Aston Villa vs Manchester United predictions: Watkins to fire Villa to victory | OneFootball

Fresh from beating Bayern Munich in the Champions League, Aston Villa are back at home again on Sunday, when they host Manchester United in the Premier League (2pm, Sky Sports Main Event).

They will be full of confidence going into this one after ending Bayern’s 41-game unbeaten run in the Champions League group stages on Wednesday night, thanks to Jhon Duran, who came off the bench and scored for the sixth time this season to give them a 1-0 win.

Villa have a maximum six points in the Champions League so far on their return to Europe’s top competition for the first time in 41 years. But it’s just an extension of the good form they have shown so far in the league, as they currently sit fifth in the table with 13 points from their opening six games.

Their fortunes have been in stark contrast to those of Sunday’s opponents Manchester United who sit 13th, five points behind Villa, who are favourites for this fixture on betting sites.

Erik ten Hag’s side are a best-price of 2/1 on football betting sites to end a run of just one win from their last five in the league and have already endured heavy defeats at the hands of Liverpool and Tottenham, who both put three past them at Old Trafford with no reply.

Thursday’s Europa League clash at Porto did little to ease concerns over Ten Hag’s ability to turn United’s current slump around, the Red Devils squandering a two-goal lead and needing a Harry Maguire stoppage time equaliser to salvage a 3-3 draw at Porto.

Captain Bruno Fernandes was sent off against Porto, his second red card in as many games, however, he will be available for the trip to Villa Park, after the red card he received in the first half against Spurs was rescinded.

The only glimmer of hope for United fans ahead of this fixture is their excellent record at Villa Park. United have only lost one of the last 25 visits, winning 16 and drawing eight and Villa’s only win came in Unai Emery’s first game in charge of the club in November 2022, when goals from Leon Bailey, Lucas Digne and Jacob Ramsey earned them a 3-1 victory

Since that win though only Man City (85), Liverpool (84) and Arsenal (81) have picked up more home points than Villa with 74. To date, only European Cup-winning manager Tony Barton (70%, won 37/53) has a better home win percentage than Emery (66%, won 23/35).

It’s hard to see any other outcome apart from a Villa win based on recent evidence, although getting themselves up for another big game just days after facing Bayern Munich will be a challenge for Emery.

But United have even less time to prepare for this clash having only returned from Portugal in the early hours of Friday morning and they’ve shown little to suggest recently they can upset the Villans, even if we fancy both sides to find the net.

Villa have conceded nine goals in the league so far, more than any other member of the top 10 heading into the weekend, but shipping goals hasn’t stopped them from winning too often this season and we’re happy to pair up both teams to score with a Villa win.

Ollie Watkins has had to watch on as fellow striker Duran has taken most of the headlines this season and it has usually been after replacing the England star.

But Watkins has still scored four goals and provided two assists in six league games so far and gets plenty of respect from Premier League betting sites, who make him the favourite in all their goalscorer markets.

He has been involved in 55 goals in 67 Premier League appearances under Unai Emery, scoring 36 goals and assisting with 19 more. Only Erling Haaland (65) and Mohamed Salah (60) have scored or assisted more goals in that time.

He is looking to score in four games in a row for the first time since April 2023 and if he is on target on Sunday, it will be his first league goal against United, although he did net against the Red Devils in a League Cup tie in 2022.

Given how easily Spurs cut open United’s defence last weekend, a team of Villa’s quality should create chances and Watkins is a strong option to finish one of those opportunities.

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