O´Neil looking to flip the script against Villa after tough start to season

Gary O’Neil admitted that Wolves may be second favourite in every game, but he is hoping they can flip the script against Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday.

Wolves have endured a difficult start to the season with one draw and three losses, including a 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United last weekend after they failed to hold onto their lead.

They sit 18th in the Premier League table and go into the weekend having also been knocked out of the EFL Cup after suffering a 3-2 defeat to Brighton on Wednesday.

O’Neil did not shy away from their run of poor form and is hopeful they can start to get results that match their performances.

“Of course, should haves and could haves aren’t going to help us, but moving forward you can still see that we’re giving ourselves good opportunities to win football matches against tough teams,” O’Neil told BBC Radio WM.

“Unfortunately, at this moment in time, we haven’t managed to turn one [result] our way. The lads are still taking a lot of heart from [the Brighton game].

“So far, my guess would be that we have been second-favourite in every game. I think we will be for the next few as well so, we’re having to fight against the odds at the minute.

“We are doing enough to get results, but we are falling a bit short.”

Meanwhile, Villa have lost just one of their four Premier League outings so far and came from 2-0 down to beat Everton 3-2 in their last such match.

The Villans are returning to Premier League action on a high after opening their Champions League campaign with a dominant 3-0 victory over Young Boys.

Youri Tielemans was delighted with their showing in Europe but already has his focus back on the top-flight.

“For our first match, it was amazing,” Tielemans said. “We can enjoy this and focus on the next game now.

“It was a good performance from myself, from the team, so we can move forward.”

A superb performance by Youri

Your #YBAVL Player of the Match!

@adidas || #UpTheVilla pic.twitter.com/i7k2YmXnBr

— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) September 18, 2024

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Aston Villa – Jhon Duran

Jhon Duran has scored the winning goal in all three of Villa’s Premier League victories this season, with all three coming as a substitute.

No player has scored four winning goals from the bench in a single campaign in Premier League history.

Wolves – Andre

Andre completed all of his 40 passes for Wolves against Newcastle United before being withdrawn (100%).

He also won five of his nine duels and won possession four times in his first start for Wolves.

pic.twitter.com/EcXvPGKwsS

— Wolves (@Wolves) September 15, 2024

MATCH PREDICTION: ASTON VILLA WIN

Villa beat Wolves 2-0 in their last league meeting in March last season – only in their first two such encounters in 2003-04 have they won consecutive Premier League games against them.

The Villans have won three of their four Premier League games this season, losing the other against Arsenal. Only in 1998-99, 2009-10 and 2020-21 have they won as many as four of their first five in a single campaign in the competition.

However, between March and Christmas 2023, Villa conceded just eight goals in 16 Premier League home games (0.5 per game), and never more than once in a match in that time. Since then, they have conceded 26 goals in 12 games at Villa Park (2.2 per game), conceding at least twice in 10 of those (including each of the last four).

Meanwhile, Wolves have only lost one of their last five away league games against Aston Villa (D2 L2), though it was in this exact fixture last season (0-2).

Wolves have won just one of their last 14 Premier League games (D3 L10) and are winless in seven (D1 L6) since a 2-1 win over Luton in April. It is their longest run without a victory since a run of 12 between April and August 2022.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Aston Villa – 57.6%

Draw – 21.4%

Wolves – 21%