At A Glance
Aston Villa go in search of a third straight win when title challengers Liverpool visit Villa Park on Tuesday night.
A polished performance last time out saw Steven Gerrard’s team beat Burnley 3-1, the perfect follow-up to victory against Norwich City.
Those wins have kept Villa’s hopes of a top ten finish alive, with the Villans just a point behind tenth place Crystal Palace ahead of kick-off.
Liverpool’s ambitions of winning the Premier League took a blow after they were held to a 1-1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur in their last outing.
Jurgen Klopp’s team haven’t lost in the league since December, while also progressing to the FA Cup and Champions League finals during that time.
A potent attack has made them a formidable force, and they boast three of the top five scorers in the league: Mohamed Salah (22), Diogo Jota (15) and Sadio Mane (14).
Standout Stats
Aston Villa won this exact fixture 7-2 last season – they’ve not beaten Liverpool in consecutive home league games since February 1998.
Liverpool have won seven of their last eight Premier League meetings with Aston Villa, with the exception being a 7-2 loss at Villa Park last season.
There have been 20 away wins in Premier League meetings between Aston Villa and Liverpool, with the Reds’ 14 wins at the Villans more than they’ve beaten any other side on the road. In fact, only Manchester City vs Manchester United (21) has been won by the away side more in Premier League history.
Liverpool have scored 41 away Premier League goals this season, only failing to score in only one away game (0-1 vs Leicester). The Reds have only scored more away league goals in two seasons: 42 in 1946-47 (won the top-flight) and 48 in 2013- 14 (finished 2nd in Premier League).
Aston Villa have won their last two Premier League matches and are looking to win three in a row for only the third time in their last nine top-flight campaigns. Those two runs have come in the last two seasons, a four-game run in September/October 2020, and a three-game run in February/March this year.
Liverpool haven’t dropped a single point against sides starting the day in the bottom half of the table this season, winning all 18 such games by an aggregate score of 52- 4. No team in Premier League history has ever won 100% of their games against bottom half sides in a single campaign, with Liverpool’s 18 wins the joint-most along with Manchester United in 2006-07.
Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins has scored more Premier League goals against Liverpool than he has any other side (4), netting a hat-trick in this exact fixture last season.
Ollie Watkins has netted 10+ goals in each of his two Premier League seasons for Aston Villa (10 this season, 14 in 2020-21). He’s only the third Englishman to do so in consecutive seasons for Villa, only with Dion Dublin (11 in 1998-99, 12 in 1999-00) and Gabriel Agbonlahor (11 in 2007-08, 12 in 2008-09, 13 in 2009-10).
Aston Villa’s Danny Ings has netted against former sides Burnley and Southampton in the Premier League this season, with Romelu Lukaku in 2017-18 the last player to score against three former sides in a season (Chelsea, Everton and West Brom).
The Last Meeting
Aston Villa battled hard at a rainy Anfield before Mohamed Salah eventually broke their resistance.
The home side dominated throughout but came up against a well-drilled defence that gave little away before Tyrone Mings felled Salah in the box.
The Egyptian picked himself up to score the only goal of the game from the penalty spot.
Team News
Aston Villa will again be without Jacob Ramsey for Tuesday night’s match as the midfielder sits out a second consecutive game.
Leon Bailey and Kortney Hause remain sidelined for the hosts.
Roberto Firmino is the Reds’ only injury concern ahead of the game, with the Brazilian close to a return after six matches out.
The Boss
“They’re a world-class team. Arguably, the best team in the world right now. We’re well aware of the challenge. I’ve spoken many times about how I respect the coach and the coaching staff there. You either fear that or you put your shoulders back and try and take it on and find situations where you can have your moments in the game. Every team on the planet, historically or now, there’s always areas or situations that happen in a game where you can hurt them. We’re well aware of the size of the challenge tomorrow, but it’s exciting and I’m looking forward to it. Big games of football are what it’s all about.”
Steven Gerrard
