In what has been billed as the battle for Europa Conference League football, Aston Villa welcome Tottenham Hotspur to the West Midlands for Saturday afternoon's Premier League showdown.

The two continental hopefuls were on opposite ends of 1-0 derby scorelines last time out, as Unai Emery's charges were nullified by Wolverhampton Wanderers, while Spurs came up trumps against Crystal Palace.

Match preview

From scoring in each of their first 22 games under Unai Emery to failing to fire in each of their last two, a Villa side experiencing a minor blip in form were unable to reignite their European charge at the home of West Midlands rivals Wolves.

Seeking to rectify their errors from a 1-0 loss to Manchester United at the end of April, Villa instead succumbed to a Toti Gomes header after just nine minutes, and a combination of wasteful finishing and Jose Sa heroics thwarted the Lions' feeble attempts at a response.

Despite a pair of recent setbacks, a spot on the continent is not out of the question for Emery's charges, who enter the weekend sitting eighth in the Premier League table and with the chance to draw level on points with Tottenham, while Brighton & Hove Albion are sandwiched in between the pair with two games in hand.

Away days have not been Villa's speciality recently, but a return to home comforts will be welcomed with open arms by the Villa faithful, who have remarkably seen their side secure five straight wins at Villa Park without conceding a single goal, while scoring 10 themselves.

Furthermore, the Lions' scoring streak at Villa Park stands at 13 games in all tournaments since October's 2-0 defeat to Chelsea, and it has been nearly 16 years since a side last managed by Emery went scoreless in three matches - Almeria suffered such a fate under the Spaniard in the 2007-08 season.

A London derby between two sides involved in seven-goal thrillers the weekend beforehand did not live up to the billing at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where another landmark Harry Kane goal was all that was needed to put Palace to the sword.

As the stadium announcer confirmed one minute of added time at the end of the first half, Kane met Pedro Porro's cross to head home his 209th Premier League goal, overtaking Wayne Rooney into second place in the all-time charts as a result.

Aside from Kane's milestone contribution, the derby was otherwise a forgettable one for supporters, but not for Ryan Mason, who claimed his first win from his second spell in interim charge to keep Tottenham sixth in the Premier League standings.

The Lilywhites have a six-point gap to make up to Manchester United, though, and defeat at Villa Park could end their hopes of Champions League qualification once and for all, but a nine-game scoring run in all tournaments will at least give the North London club a sliver of encouragement.

However, Spurs' away record makes for grim reading for their supporters, as they have gone winless in eight successive road matches since January's FA Cup triumph over Preston North End, and the New Year celebrations were quickly brought to an end when Emery led Villa to a 2-0 win over Antonio Conte's team in January.

Team News

Villa enter the weekend's crunch clash without any fresh injury concerns to take into account, and Matty Cash has now fully recovered from a calf problem, leaving Jed Steer as their only absentee with a similar issue.

Changes should be in the offing, though, especially as Bertrand Traore only lasted until half time at Molineux, so a recall for Boubacar Kamara should be in order as John McGinn shifts to a wide role.

Ashley Young is 89 minutes away from bringing up 2,000 in the Premier League this season, which would see him become the oldest player to do so since Teddy Sheringham in 2003-04, but Diego Carlos and the fit-again Cash are knocking on the door for a starting role.

As for the visitors, the trio of Hugo Lloris (hip), Ryan Sessegnon (thigh) and Rodrigo Bentancur (knee) are confined to the treatment room with their season-ending injuries, but there is more optimism over the condition of Clement Lenglet, who came off late on against Palace with a shoulder problem.

The on-loan Barcelona defender is believed to have avoided a serious problem and should be passed fit for Saturday's game, thereby forcing the recently-demoted Eric Dier to watch on from the bench again.

Emerson Royal and Yves Bissouma both made rapid recoveries from surgery last weekend, and while the latter was only an unused substitute, Emerson should continue in his fluid role on the right flank.

Aston Villa possible starting lineup:
Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Moreno; McGinn, Kamara, Luiz, Ramsey; Buendia, Watkins

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Forster; Emerson, Romero, Lenglet, Davies; Porro, Hojbjerg, Skipp, Son; Richarlison, Kane

We say: Aston Villa 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur

Villa's sensational run of home wins coupled with Tottenham's miserable away day fortunes must be taken into account, but Spurs - who have won seven in a row at Villa Park - have shown plenty of fight in their trio of fixtures under Mason so far and were oh so close to pulling off a remarkable turnaround against Liverpool at Anfield.

The Lions will expect to rediscover the goalscoring touch that they left behind for their last two road trips, but a first home win over Spurs since 2008 should pass them by, as Mason's men take a hard-earned point back to base to remain in control of the fight for third-tier European football.


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