MX23RW : Friday, September 20 03:43:45| >> :120:39317:39317:

Preview: Aston Villa vs. Sunderland

Preview: Aston Villa vs. Sunderland
© PA Photos
Martin O'Neill returns to former club Aston Villa for the first time this weekend as Sunderland look to get back to winning ways.

Martin O'Neill returns to former club Aston Villa for the first time this weekend as Sunderland look to claim their first win in four matches.

The Irishman shocked many when he abruptly left the Midlands club in August 2010 after four years in charge.

The team that he comes up against on Saturday is in stark contrast to the one he departed two years ago as Villa are hoping to secure their Premier League survival.

With one win in their last six, Alex McLeish's side have been dragged into a relegation battle.

However, three points against the Black Cats would see them all but book their place in the top flight for next season.

Marc Albrighton, Chris Herd, Ciaran Clark and Stephen Warnock are all expected to return for the hosts, while O'Neill has hinted that he may throw some younger players into the team for the remaining few games of the campaign.

Current form:

Aston Villa: WLLDDL
Sunderland: LWDDLD

Possible lineups:

Aston Villa: Given; Hutton, Collins, Clark, Warnock; Albrighton, Herd, Ireland, Bannan; Agbonlahor, Weimann

Sunderland: Mignolet; Bardsley, Turner, Kilgallon, Richardson; Larsson, Gardner, Vaughan, McClean; Sessegnon, Bendtner

Sports Mole says: 0-1

ID:24376: cacheID:24376:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2138:

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


Restore Data
Share this article now:
Martin O'Neill
Read Next:
O'Neill defiant over stars' future
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
1.15am
Patriots
@
Jets
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City4400113812
2Arsenal431061510
3Newcastle UnitedNewcastle431063310
4Liverpool43017169
5Aston Villa43017619
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton42206248
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest42204228
8Chelsea42118537
9Brentford42026606
10Manchester UnitedMan Utd42025506
11Bournemouth41215505
12Fulham41214405
13Tottenham HotspurSpurs41126424
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham411256-14
15Leicester CityLeicester402257-22
16Crystal Palace402247-32
17Ipswich TownIpswich402227-52
18Wolverhampton WanderersWolves4013411-71
19Southampton400418-70
20Everton4004413-90


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!