Aston Villa v Man City – Preview, Predictions and Best Bets

City had a nine-match winless run against Villa at one stage, but have since gone winless on three trips to Villa Park (LLD).

Match: Aston Villa v Man City
When: Sunday, 26 Oct 2025

Aston Villa Form

Villa saw a five-match winning streak snapped by a midweek defeat. After a 1-1 draw at Sunderland where they ten men for an hour, their season finally kicked into gear. A 1-0 win over Bologna in the Europa League preceded a 3-1 win over Fulham despite having just four shots on target.

A won 2-0 at Feyenoord followed despite being outshot 19-6, before they outshot Burnley 15-5 in a 2-1 home win. A 2-1 victory at Tottenham last weekend came with just two shots on target. On Thursday, they surprisingly lost 2-1 away at Go Ahead Eagles despite putting up 2.82 xG and 18 shots.

Aston Villa Team News

Youri Tielemans, Andrés García and Lucas Digne all missed the last match due to injury. Ross Barkley returns for this match after not being registered for European competition.

Matty Cash, John McGinn and Morgan Rogers will all be recalled here. The trio features as substitutes in the Netherlands. Ezri Konsa will also be back in the defence after a rest.

Aston Villa Motivation

Villa’s confidence is good. They’re getting some strong results but their performance levels are swinging wildly at times.

Unai Emery’s side have won their last two home matches vs City. They will try to be compact and hit their mobile forwards on quick counters.

Man City Form

City have won their last three matches. They dropped points in a 1-1 draw at Arsenal as they conceded late in a match where they had a paltry 33% possession. A 2-0 win over Huddersfield in the Carabao Cup and a 5-1 thrashing of Burnley followed. They conceded late to draw 2-2 away to Monaco in the Champions League.

Since then, they’ve ground three straight wins to zero. A 1-0 win at Brentford saw just one shot on target allowed to the Bees. A 2-0 home win over Everton again saw them allow just one shot on target. In midweek, they coasted to a 2-0 win at Villarreal in the Champions League.

Man City Team News

Rodri is set to miss this match with a minor muscle injury. Nico Gonzalez is doubtful, but he should shake off a foot injury to deputise in the number six role.

Abdukodir Khusanov is absent in defence. Tijani Reijnders is set for a recall, and both Rayan Cherki and Omar Marmoush have shaken off injuries to boost the options in attack.         

Man City Motivation

City are three points off Arsenal and can’t afford even a draw here. They need to win this match and won’t settle for a point at any stage.

Guardiola’s side are in a phase of grinding out wins. They have lost their last two matches at Villa Park and will be a bit more pragmatic in this one.

Key Stats

• Aston Villa have won 5 of their last 6 matches
• Villa are unbeaten in 3 home matches vs Man City (WWD)
• Man City have won 12 of their last 17 league matches
• Man City’s Haaland has scored 28 goals in his last 18 matches for club and country

Verdict

This match could go any of the three ways. A draw may be the best result. Haaland looks a sure bet to score at least once in the match.

Best Bet: Draw at 3.80

Goalscorer Bet: Haaland to score anytime at 1.80 or 2 or more goals at 5.00