Liverpool vs Aston Villa Prediction: Reds face more misery?

Liverpool have now lost six of their last seven games, after Crystal Palace dumped them out of the Carabao Cup in midweek. Arne Slot made loads of changes to his starting XI, and it backfired with a 3-0 defeat. 

The Reds, despite all their summer spending, cannot seem to find a win at the minute, so will they continue that trend when they host Aston Villa (20:00, Sky Sports Main Event) at Anfield on Saturday? Below you can find my Liverpool vs Aston Villa predictions with team news and more. 

Team News

After his raft of changes against Palace, we can expect Slot to revert to a more familiar XI here. Ryan Gravenberch trained yesterday and should be fit to return to the squad against Villa; however, Alexander Isak and Curtis Jones did not train and are therefore likely to miss this one. 

They join Jeremie Frimpong on the sidelines while young defender Amara Nallo is suspended after his red card. Expect Hugo Ekitike to lead the line, flanked by Mo Salah and Cody Gakpo, with the Egyptian hoping to get back to scoring form at Anfield.

Premier League Odds

Harvey Elliott is unable to feature in this one for Villa, as he is on loan from the Reds, however, he wasn’t even included in the squad for the 1-0 win over Man City. Unai Emery would surely like to play the same XI in this one, but Emi Buendia went off with a foot injury and needs to be assessed. 

Jadon Sancho replaced him but was then taken off himself late on, while Donyell Malen will also fancy his chances of breaking into the XI. Ollie Watkins should lead the line with Morgan Rogers offering support with John McGinn.

Emiliano Martinez will target another clean sheet in front of Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres and Lucas Digne. 

Today's Football Fixtures

Liverpool vs Aston Villa Odds

Liverpool are the 4/6 favourites to win this game despite their poor form, giving them an implied win probability of 60%. Aston Villa are 4/1 to take the win while a draw is 10/3 at the time of writing. 

Over 2.5 goals is up at 8/15, BTTS is 4/7 and Ekitike is 9/2 to open the scoring. There’s also plenty of Bet Builders and Price Boosts that you can find via the link above.

BTTS @ 4/7 

In terms of changing his playing style, Slot said in his press conference: "It goes against my beliefs but I have won games in the past against my beliefs like City away. I would be more than open to adapt in certain situations."

I just can’t see him changing for now, especially at home under the lights on Saturday and that should mean more goals at both ends. In their last six Premier League games, both teams have found the net, and it is their defensive frailties that have really caught the eye in this season of struggle. 

I don’t think Ibrahima Konate and Milos Kerkez have impressed at all, while the firepower up top, even with Isak missing, should lead to plenty of chances at both ends. Despite a solid clean sheet against City last time out, both teams have scored in four of the last five Premier League games involving Aston Villa. I can’t see either side keeping a clean sheet at Anfield. 

Double Chance - Draw or Aston Villa @ 5/4 

Why on earth would you back Liverpool at that short price? I’ve been negative about them for a few weeks but they’ve now lost six out of seven in all competitions, while Villa have won their last four Premier League games on the bounce. 

I’m stunned the odds are this good for Villa to avoid defeat at Anfield, and there’s honestly nothing for them to be scared of. They got a win over Manchester City last time out, and they can definitely avoid defeat at Anfied at a good price. 

Offers

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

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down