Aston Villa vs Sheffield United tips and predictions: McGinn to pull strings in emphatic home win

George Dempsey
20 December 2023

Aston Villa will be looking to record a 16th consecutive Premier League win at home when they take on Sheffield United on Friday night (2000 GMT).

Aston Villa’s relentless assault on visitors to Villa Park shows no signs of slowing down.

Victories over Man City and Arsenal propelled them into the Champions League race, and they may even be considered dark horses for the Premier League title.

The Villans have rattled off 15 consecutive home wins in the Premier League and produced no end of impressive stats that spell trouble for visitors Sheffield United.

In 2023, Unai Emery’s team averaged 2.31 goals per game at home, scoring in both halves in eight of their 15-game winning streak and conceding an average of 0.47 goals.

One of the key factors behind their recent success is John McGinn. The Scotsman was named man of the match against City and Arsenal, and he scored or assisted in four of the team's previous home games.

The Blades are the polar opposite. They have lost seven of eight away games this season and 27 of 32 at this level since June 2020. Defensively, they have been a shambles.

Jason McAtee’s stunning strike was enough to seal their second three points of the season against Brentford, but they’ve since reverted to type.

The 2-0 loss at Stamford Bridge was a one-sided affair for 90 minutes, and Chris Wilder's side could have conceded more.

They’ve shipped 2.75 goals per game this term and recently followed up their first away point with a 5-0 battering against Burnley at Turf Moor.

Everything points towards an emphatic home win and a clean sheet on Friday night.

Team news

Robin Olsen and Bertrand Traore are ruled out, while Emi Buendia and Tyrone Mings are still on the long road to recovery from knee surgery.

Boubacar Kamara is suspended until January after being sent off against Brentford, but Douglas Luiz and Lucas Digne return from bans.

Pau Torres is a doubt for the hosts.

Sheffield United’s Chris Basham, Rhys Norrington-Davies, John Egan, Tom Davies, Daniel Jebbison, Jack Robinson and Rhian Brewster are unavailable.

Key stats

- Aston Villa have won 15 Premier League home games in a row
- Aston Villa have averaged 2.31 Premier League goals per game at home in 2023
- Ollie Watkins is Villa's top scorer with nine goals and six assists this season
- Sheffield United have lost seven of eight away-from-home
- The home side in this fixture have kept a clean sheet in four straight meetings