Good afternoon! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for today's match between Manchester United and Aston Villa at Old Trafford! It looks like being a sad day for the visitors with their relegation almost certain to be mathematically confirmed here, although their fate has been all but sealed for a long time now. United have plenty to play for themselves as they chase a top-four spot this season, so this is a game that will have repercussions at both ends of the table. First, though, let's look at the team news...

MAN UTD STARTING XI: De Gea; Valencia, Smalling, Blind, Rojo; Schneiderlin, Fellaini, Mata, Rooney, Memphis; Rashford

MAN UTD SUBS: Romero, Darmian, Fosu-Mensah, McNair, Young, Lingard, Martial

ASTON VILLA STARTING XI: Guzan; Hutton, Clark, Lescott, Cissokho; Bacuna, Westwood, Gana, Richardson; Sinclair; Ayew

ASTON VILLA SUBS: Richards, Sanchez, Gil, Bunn, Lyden, Gestede, Grealish

What can we make of those two teams, then? Well, there are one or two surprising selections as far as the hosts are concerned, but Aston Villa at home is probably the one Premier League match you can afford to rest some key players this season. Martial is one of those left out as he has to make do with a place on the bench, being replaced in the starting XI by Memphis Depay. He will play on the left behind Marcus Rashford, who gets another start this evening having scored six goals in 11 appearances since breaking into the first team, including three in the Premier League. No player has ever scored more Premier League goals for Manchester United before the age of 19.

The biggest news for United is the return of their captain Wayne Rooney, though. He has been sidelined for two months with a knee injury but made his return as a late sub during the midweek FA Cup victory over West Ham. He only got a few minutes at Upton Park, but Louis van Gaal has deemed him fit enough to play from the start today. He has a great record against Villa over the years, scoring 13 times in matches against them in the Premier League - he has only scored more times against Newcastle.

Marouane Fellaini is a less likely goalscorer than Rooney, but he too has enjoyed himself against Villa down the years. He has scored four times against them in the Premier League, which is more than he has managed against any other club, and comes into today's game having got what proved to be the winner against West Ham in midweek. He retains his place in midfield, but he is the only player to do so, with Schneiderlin, Mata, Rooney and Memphis all coming in for Lingard, Carrick, Herrera and Martial.

There is just one change at the back as Fosu-Mensah, who has made a very promising start to his Manchester United career, is dropped back to the bench despite another decent performance against West Ham on Wednesday. Antonio Valencia comes in in place of the youngster at right-back, while Smalling, Blind and Rojo all retain their spots. David de Gea, who was again in superb form at Upton Park, continues between the sticks.

As for Villa, they make just the one change for the match that looks set to mathematically send them down as Alan Hutton returns from suspension to fill in at right-back. He replaces Lyden in the side, with the youngster having been handed his first ever Premier League start against Bournemouth last weekend. He drops to the bench this time, though, which also sees Bacuna pushed up into a more advanced position.

Clark and Lescott continue as the centre-back partnership for the visitors this afternoon, which means that club captain Micah Richards once again has to settle for a place on the bench. Also amongst the subs is Jack Grealish, who has overcome an ankle knock to be named in the matchday squad but is not chosen from the start. Cissokho makes up the back four, with Brad Guzan continuing in goal for Villa.

Bacuna will move from right-back to right midfield for today's match, while Richardson continues on the opposite flank for the visitors. Westwood and Gueye continue in the middle of the park, where many of Villa's problems have come this season. There has been a lack of energy and desire in the midfield for much of the campaign, and all too often the defence are left in trouble by the Villa midfielders not tracking back.

Of course, the midfield is not solely to blame for Villa's plight, and at the sharp end of the field they have been pretty poor too. Sinclair and Ayew are once again the men charged with getting the goals this afternoon, and the latter is perhaps the one player out of the current crop who might have done enough this season for other Premier League clubs to be interested when Villa do go down. Even so, it has not been nearly enough to keep them in the division.

It is a Villa side who have seemingly given up in the last few weeks, and the hosts today will be expecting a comfortable victory. While complacency may be an issue in that case, it really is hard to see another other than a home victory this afternoon. United have, of course, had troubles of their own this season and, while they will get no sympathy from Villa fans, it has been a disappointing campaign on the whole for the Red Devils.

