Latest Aston Villa news from BirminghamLive as the Villans prepare to host Tottenham Hotspur at Villa Park this weekend in a bid to secure Champions League football
Aston Villa will have the opportunity to increase the gap between themselves and top-four rivals Tottenham to eight points when they square off on Sunday afternoon, and Paul Merson thinks that if they do, the race for the top four will be gone.
Spurs, who just defeated Crystal Palace, are aiming to win two straight games. With 11 games remaining, a win for Unai Emery’s team could theoretically eliminate Spurs from the battle for the top four. However, a loss would leave them just two points behind Villa.
With three wins in a row, the hosts enter the match with a lot of confidence.Villa is now in fourth place and is still on track to finish the season with a Champions League position.
Spurs, meanwhile, have five players sidelined, with the likes of Pedro Porro, Richarlison, Fraser Forster and Ryan Sessegnon set to miss out, although Pape Matar Sarr could make a return.
Ahead of the game, pundit and former Villain Merson believes it will be difficult to separate the sides given the qualities in their squad, with both teams liking to play a high defensive line.
“If Tottenham lose this one, they’ll go eight points behind Aston Villa. They’d still have a game in hand but this is more of a ‘don’t lose’ kind of game for Ange Postecoglou and his team,” he told SportsKeeda. “Both teams play such a high line and have a bunch of talented attacking players, so this will be an entertaining game of football.
“If Villa win, I think they’ll put the top-four race to bed, which is honestly an unbelievable feat. I’m looking at their squads and the seasons they’ve had so far, but I just can’t seem to separate them.”
Merson’s prediction: Aston Villa 2-2 Tottenham.
