It’s as mid-table as it gets when Aston Villa visits Brentford FC, because it’s a clash of 10th place versus 11th place.
Villa is nowhere near where they want to be in the standings, at this point, but they have to feel pretty good about how midweek went.
Aston Villa at Brentford FYIs
Kickoff: Sat. March 4, 5:45pm, GTech Community Stadium, London, UK
Result Probability via Google: Aston Villa 33% Draw 25% Brentford 42%
Premier League Form, Standings: Aston Villa LDDWL, 10th, 42 pts Brentford WLWWD, 11th, 38 pts
Winning decisively at Club Brugge, in the UEFA Champions League, will have Unai Emery’s side entering this one with positive momentum. As for the Bees, well they might actually not feel too bad about where they are right now.
Their main goal was to just stay up.
Aston Villa Team News at Club Brugge
The Villans are nearing full fitness, with the only two injury concerns Amadou Onana (thigh) and Ross Barkley (knee). Both could potentially return from injury next weekend, but likely not in this match.
Aston Villa Starting XI Prediction at Brentford FC
Emiliano Martinez; Axel Disasi, Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Matty Cash; John McGinn, Jacob Ramsey; Leon Bailey, Morgan Rogers, Marcus Rashford; Ollie Watkins
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, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America 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, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.