. They were unlucky as two efforts were deflected off the post. City attempted ten shots from inside the opposition’s penalty box.
Manchester City players have attempted 197 shots in 13 games. The team averages around 15 shots per match and have hit the target 70 times. 134 out of the 197 shots have been attempted from inside the opposition’s penalty box, with 56 shots on target. City players have taken 422 touches inside the opposition’s box, the most this season, with an average of 32.6 touches per 90.
Bernardo Silva is the highest goal scorer for Manchester City following his goal-scoring run in the previous few matches. Jack Grealish could be back in contention to face his former side. John Stones is expected to replace Aymeric Laporte, who has been suspended due to five yellow cards.
Manchester City have closed the gap to one point in the English Premier League table. They will look to win four matches in a row and put pressure on the league leaders Chelsea. Steven Gerrard will aim to continue his winning streak as the Aston Villa manager when his team hosts the defending champions at the Villa Park.
