Aston Villa vs Liverpool Prediction: Salah to help send Reds 10 points clear

Liverpool have the chance to go 10 points clear of Arsenal in the Premier League title race - albeit having played a game more than the Gunners - on Wednesday (19:30, TNT Sports 2) when they take on Aston Villa at Villa Park. The visitors beat Wolves 2-1 at Anfield on Sunday but failed to take a single shot in the second half, so Arne Slot will be looking for a much more assured showing in Birmingham.

Villa, meanwhile, are without a win in their last four league outings, drawing 1-1 at home to Ipswich Town on Saturday, and Fulham's 2-1 victory over Nottingham Forest on the same day sent Unai Emery's side down to ninth. Below are my Aston Villa vs Liverpool predictions, supported by all the latest team news and match odds.

Team News

Aston Villa have been enduring something of a defensive crisis with Ezri Konsa, Matty Cash (both muscle) and Pau Torres (foot) all ruled out of recent games.

However, Konsa and Cash are close to returning, according to Emery, who will wait until Wednesday morning to decide on his squad.

Influential midfielder Boubacar Kamara, who has started his side's last three games as a centre-back, was withdrawn in the 16th minute of Saturday's stalemate with Ipswich with a muscle injury and has been ruled out for a minimum of two weeks.

Tyrone Mings, himself only just back from injury, replaced Kamara against the Tractor Boys and is set to partner on-loan Chelsea defender Axel Disasi in the back line.

Ross Barkley (calf) and Amadou Onana (hamstring) are Villa's other confirmed absentees, although Leon Bailey (unspecified) is another doubt after missing out on the weekend.

Loanees Marco Asensio (Paris Saint-Germain) and Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) could make their full Villa debuts after successive substitute appearances against Ipswich and in the FA Cup fourth-round victory over Tottenham Hotspur (2-1).

Football Odds

Joe Gomez (thigh) and Cody Gakpo (ankle) missed Liverpool's weekend win through injury; both have been ruled out of the trip to Villa Park with Gomez "out for numerous weeks" according to Slot.

Curtis Jones is available for selection after sitting out Sunday's victory through suspension; the 24-year-old midfielder is an option to start if his boss decides to freshen things up in the engine room.

Ibrahima Konate was booked in the first half against Wolves and in the eyes of some, was fortunate not to receive a second yellow and thus a red. Slot recognised the dangers of sending him out after the interval and replaced him with Jarell Quansah, but Konate is expected to start again alongside Virgil van Dijk at Villa Park.

Luis Diaz ended a 10-game barren run in all competitions on Sunday, opening the scoring at Anfield, and with Gakpo sidelined, the Colombian will hope to start again in midweek.

Diogo Jota got the nod to lead the line but Darwin Nunez could replace the Portugal international against Villa.

Aston Villa vs Liverpool Odds

Aston Villa have lost just twice at Villa Park all season and not in any of their last 12 games there since a 2-1 Carabao Cup defeat to Crystal Palace on October 30. Yet, they are 3/1, implying a 25% probability, to claim all three points against Liverpool, who they have not beaten in nine matches since a 7-2 home humiliation of the then-reigning Premier League champions under former boss Dean Smith in October 2020. The Reds, meanwhile, have triumphed in three of their last four trips to B6 and are 5/6, or a 54.5% chance, to make it four in five.

The last meeting between these sides at Villa Park ended 3-3 last May with Jhon Duran, who recently completed a lucrative move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr, bagging a brace off the bench to inspire a comeback for the home team. Another stalemate between the two here is priced at 3/1, both teams to score at 8/15, and over 3.5 total goals at 11/8.

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah scored his 23rd Premier League goal of the campaign on Sunday and the 'Egyptian King' is 1/1 favourite in the anytime goalscorer market, and 7/2 to open the scoring at Villa Park for the second time in three seasons. Villa's 11-goal top scorer in the competition, Ollie Watkins, is 7/4 in the anytime market and 6/1 to fire first.

Match Result & Both Teams to Score - Liverpool & Yes @ 2/1

I see plenty of goals in this game, just like in the last meeting between these sides at Villa Park, but on this occasion, I believe the visitors will prevail.

Questions were being asked of Liverpool after they followed up an FA Cup fourth-round exit at Plymouth Argyle (1-0) with a 2-2 draw at Everton last Wednesday, but those were two very unique games. The first was without a whole host of first-team starters, and the second was the last-ever Merseyside derby at a ground where they had won just twice since the start of 2012.

The Reds responded to Arsenal cutting the gap to four points on Saturday by beating Wolves the following day; however, they were far from convincing in the second half, failing to register a single shot as Wolves pressed for an equaliser.

One would imagine that should Liverpool play as poorly as they did in the second half against the Old Gold, a more superior Midlands side in Villa, possessing better and more expensively assembled attackers, will make them pay.

However, I can't imagine the league leaders will perform as badly as they did after the interval on Sunday, with Slot sure to have read the riot act to his players.

Furthermore, I think the fact Liverpool were in cruise control at half-time actually went against them as things were too easy. Had they started slowly and ended the game as they began, the outlook would have been very different.

A night game at Villa Park should bring with it a top atmosphere and that may work in Liverpool's favour as they will be aware that they have to be on top of their game for the duration.

Villa have some top forwards with Watkins and Morgan Rogers recently joined by Donyell Malen, Asensio and Rashford, and they will believe that they can pose problems for the visitors. 68 per cent of the Villans' 25 league games this season have seen both teams score - 77 per cent at home - with only Fulham (76 per cent) and Chelsea (72 per cent) posting higher numbers in that regard.

Emery's side have scored in their last 10 home matches across all competitions, keeping just one clean sheet in that run despite going unbeaten, and only two English clubs - Arsenal (0-2) and Manchester United (0-0) - have managed to shut them out at Villa Park in 2024/25.

Liverpool looked solid at the back in the opening months of the campaign but there have been chinks in their armour since the start of December as evidenced by a run of just three clean sheets in their last 12 Premier League games.

Villa have scored in all five league games against Liverpool at Villa Park since earning promotion in 2019 and I expect the Villans to extend that record to six. However, with issues in defence, the Merseysiders can take advantage and emerge triumphant from what could be a shootout in B6.

Anytime Goalscorer - Mohamed Salah (LIV) @ 1/1

Salah's odds to score anytime on Wednesday imply a 50% chance of success, but I think that's bordering on generous considering his season tally and goalscoring record against Villa.

The 32-year-old has scored 23 Premier League goals this season and has struck in 76 per cent (19) of his 25 competition appearances, only failing to fire against Nottingham Forest (home and away), AFC Bournemouth (home), Crystal Palace (away), Fulham (home), and Brentford (away).

He finished off the scoring in November's reverse fixture at Anfield as Liverpool won 2-0, his eighth goal against Villa in 12 outings (11 starts) against them.

Salah has struck in 63.6 per cent (seven) of his 11 starts against the Villans and heads into this contest with a goal in his last six games, netting seven times in that run, and with Wednesday's hosts suffering from defensive injuries, he looks primed to get on the scoresheet again and help the Reds to a win that would send them 10 points clear at the top of the Premier League.

Offers

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We will be Top Price on Liverpool to beat Aston Villa with selected bookmakers using Oddschecker for the comparison. (Available from 09:30 Wednesday)

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