A lunchtime clash with the league leaders

Aston Villa look to record a fourth successive victory on Saturday, when welcoming Premier League leaders Manchester City to Villa Park for the day’s early kick off.

Unai Emery’s men have recorded UEFA Champions League triumphs over both Fenerbahçe and Viking in B6 in recent weeks, securing three points on the road at Newcastle United last weekend.

They are now bidding for a first league win over the season on home soil, which would stretch their unbeaten streak to seven matches.

Enzo Maresca has enjoyed an impressive start to life as City manager, with a faultless record of seven wins from seven thus far in the Premier League placing them top of the table.

City triumphed 5-1 over AEK Athens in the Champions League in midweek to follow up last weekend’s win over Ipswich Town on home turf, with the Cityzens set to take on Brighton & Hove Albion in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup next week.

Stats

Villa have won four of their last six Premier League games against Man City, as many as in their previous 35 against them (D5 L26). 

City have lost their last two league games against the Villans, last losing three in a row between August 1962 and September 1966.

Villa are unbeaten in their last three Premier League home games against sides starting the day top of the table, beating Arsenal 1-0 in December 2023 and 2-1 in December 2025, and drawing 2-2 with Liverpool in February 2025. 

Having failed to win any of their first four Premier League games this season (D1 L3), Villa have now won two of their last three (D1). However, the Villans are winless in all three home games so far (D1 L2), last having a longer run at the start of a campaign in 2015/16 (9). 

City could become the eighth side to win each of their first eight games of an English top-flight season, after Everton in 1894/95 (first 8), Sheffield United in 1903/04 (8), Tottenham Hotspur in 1960/61 (11), Manchester United in 1985/86 (10), Liverpool in 1990/91 (8), Chelsea in 2005/06 (9), and Liverpool in 2019/20 (8). 

No side has had fewer shots on target than Villa in the Premier League this season (22), with their average of 3.1 per game their second-lowest on record (since 2003/04) in a campaign, after 2015/16 (2.9). 

City have had more open play sequences of 10+ passes than any other side in the Premier League this season (158), also scoring more build-up goals than anyone else (6). 

Johan Manzambi has been involved in a goal in each of his three Premier League starts, scoring two and assisting two. No Villa player has ever had a goal involvement in each of their first four starts in the competition before. 

Erling Haaland scored in his first Premier League appearance against Villa but the Man City forward has not scored in any of his last four against them. In his career in Europe’s big-five leagues, he’s only gone more games without a goal against Newcastle (ongoing run of six). 

As well as having the most goals (8), City’s Erling Haaland has had the most shots (27) and shots on target (13) of any player in the Premier League this season, while he ranks for second for big chances (12) and touches in the opposition box (40). 

The Last Meeting

The last meeting between these two sides saw the Villans close their history-making 2025/26 campaign in style, triumphing 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium in May.

Just four days on from lifting the UEFA Europa League trophy, Unai Emery’s men travelled to Manchester for Pep Guardiola’s final game in charge of the Cityzens.

And it looked as though it could have been a perfect farewell for Guardiola, as Antoine Semenyo gave his team the lead midway through the opening period.

But Ollie Watkins’ brilliant second-half brace turned the tie on its head just after the hour mark, with Villa hanging on to claim all three points and end the season fourth in the Premier League table.

Team News 

Unai Emery will assess Johan Manzambi ahead of the clash, after the Swiss international missed midweek action in Europe having limped off against Newcastle United last weekend.

Ian Maatsen could feature having returned to the matchday squad on Wednesday, though Matteo Ruggeri, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Amadou Onana remain out.

Enzo Maresca confirmed Erling Haaland is “100% available” to face the Villans, having sat out of a Champions League win over AEK Athens in midweek.

Nico O’Reilly, Mateo Kovačić and Matheus Nunes will all be assessed ahead of the clash, with Antoine Semenyo ruled out with a knee injury.

Managers' Pre-Match Thoughts