Louis van Gaal's first season in charge saw him restore the club in the top four, and they were expected to kick on this season and challenge for the title. Instead, they seem to have taken a few steps backwards and they actually come into today's match 12 points and 20 goals worse off than they were at the same stage of last season. There have been countless reports suggesting that Van Gaal has been on the brink of being sacked, yet the Dutchman remains in the Old Trafford dugout and now looks set to see out the season.

Whether he lasts beyond the end of the season may well rest on the closing weeks of the campaign. United are still in the race for the top four, although they have work to do to catch Manchester City with only six games remaining. The gap between the two local rivals is four points, which United should close to one today before City face a difficult trip to Stamford Bridge in the later kickoff. With West Ham United playing away to runaway league leaders Leicester as well, this could be a good weekend for Man Utd's Champions League hopes.

If Van Gaal can couple a top-four finish with some silverware, it may be enough to save his job, much to the chagrin of a number of supporters. United moved into the semi-finals of the FA Cup in midweek with a 2-1 victory over West Ham United, setting up a Wembley showdown with Everton next weekend. They haven't won the trophy since 2004, which is a substantial drought for a club like Manchester United, so ending the campaign with that success may well stave off the looming shadow of a certain Jose Mourinho.

The main problem for United in recent weeks is that it appears to be one step forward, then one step back for the club. Every time they pick up a good, positive result that has fans thinking that the Champions League place could be there for the taking, a setback soon follows. Recent wins over the likes of Arsenal and Manchester City have been followed not long after by defeats to West Brom and Tottenham Hotspur, and any progress they have made in the last couple of months has been painstakingly slow.

The one aspect of their game that they can be really proud of this season is their defensive record, particularly at home. They have kept a league-high 15 clean sheets in the Premier League this term, and 10 of those have come in 15 home outings. They have conceded just seven league goals at Old Trafford all season, although the flip side to that is their struggles at the other end. They have only scored 20 times in front of their own fans this season, meaning that there have been fewer goals at Old Trafford this season than any other Premier League ground - a far cry from the Fergie days.

They are at least picking up good results with more regularity at Old Trafford, though. They are unbeaten in their last seven games here in all competitions, and have only lost two of 25 all season. They have won all of their last four Premier League home outings since a 1-0 defeat to Southampton on January 23, and have the bonus of their next three league games, including this one today, all coming at Old Trafford.

Things look pretty bleak from a Villa standpoint, then, particularly looking at their record against United, which I will talk about more a little later. However, for a club that needs any sort of positive to cling to at the moment, one has come from Carrow Road as the final whistle is about to go on a 3-0 victory for Sunderland against Norwich City. It is a huge win for the Black Cats, and it also means that Villa will begin today's game still mathematically a Premier League side. It is all delaying the inevitable, but at least relegation won't be confirmed before they kick a ball today.

In truth, though, their fate has been pretty obvious for a while now. This crop of Villa players are not only the worst team in the league this season, but they are also on course to be one of the worst Premier League teams of all time. Only two sides have ever amassed fewer points than Villa's current tally of 16, and with the current form of the players and atmosphere from the stands, it is hard to see them picking up even a point from anywhere at the moment.

In a way, confirmation of relegation may come as a relief for Villa, who have had to dragged out for a while now. They would need a win here today to keep themselves mathematically safe, but even the most optimistic (read: deluded) Villa fan will not be clutching at that straw. The gap to safety is 15 points with 15 points left to play for this season, which means that they would need to win all of their remaining five games and Norwich lose all of theirs to stand any chance. When you factor in the goal difference as well, it is mission impossible for the Villans.

There are a plethora of statistics that demonstrate just how poor Villa have been this season, from them scoring eight fewer goals than the next lowest scorers in the division to conceding more than any other team too, leaving their goal difference at -41. Things have plunged to new depths in recent weeks, though, with Villa coming into this match having lost all of their last eight outings - a run stretching back to a 2-0 win over Norwich on February 6.

It is the second worst run in the club's history, having lost 11 games in a row in 1963, and they have scored only three goals during that time, conceding 24 in the process. It is a sorry state of affairs for one of English football's most historic clubs. They have seven league titles, seven FA Cups, five League Cups and even a European Cup to their name down the years, but as the likes of Nottingham Forest and Leeds will tell them, former glories do not guarantee them a swift return to the top flight.

There is certainly a lot of work to be done to get this Villa team - and indeed the entire club - ready to bounce back to the big time, and the managerial appointment that will come this summer is arguably the biggest in their history. Nigel Pearson is currently the front-runner, with reports suggesting that he wants to link up with Chris Powell at Villa Park, while David Moyes's name has also been mentioned.

