So… April was a helluva month, eh?
Aston Villa went on an absolute tear through the month of April. Wins against Sheffield Wednesday, Rotherham, Bristol, Bolton, and Millwall, as well as a draw with Leeds, saw the lads finish with 16/18 possible points. Those results have guaranteed the Claret and Blue a place in the EFL Championship play-offs, presumably as the 5th placed team. We now find the team arriving at the final game of the season, looking not at a season of “what-ifs” and “could-have-been”s, but preparing for the journey ahead. What does that mean for this lone regular season match for the month of May?
More from Claret Villans
- Aston Villa dismiss Everton for first win of Premier League season
- Tyrone Mings injured in Aston Villa’s season-opening 5-1 defeat
- Aston Villa draw Hibernian or FC Luzern for Europa Conference League play-off
- Aston Villa sign winger Moussa Diaby from Bayer Leverkusen
- Aston Villa close in on deal to sign Pau Torres from Villareal
Aston Villa vs Norwich City
This match likely matters more to Norwich than it does to Aston Villa. If winning the league is important to them, they will likely go all-out, needing either a win or draw to secure the title. If their main aim at this point is providing some young players an opportunity to play, knowing full well that they’re already promoted, the sting will be taken out of the matchup a bit. As for Aston Villa, the team has already safely secured a spot in the playoffs. As mentioned, their position in the final table is highly unlikely to change, barring some whopper results from Derby County coupled with a big defeat here to Norwich.
Villa also have a number of extenuating circumstances to factor in. John McGinn is fresh off his 14th yellow card of the season, and will 100% not be playing in this match. Meanwhile, centre-forwards Tammy Abraham and Jonathan Kodjia are both likely to be rested due to injury concerns. Jed Steer may be a scratch as well, after tweaking his ankle late in the match against Leeds United. His minor injury was overshadowed by everything else that happened during this match, but it is something to keep an eye on.
I am of the opinion that both managers will take a lighter approach to this match, choosing to play fewer of their regular first team in favor of giving some of the usual “substitutes” a run at it. Both sides are still rife with capable players, so the match should still be entertaining, albeit less venomous. I’ll predict 1-1, with the only yellow card of the match going to Birkir Bjarnason, because he likes aggressively tackling people.
May Points: 1
Total Points: 77
This concludes the regular season, and there-in the “Points Predictor”. Hope you enjoyed. On to the playoffs. UTV