Prediction: Aston Villa win
Best Odds: 10/11
Bookmaker: bet365
The regular season in the Football League is over, and now, it’s time to get down to business: with the playoffs. Four teams from the Championship are set to battle it out over the course of the next few weeks for the right to gain promotion to the Premier League. Only one side can make it all the way to the top, in what is set to be one of the most intriguing playoff years of all time. The game we’re going to be looking at certainly has a lot of history behind it, as Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion attempt to book their ticket to Wembley.
Aston Villa
Aston Villa have had a rollercoaster ride of a season but now, it really does feel like they’re in the endgame. If they can go up with this team they could do some really remarkable things, building back to the point they were once at. If they fail, there’s a really good chance that their team will see some major departures in the summer. They know just how important this run is and they know what they have to do – but can they finally make their way back from the brink after a few years of being away from the big time?
Team News
Grealish and McGinn are set to be rested but should return for this one, with Abraham, Mings and Elmohamady being tipped to start.
West Brom
West Bromwich Albion have done a pretty solid job of forcing their way into the promotion race, but now, they really need to step it up. They’ve been in cruise control for a few months now, mainly because it seemed pretty obvious that they were going to make it into the top six. With the semi finals of the playoffs now being upon us, they need to summon every ounce of strength and ability they’ve got – because contrary to popular belief, they’re probably going to be the underdogs here.
Team News
Robson-Kanu is suspended, Livermore has an ankle problem, and Gareth Barry is the only other major injury concern.
Factors to Consider
- In their last meeting back in February, West Brom beat Aston Villa 2-0.
- Aston Villa have won four, drawn one and lost one of their last six games.
- West Brom have won three, drawn one and lost two of their last six games.
- Aston Villa have scored nine goals and conceded five in their last six games.
- West Brom have scored 12 goals and conceded 10 in their last six games.
Conclusion
This is going to be an exceptionally scrappy first leg, mainly because both clubs know just how important the next few games are going to be. However, despite the fact that West Brom have the more ‘recent’ Premier League experience, we just can’t picture Villa dropping the ball on this one at home. We’re going to say that they’ll win by a couple goals at Villa Park, which should give them a healthy lead to take back with them to The Hawthorns for the return fixture.
Prediction: Aston Villa win
Best Odds: 10/11
Bookmaker: bet365
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