There is no doubt that the failures at the club go beyond the playing staff and manager, but the players do certainly have to take a big portion of the blame. No team has made more errors leading to goals in the Premier League this season, which is not something that managers and board members can prevent. There have been failings at every level, and the likelihood of it all suddenly coming good this afternoon is miniscule. They are winless in their last 17 away games in all competitions since the opening day of the season, picking up just three points from 45 available on the road since that win at Bournemouth in August.

PREDICTION: Every match involving Villa is fairly easy to predict at the moment as it is so hard to see them getting a win, or even a point from anywhere. United need a win for their top-four hopes, and they should get it fairly comfortably. I'm going for a 3-0 home win and relegation confirmed for Villa.

Old Trafford may be the worst place for Villa to come in a situation like this considering their record against United down the years. They have gone 12 league games without a win against the Red Devils, stretching back to a 1-0 triumph here courtesy of a Gabby Agbonlahor goal.

That is Villa's only win against United in their last 40 Premier League meetings, with the Villans having suffered 29 defeats and 10 draws in that time. At Old Trafford, Agbonlahor's goal in 2009 gave Villa their only away win over United in their last 30 visits, losing 23 and drawing six of those.

The reverse meeting between these two sides was a very rare Friday night fixture in the Premier League, and Adnan Januzaj got the only goal of the game to make it back-to-back 1-0 wins for United at the start of the season. Villa's most recent visit here also ended in defeat as Herrera (2) and Rooney were both on the scoresheet in a 3-1 win for the hosts.

We're almost ready to get started at Old Trafford, but before we do let me point you in the direction of this week's episode of our podcast 'The Dugout', where we discuss a captivating week of European action as well as looking ahead to this weekend's games. Have a listen below!

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KICKOFF: Here we go then! Aston Villa get us underway at Old Trafford on an afternoon that looks destined to confirm the end of their 28-year stay in the top flight.

It's been a low-key start to the match, and I expect that to be a theme of the game. United can afford to be patient as they know they will get chances against this Villa side, while the visitors will just be happy with any point here.

United are likely to just dominate possession today, but the fans will want to see some more attacking intent from their side. Villa are one team they will feel that they can get a few goals against, so to play how they have for much of the season, with little forward momentum, will frustrate the fans.

Important contribution from Bacuna as he glances a defensive header behind for a corner with two red shirts waiting behind him to pull the trigger.

Half a chance for United here as three red shirts are left unmarked in the middle from a corner. Smalling and Fellaini are queuing up for it, but the former can't get over the ball and his glancing touch takes it away from Fellaini.

CHANCE! United have another chance from a set piece as a free kick is aimed towards the near post. Rojo is there and gets in front of Cissokho, but he gets too much on his header and puts it over the top.

United are camped in the Villa half at the moment. Their threat has been limited to crosses into the box so far, but they have complete control of this game right now.

This Villa defending from corners is really poor. Fellaini is the main aerial threat, but again he is left in a yard of space having escaped the attentions of Lescott. He nods it down, but nothing comes of it this time.

Slick football from United as Valencia gives the ball to Mata, who in turn slides a clever reverse pass in to Rooney. He tries a low cross towards Rashford, but Cissokho is there to put it behind for yet another corner.

A little better for Villa as they actually spend a prolonged period inside the United half, but they don't look like creating anything at all to be honest.

A set piece may be Villa's best bet today, and they win a free kick in a decent position here. Westwood swings it into the middle, but Fellaini is there on his own to comfortably nod the ball away.

Almost a chance for Rojo as Mata fires a low cross into the middle that Rojo tries to flick goalwards. However, a yellow shirt is in the way to block it behind for a corner.

The Manchester weather never fails to add a bit of misery to an occasion, does it? It has actually just started snowing inside Old Trafford, midway through April...

Good play from Rashford down the right flank as he darts to the byline before pulling a ball into the middle. Lescott is there, but he slices his clearance just past his own goal.

CHANCE! Good chance for Mata as he skips inside from the right, beating a couple of men on his way into a good position inside the area. He lines up his shot, but then gets it all wrong and the ball ends up going out for a goal kick.

Still no really clear-cut chances for United today, despite their dominance in possession. There is just the feeling that a goal will come though - more down to the fact that it is Villa they are up against rather than any incisiveness United might hold.

