- Aston Villa have conceded nine goals in their last four games at home 
- Manchester United are unbeaten in five, scoring 15 in the process 
- Recommended bet: Over 3.5 goals

Manchester United will hope to move to within five points of Aston Villa when they travel to Villa Park in one of two matches in the Premier League on Sunday.

The Red Devils may be down in sixth in the table, but the mood in the United dressing room will have been lifted by a recent upturn in results with four wins in a five-game unbeaten streak.

Villa are eight points clear of Sunday's opponents in fourth, but have won only one of their last five games in all competitions and have lost their last two matches at Villa Park.

Team news

January signing Morgan Rogers will be available after missing the midweek 3-1 FA Cup defeat to Chelsea as he was ineligible. 

Nicolo Zaniolo and Pau Torres will also be pushing for starts, having returned from injury to make the squad that faced the Blues.

Centre-back Ezri Konsa will miss up to a month of action with a knee injury, while Tyrone Mings, Emiliano Buendia and Jhon Duran are still recovering from their long-term injury issues.

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has lost defender Lisandro Martinez to injury once again, with the former Ajax man set to miss at least eight weeks with a knee problem. 

Anthony Martial, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Mason Mount and Tyrell Malacia are also in the treatment room, but Raphael Varane is expected to start in Martinez's absence, having replaced him in the win over the Hammers.

The stats

After losing only one game at home before the start of the month, Villa have now lost two on the spin to Newcastle and Chelsea.

The Villans have only won one of their last five games, although that was an impressive 5-0 thrashing of Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

Manchester United have picked up in 2024, unbeaten in their last five games (W4, D1) and scoring at least two goals in each of those ties, and 15 altogether in that run.

United won the first meeting this season 3-2, and have won the last three encounters between the two sides, although all three were at Old Trafford.

Prediction

The first contest between these two English giants was an entertaining affair on Boxing Day, and Sunday's matchup should be no different.

Villa's injury woes have coincided with their slump in form at the back, and after conceding nine times in their last four games at home, goals are looking likely on Sunday, especially with United finding some scoring form.

The Red Devils have scored in seven consecutive matches in all competitions, a run started by the thrilling 3-2 win over Unai Emery's men, racking up 19 goals in the process, and this fixture has the potential to steal the limelight this weekend.

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