Recent Form Makes Aston Villa The Value Pick for Outright Bet

Unai Emery has done a fantastic job at Aston Villa, and he is now reaping the rewards. A top-six finish looks likely for the second season in a row.

Odds courtesy of Bet9ja. Correct at time of publishing and subject to change.

How High Can Villa Finish This Season?

Aston Villa have won their last seven games across all competitions - Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League. They’re a team in form, with a solid defence and a revitalised attack. Several of the teams around them can’t say the same, so there’s plenty of room for the table to change.

The next few weeks will almost certainly decide things for them, though. With games against fellow Europe-chasing sides like Newcastle United and Manchester City coming up, they’ll know where they stand. Those matches come back-to-back after their second leg against Paris Saint-Germain.

Mathematically, the Villans can finish anywhere from second to 17th - but neither is likely. They do, however, have a real shot at possibly returning to the UCL next year if things go well for them. Only Newcastle look as good form-wise.

With Marco Asensio, Marcus Rashford, Ollie Watkins, Morgan Rogers and Donyell Malen, Villa have plenty of attacking threat. They are not only scoring but also assisting each other, giving Emery a very welcome headache. Watkins or Rogers, for instance, have scored seven times in the Premier League, with the other providing the assist.

It’s worth adding that their European adventure could affect their finish, too. They’re the underdogs against PSG, but causing an upset would add two more games to their schedule. If not, and they focus solely on the league, the teams above them should probably watch out.

The Deciding Factors

A five-game winless run between January and February, with several winnable games being squandered, did plenty of damage. Too many points were dropped that shouldn’t have been, and it’s why they find themselves seventh rather than higher.

However, just two points separate them from Chelsea in fourth and fifth-placed Newcastle, while City - sixth - are just one ahead. The fact that Emery’s side have two games against these teams should be seen as a positive. Southampton are up next, and there’s a chance to leapfrog at least one of them.

Villa have to finish strong, not just against the teams around them, but also those below them. They can’t afford to drop points to teams like Ipswich Town and Wolverhampton Wanderers if they want to push forward. The Blues and the Cityzens dropped points last week, allowing Villa to close the gap, and beating third-place Nottingham Forest has given them a huge boost.

After crunch games against Newcastle (H) and City (A), Emery and his men face three teams struggling for form. Fulham could be tricky, but they have home advantage, while Bournemouth, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United are out of sorts.

There’s no reason why Villa can’t pick up 12 points from 12 to round off their campaign, especially if their attack keeps firing. They’ve scored 17 goals in their last seven, shared by eight players, and that’s a fantastic place to be in. A top-six finish is very doable, and there’s no reason not to aim even higher - at least for now.