Manchester City vs Aston Villa prediction, betting tips and odds: Title-chasing Citizens to get back on track

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Where to watch Manchester City vs Aston Villa

You can watch Manchester City vs Aston Villa in the Premier League at 8.15pm on Wednesday, April 3, live on TNT Sports 1

Match prediction & best bet

Manchester City to win & under 3.5 goals
1pt 6-4 BoyleSports

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Manchester City vs Aston Villa odds

Manchester City 3-10
Aston Villa 9-1
Draw 11-2

Odds correct at time of publishing

Manchester City vs Aston Villa team news

Manchester City
Kyle Walker and Ederson missed Sunday's draw with Arsenal and look likely to sit out again while Nathan Ake limped off in that match and is also missing.

Aston Villa
John McGinn is suspended while Emi Buendia, Tyrone Mings, Matty Cash, Jacob Ramsey and Boubacar Kamara are set to miss out. Ollie Watkins is a major doubt after being forced off at half-time against Wolves.

Manchester City vs Aston Villa predictions

Manchester City have to now rely on the results of others if they are to keep their hands on the Premier League title following Sunday’s goalless draw with Arsenal, but the Citizens should get back on track with a home victory over Aston Villa.

That stalemate with the Gunners leaves City third, three points behind leaders Liverpool who also have a far superior goal difference, so any more setbacks could prove catastrophic in their title pursuit.

It is vital that Pep Guardiola’s side regain the winning formula while this is also an important fixture for Villa, who have Tottenham breathing down their necks in the battle for a top-four finish.

The Villans will be buoyed by the fact that they defeated Manchester City 1-0 in December’s reverse fixture but they are starting to show a few cracks now that the pressure has been ramped up.

Unai Emery’s side returned to winning ways with Saturday’s 2-0 success at home to Wolves but they had been struggling in recent encounters with top-half teams.

Villa have failed to win in five of their ten league games this year and since the end of December they have twice been beaten by Manchester United as well as suffering defeats at home to Newcastle and Tottenham.

Villa were held to a 1-1 draw at West Ham in their last away league outing and they were pretty fortuitous as the Hammers had a late goal disallowed by VAR.

Even in the win over Wolves, Villa were far from at their best and they could be overwhelmed in midfield without the suspended John McGinn and sidelined Boubacar Kamara.

City haven’t been at their free-flowing best for some time either but they could edge a tight encounter at the Etihad, where they remain unbeaten in 15 home league games this term.

Ten of those matches have resulted in victory and although goals have been harder to come by with Erling Haaland on a three-game goal drought, they should have enough in the tank to come out on top.

That said, it might not be a free-scoring classic given the fact that City have scored just nine goals and conceded only three over their last seven league games, and under 2.5 goals has landed in six of those fixtures.

Villa are difficult to predict defensively but they did record clean sheets in back-to-back wins against City and Arsenal in this campaign, highlighting that they can be resilient when required.

Of City’s ten home league wins this term, six have featured three or fewer goals and a repeat outcome makes plenty of appeal given the magnitude of the occasion for both sides.

Key stat

Both teams have scored in only one of Aston Villa’s last five matches in all competitions.

Probable teams

Manchester City (4-2-3-1): Ortega; Lewis, Dias, Akanji, Gvardiol; Rodri, Kovacic; Silva, De Bruyne, Foden; Haaland
Subs: Stones, Alvarez, Bobb, Gomez, Nunes, Doku, Grealish, Carson.

Aston Villa (4-4-2): Martinez; Konsa, Carlos, Torres, Digne; Bailey, Luiz, Tielemans, Rogers; Diaby, Duran.
Subs: Olsen, Moreno, Chambers, Iroegbunam, Lenglet, Zaniolo, Kesler-Hayden, Kellyman, Watkins.

Inside info

Manchester City

Star man Kevin De Bruyne
Top scorer Erling Haaland
Penalty taker Erling Haaland
Card magnet Rodri
Assist ace Kevin De Bruyne
Set-piece aerial threat Ruben Dias 

Aston Villa

Star man Moussa Diaby
Top scorer Leon Bailey
Penalty taker Douglas Luiz
Card magnet Ezri Konsa
Assist ace Douglas Luiz
Set-piece aerial threat Pau Torres

Manchester City vs Aston Villa bet builder predictions

Manchester City to win
It's a must-win for title-chasing City, who are unbeaten in 15 home league games this season and have triumphed in ten of those outings.

Over 7.5 Manchester City corners
The Citizens have had nine or more corners in five of their last seven fixtures at the Etihad and they are going to dominate possession.

Douglas Luiz to be shown a card
The Brazilian has a key role to play in the midfield battle and he has been booked in back-to-back away league games at West Ham and Luton.

Price guide 6-1 

More Premier League predictions . . .

Arsenal vs Luton prediction, betting tips and odds: Gunners unlikely to be breached 

Brentford vs Brighton prediction, betting tips and odds: Seagulls ready to frustrate Bees 

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