Burnley look to start 2020 in style as they welcome Aston Villa to Turf Moor, as the Villains continue to scrap for survival.
Burnley can temporarily enter the top ten with a win whilst Villa need at least a point to move themselves out of the relegation zone for at least few hours.
Team news
Embed from Getty ImagesBurnley could welcome Ben Gibson back from a groin injury which kept him sidelined for their last four matches.
Aaron Lennon could also feature if he recovers from illness.
Aston Villa could have Tyrone Mings available after he failed to recover sufficiently to return at the weekend from a hamstring injury.
Keinan Davis (thigh) is unlikely to be risked until the weekend against Fulham in the FA Cup.
Jed Steer (Achilles), Matt Targett (hamstring) and John McGinn (ankle) are ruled out for the foreseeable future.
Stat Attack
- Burnley have lost just one of their last five league meetings against Aston Villa (W1, D3, L1).
- Two previous Premier League meetings at Turf Moor between these teams have finished 1-1.
- Both teams have scored in five of their last six meetings, with the only exception coming at Villa Park in May 2015 when Burnley won 1-0.
- James Tarkowski has produced four blocked shots this season for Burnley, compared to just two in entirety of last season.
- Both teams have scored an own goal once already this season.
Prediction
Burnley were just sloppy at the weekend defensively despite troubling Man Utd when going forward, but one positive is that they weren’t as bad as Villa who were just defensively dire against Watford and offered little in attack.
I therefore am expecting a scrappy game between two inconsistent teams but Villa’s away form is just as dreadful as some of their recent performances, so I am going for a home win.
Prediction: Burnley 1-0 Aston Villa
Result: Burnley 1-2 Aston Villa