Villa are so compact, with a huddle of yellow shirts behind the ball at all times. That is making it difficult for the hosts to get through the middle, and so far they have largely been limited to putting crosses into the box.

SHOT! Aston Villa have a shot! A free kick into the box is only cleared as far as Richardson just outside the area, but he slices his attempted half-volley and it goes comfortably over the top.

Nice move from United as Rashford and Rooney combine to work the ball out to Mata, but the Spaniard's cross into the middle is once again turned behind for a corner.

United have their breakthrough, and it is another goal for Marcus Rashford! Rooney spreads a raking diagonal ball out to Valencia on the right, and the wing-back pulls a low cross into the middle. The defending Villa leaves plenty to be desired, with Rashford having escaped the attention of Clark with a fairly simple piece of movement, and that allows the youngster to just sweep the ball in.

Ayew comes forward for Villa looking for an immediate response and gets into the United box, but he goes down in the area and optimistically pleads for a penalty. He went over far too easily there, though.

SAVE! Rooney looks to add more to his fine scoring record against Villa by cutting onto his right foot and looking to curl one towards the top corner. However, Guzan is across in good time to make a routine save.

United are starting to find a bit more space in the Villa half after that opening goal. They are switching the play well to create that room to manoeuvre, and I wouldn't be too surprised to see them add to this lead before half time.

De Gea has his first piece of action today as he gets down to collect a low ball into the middle from Sissokho. Routine work for him.

Free kick for United in a promising position, and Memphis is standing over it. His effort takes a nick off the wall, though, which sees the ball loop into the arms of Guzan.

It is almost like a training game here, and has been for the vast majority of the match. United are dominating possession, but in a story of their season, their passing has not been quick enough to break down an unambitious Villa side.

CHANCE! By their standards today, this goes down as a chance for Villa. Ayew brings the ball down the left channel and cuts inside past Smalling. It looks like a really good opening, but Smalling recovers to make a good block on the subsequent shot.

There will be one minute of added time at the end of this first half.

The referee brings an end to the first half here at Old Trafford, and it has all been rather predictable so far. United have dominated things in terms of possession, but their play has lacked the tempo to really create too many clear chances. They do have the lead, though, and Villa have just 45 minutes remaining before their relegation is confirmed.

The only goal of that first half arrived just past the half-hour mark, and it was a seventh in 12 games for Marcus Rashford. The youngster escaped the attention of Clark in the middle to find space inside the box. Valencia delivered the low cross, and it was a relatively finish for Rashford in the end to open the scoring.

Aside from that, clear-cut chances have been few and far between for United despite their dominance. Smalling and Rojo have both missed decent openings from crosses, while Mata has sliced a horrible effort out for a throw-in when he should have done better having cut in from the right flank to a good position.

Villa actually created an opening of their own right at the end of that half, although De Gea was not tested and has had very little to do all afternoon. Ayew was the man to threaten, bringing the ball forward down the left channel before cutting inside past Smalling. However, the United defender recovered well to block Ayew's subsequent shot.

It has been so straightforward for United to keep the ball and play at their own tempo. That tempo has been too slow at times, but it is almost like a pre-season game. They know the goals will come against this Villa side and they are under no great pressure to force it.

KICKOFF: Manchester United get us back underway for the second half here as they look to close the gap on Man City to one point. Aston Villa, meanwhile, are 45 minutes away from relegation.

Honest play from Rashford as he collects the ball on the left channel and skips past Hutton in the area. Hutton lunges in with a poor challenge, but Rashford stays on his feet when he would have surely won a penalty had he gone down.

CLOSE! Seconds after staying on his feet, Rashford is almost rewarded with a goal as he again picks up the ball inside the area. This time it is Lescott diving in, and he does just enough to force Rashford to send his shot narrowly wide.

It's been an ominous start to the half from United, who are still dominating possession but have already created those two good openings for Rashford. Villa are here for the taking, though.

It is all United here, with Villa putting all of their efforts into simply keeping the hosts at bay. The visitors do not look like scoring whatsoever.

Almost a chance for United as Memphis picks the ball down the left and then cuts inside and slides a pass in to Rooney. However, the skipper's first touch is poor and Lescott is there to hack the ball away.

Really good play from Memphis as he cuts down the line past Sinclair on the left flank before firing a low cross into the middle with the outside of his foot. It is an enticing ball that goes between goalkeeper and defenders, but there are no red shirts waiting to knock it in.

SHOT! Memphis is starting to have more of an influence in this game, and he goes for goal himself here. He cuts onto his right around 25 yards from goal, but curls an effort over the crossbar.

