The marquee matchup, of the penultimate weekend of the Premier League season, is obviously Liverpool at Aston Villa. The Villans come into this Friday night affair with a squad that is near full fitness- Boubacar Kamara remains sidelined until next season with a knee injury while Amadou Onana and Alysson face a race against the calendar to feature again before the season concludes.
Both could be in the mix to feature versus the reigning Premier League champions.
Aston Villa vs Liverpool FC FYIs
Kickoff: Fri. May 15 7:30pm, Villa Park, Birmingham, UK
Team News: Aston Villa Liverpool
PL Position, Form: Liverpool 4th, 59 pts, WWWLD Aston Villa 5th, 59 pts, DWLLD
Google Result Probability: Liverpool win 43% Draw 25% Aston Villa win 32%
Aston Villa Team News
But at the same time, both could also easily miss out here and then we’ll just have to see then, the following weekend, for Championship Sunday. Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has been understandably tight lipped about his side’s injury/fitness situation, especially so with Amadou Onana.
Fun fact: both Alysson and Alisson could miss this match due to injury. Liverpool and Villa enter this match level on points, but with the visitors holding the tie-breaker advantage of goal differential.
They occupy the last two Champions League qualification slots, by four points over surging AFC Bournemouth.
The Cherries are undefeated in their last 15 league matches, so if either side slips up, they’re just waiting in the wings to supplant them. In other words, a lot is on the line in this one.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, Ratings and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.