Aston Villa seek crucial win at home on Saturday

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 01: Douglas Luiz of Aston Villa (M) is tackled by Pierre-Emille Hojbjerg (L) and Yves Bissouma of Tottenham Hotspur (R) during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on January 01, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 01: Douglas Luiz of Aston Villa (M) is tackled by Pierre-Emille Hojbjerg (L) and Yves Bissouma of Tottenham Hotspur (R) during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on January 01, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images)

Aston Villa are set to face Spurs at Villa Park this Saturday as the 2022/23 Premier League season winds down.

After back-to-back losses, Villa are looking for a bounce-back win against an inconsistent Spurs team to stay in the hunt for European qualification.

Unai Emery’s men were on a 10-match unbeaten streak until falling to Manchester United nearly two weeks ago. The 0-1 loss to United was followed by another against Wolves last weekend, faltering hopes of European play for Aston Villa next season.

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND – APRIL 25: Unai Emery the manager / head coach of Aston Villa during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Fulham FC at Villa Park on April 25, 2023 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. (Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images)
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND – APRIL 25: Unai Emery the manager / head coach of Aston Villa during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Fulham FC at Villa Park on April 25, 2023 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. (Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images)

Despite the two losses away from home, a chance still remains for Villa to move into the top six of the table. A match-up against the 6th ranked Spurs gives Emery’s squad a golden opportunity to regain some momentum heading into the final weeks of the season.

AVFC have a 44% chance to win vs. Spurs according to FiveThirtyEight

The Lions defeated Tottenham 2-0 in the away fixture on New Years Day in January, with goals coming from Emi Buendia and Douglas Luiz. Emi Martinez did not play, so another clean sheet could be coming with improved goalkeeping play and a strong defensive line.

Goal differential will be a massive point of focus in this match, with only four goals separating Villa from Tottenham. A 3-0 win would boost Aston Villa into 6th place, jumping over Brighton and Tottenham in the table.

AVFC will look to minimize Harry Kane’s presence on the pitch as he nears 30 goals on the season. Tyrone Mings, who was in incredible form during the 10-game unbeaten streak, will play a major role in containing Kane.

Villa suffered a 0-4 defeat to Tottenham last year at Villa Park with a hat-trick coming from Son Heung-Min. Son, who has not been in form as of late, will still need to be accounted for at all times as he loves a goal in Birmingham.

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