- Date and Time: August 31, 15:00 GMT+1
- Venue: King Power Stadium, Leicester, England
Leicester City vs Aston Villa Preview
Leicester City
After winning the Championship by 97 points, Leicester City’s successful head coach Enzo Maresca left the team. Under his leadership, the Foxes showcased stylish attacking football characterized by a well-defined positional structure. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, an attacking midfielder, particularly excelled, scoring 12 goals and providing 14 assists throughout the season.
Maresca consistently employed a 3-2-5 / 3-2-4-1 formation, with Ricardo Pereira shining as an inverted fullback and Harry Winks excelling as a deep-lying playmaker. Additionally, Leicester effectively pressed and counter-pressed in an organized manner, resulting in the team conceding the fewest goals in the league.
Following Maresca’s departure, Steve Cooper was appointed as the new coach. Cooper employs a counter-attacking model of play with a low defensive block. This decision was influenced by the belief that the current set of players may struggle to implement attacking principles in the more challenging Premier League, especially after the sale of last season’s key player, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, to Chelsea.
However, Cooper’s early tenure has been challenging. Leicester struggled to establish an organized defensive game, losing three of their five pre-season matches and only picking up one point in the first two rounds of the season. In their first official match of the season, Tottenham dominated the first half of the game, although Leicester managed to claw back an equalizer in the second half.
In the second round against Fulham, Leicester conceded two goals without a solid defensive performance, leading to questions about Steve Cooper’s ability to improve the team’s defensive quality as they face the rigors of top-flight football.
Aston Villa
Aston Villa remarkably finished in the top four of the EPL last season despite ranking sixth in goals scored and seventh in goals conceded. According to expected points, the Villans would have placed seventh, trailing behind Tottenham, Chelsea, and Newcastle United. This discrepancy suggests that Aston Villa’s overall performance, particularly towards the end of the season, was subpar, and securing a Champions League spot again will be quite challenging.
During the summer break, Unai Emery’s team only managed to secure two wins in six matches. However, they kicked off the new season with an away win against West Ham in the first round.
Despite this, Villa faced several precarious moments against the Hammers and then suffered a 0-2 defeat to Arsenal.
The match against the Gunners was particularly telling: while Aston Villa created two to three very dangerous chances on the counter-attack and effectively blocked the central areas of the pitch, they were exposed on the flanks, which allowed Arsenal to score twice.
In the upcoming matches, Ollie Watkins’ performance will be crucial. Last season, the English forward was outstanding, scoring 19 goals and providing 12 assists. However, at the start of this season, the English forward is clearly out of form, and the success of Aston Villa will heavily depend on how quickly he starts converting dangerous moments into goals.
It’s also worth mentioning Morgan Rogers’s excellent performances in the first few matches of the season. Against Arsenal, he successfully dribbled past his opponents five times out of seven attempts, consequently disrupting the Gunners’ pressing and proving to be a key threat.
However, Villa will have to cope without both Boubacar Kamara and Matty Cash for at least the next month. During Cash’s absence on the left flank, Kosta Nedeljković will likely play, but it’s currently difficult to assess his level.
Bet hereLeicester City vs Aston Villa Prediction
- Pick: 2X (Aston Villa won`t lose)
- Odds: 1.24 (22Bet)
- Score prediction: Leicester City 1-2 Aston Villa
These teams have a history of trading victories in their head-to-head matchups in the Premier League. Their last two encounters, in the 2022-23 season, were very different, as they both secured away victories.
Aston Villa are likely to have an advantage in the midfield, thanks to their superior midfielders and the additional support from Morgan Rogers, who effectively operates in the spaces behind the opposition’s defensive midfielders. Additionally, Ollie Watkins could exploit positional errors by Leicester’s center-backs.
However, I am not ready to pick Aston Villa for the win because they have defensive issues on the flanks, and Ollie Watkins’s current lack of sharpness may affect this match. Therefore, I prefer to choose option 2X, meaning that the guests will not lose at the very least.
Leicester City vs Aston Villa Prediction, Betting Tip
- Pick: Total Shots On Target. Ollie Watkins Over (0.5)
- Odds: 1.25 (22Bet)
After two disappointing matches, Ollie Watkins will be highly motivated to score against Leicester City.
Considering that Dominic Solanke had three shots on target in the first match and Rodrigo Muniz had two in the following game, Watkins will likely have the opportunity to do the same against Leicester. Backing Watkins to register shots on target could be a smart betting option for this match.
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