Kick-off: 1500, 22/02/2020
Stadium: St Mary’s Stadium
Southampton and Aston Villa are both coming off back-to-back Premier League defeats, but we feel the hosts are better placed to return to winning ways.
Saints claimed a convincing 3-1 victory when these teams met in the midlands just before Christmas, having been 2-0 ahead at the interval that day.
We’re taking 29/20 for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s team to lead at half-time and full-time again for our initial Southampton vs Aston Villa prediction.
A Look At Southampton’s Betting Odds
Having lost 4-0 at Liverpool and then going down 3-2 at Tottenham in the FA Cup to a late penalty, Southampton were rated a touch unfortunate when beaten 2-1 here by Burnley.
Danny Ings grabbed his 15th league goal of the season to cancel out Ashley Westwood’s bizarre early opener, which crept in directly from a corner in difficult weather conditions.
Jack Stephens later headed Sofiane Boufal’s cross against the bar as Saints had the better of things, but Matej Vydra’s stunning strike ultimately settled the issue.
“We had to come back from a stupid goal in the second minute,” moaned Hasenhuttl.
“We played better football than the opponent but it’s always difficult to make chances against this team.”
However, Saints rattled off seven wins in 11 top-flight fixtures prior to their little blip, so we’re not ready to give up on them just yet.
Looking at the Southampton vs Aston Villa odds, both of these sides tend to play positive football, so 23/20 for a home win and over 2.5 goals is another strong fancy.
Last Southampton line-up: McCarthy, Vestergaard, Stephens, Bertrand, Walker-Peters, Ward-Prowse, Armstrong, Boufal, Hojbjerg, Long, Ings.
Kyle Walker-Peters will miss out due to a calf injury, with Yan Valery likely to step into the breach.
Nathan Redmond remains sidelined with a muscular injury, while Boufal is absent due to his heel complaint.
A Look At Aston Villa’s Betting Odds
Villa are six points below Saints in the table and facing a real battle to avoid dropping straight back down to the Championship.
Dean Smith’s side followed up a 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth by losing 3-2 at home to Tottenham in heart-breaking fashion.
Spurs benefited from a contentious VAR penalty decision and later on grabbed a last-gasp decider through Son Heung-min.
Former Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina has proved a shrewd loan signing, but defensive mistakes continue to prove costly.
Reflecting on the Tottenham clash, Reina told the club website: “I think the team has shown a great performance.
“We believe in the three points all the time and that’s the only way to keep Villa up. We believe in that.”
That positive approach is backed up by some encouraging attacking play, with Jack Grealish always a threat going forward.
However, the visitors do keep leaving themselves exposed at the back, so 19/10 for a home win and both teams to score has obvious appeal.
For those wanting a bit more value, 15/2 for a 2-1 scoreline is added to our Southampton vs Aston Villa betting tips.
Last Villa line-up: Reina, Konsa, Targett, Engels, Guilbert, Hause, Drinkwater, Douglas Luiz, Grealish, El Ghazi, Samatta.
Villa will be boosted by the return of Tyrone Mings after recovering from tonsillitis. Striker Wesley (knee), midfielder John McGinn (fractured ankle) and goalkeepers Tom Heaton (knee) and Jed Steer (calf) remain out.
Additional stats
Last result:
SOUTHAMPTON 1-2 Burnley – Danny Ings
ASTON VILLA 2-3 Tottenham – Toby Alderweireld (og), Bjorn Engels
Head-to-head: Villa 1-3 Southampton
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