'We shall not be moved' chant the away fans defiantly. Unfortunately for them, they are now just half an hour away from relegation from the Premier League for the first time ever.

United have enjoyed complete control of this game, but it hasn't exactly been a thriller for these home fans. That has been one of the main problems for United this season, and much of their play today has been pretty uninspiring again.

CHANCE! Dreadful defending from Villa as they go to sleep from a corner, allowing Blind to send an early delivery to an unmarked Mata. He hits a first-time half-volley on the turn, but the angle is against him and Guzan makes the save.

YELLOW CARD! Richardson is the first name in the book this afternoon to tripping Memphis cynically. No complaints there.

SHOT! Memphis takes on the resulting free kick himself, but his powerful strike flies a couple of yards too high.

MAN UTD SUB: Rooney has lasted 67 minutes on his return from injury, and he is now replaced by Jesse Lingard.

Although Villa have not shown anything going forward on this match, as long as the scoreline remains 1-0, the visitors will feel that they are still in with a chance of getting a point here. A goal can come out of nothing, and should United fail to win this match then Van Gaal would rightly come in for a lot of criticism.

There is concern over Ayew here as he powers forward down the right channel with a positive run. He is tracked all the way by Memphis, though, and ends up clattering into the advertising hoardings. He should be fine to continue, though.

Positive break from Villa as both Bacuna and Ayew use their bodies well to build a bit of momentum, but that is quickly closed down when Valencia commits a foul.

The resulting free kick is put behind for a corner, and that results in the biggest cheer from the away fans this afternoon. They have had nothing else to shout about, so they are enjoying that award of a corner!

MAN UTD SUB: Another change for the home side sees goalscoring Rashford replaced by Anthony Martial.

Hopefully that introduction of Martial will inject a bit of pace into the United attack here. They will get the win today by the looks of things, but it has been such a boring performance from the hosts.

CHANCE! United look to pull exactly the same trick as they did earlier in the half as Mata is again left completely unmarked at the front post from a corner. He is again found, but he hooks it across the face of goal this time. So poor from Villa to allow that to happen again.

Just nine minutes remain for Villa as a Premier League team now. It has been a long stay in the top flight, but these are now the closing minutes of their time at the highest level. It has been a typically toothless display from them here.

ASTON VILLA SUB: Eric Black will make a change before the fate is sealed as Rudy Gestede replaces Richardson.

CHANCE! So nearly an equaliser for Villa! United go to sleep and Ayew comes down the left flank before playing a low pass into the middle. Gestede looks set for a tap-in, but Blind gets back to make a vital interception before Smalling hacks it away.

OFF THE POST! Finally a bit of fight in this Villa performance! A corner arrives into the middle and Gestede, who has made a difference already, hooks it towards goal. De Gea is rooted to the spot, but is saved by the woodwork as the ball smacks against the post. Another corner follows, and De Gea is this time needed to keep out Clark's header.

Those were warning shots for United, who remember need a win here for their top-four hopes. Villa have suddenly come to life, and if the hosts don't win this match then they only have themselves to blame.

MAN UTD SUB: Van Gaal is concerned enough to bring on Timothy Fosu-Mensah in the closing stages here, replacing Mata.

There will be three minutes of added time before Villa's fate is sealed.

CHANCE! Huge chance for United to get a second late on as Martial slides a pass through to Memphis, who only has Guzan to beat. The keeper comes out to meet him and makes a good save, though, and the ball bounces up, off the post, and behind.

It is all over for Aston Villa in the Premier League, then, as they suffer relegation for the first time since 1987. It will not come as a surprise to anyone, but the reality of the situation may not start to sink in for the players and the fans as they are now guaranteed to be playing Championship football next season. Fittingly after the season they had, they went down with a whimper today, barely threatening until a late flurry in the final five minutes of normal time.

The only goal of the game arrived shortly after the half-hour mark, when Rashford swept home a low Valencia cross for his seventh goal in 12 appearances since breaking into the first team. United utterly dominated possession throughout, but they didn't test Guzan anywhere near enough and in truth it was an uninspiring display from the hosts. They were almost punished late on when Gestede hit the post, but in the end held out to move within one point of Man City in fourth.

That is all we have time for this afternoon! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for today's match, albeit a sad one for Villa fans as their relegation from the top flight is confirmed. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction from both camps. From me, though, it is goodbye for now!