The Black Cats showed some fighting spirit in coming back from two goals down to earn a 2-2 draw in Cardiff on Saturday. This is the sort of result that could be a spring board for further success for Sunderland. In facing Aston Villa they should see a team that has been struggling for results and lacking a tactical foundation. In other words, a team that has been losing and ripe for taking three points.
Villa’s recent run of bad form was briefly interrupted by their 1-1 draw at home to Swansea City. There were several positives to take away from the match, other than the obvious result of a draw instead of a loss. While Villa had just 27% possession they did better with what little they had and took seven shots with three on target and one goal. Perhaps the most important thing is that they were able to score early and hold on for the majority of the game to get a draw and allow just one goal. Swansea got this single goal from 17 shots which was limited to just three on target and nine blocked. They did continue to use a more direct style of play with 24% of their passes coming from long balls and just a 56% pass completion rate.
What to expect
Both of these teams are desperate for points right now and despite sitting bottom of the league Sunderland are in far better form than Aston Villa, whose point against Swansea came despite being second best for almost the entire game having taken an early lead.
The Black Cats do have a few concerns at the back, while Villa’s fortunes in the same department rely heavily on the fitness of injury prone defender Ron Vlaar.
Sunderland’s main concerns are at the back with Wes Brown suspended, Carlos Cuellar injured and John O’Shea a doubt with a shoulder injury. Roberge and Diakite could keep their places at centre-back then, while there could be starts for both Colback and Fletcher, who scored from the bench at Cardiff. Giaccherini and Borini should keep their places on the wings, while Craig Gardner will hope for a start ahead of Sebastian Larsson.
Villa’s misdemeanors on the field are catching up with them, with this being the fourth game in five that a player will miss a match through suspension. It’s Ciaran Clark this time round, so Paul Lambert will be desperate to have captain Ron Vlaar back available following a calf injury. The manager has also spoken of the potential return for Christian Benteke, who received treatment over Christmas in his native Belgium, but the striker may only be fit for a place on the bench.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups
Match Prediction
The hosts have scored just once in their last 4 matches against the Midlands outfit but Villa are anything but watertight right now so Gus Poyet will certainly be hoping for three points on Wednesday.
Sunderland 1-1 Aston Villa