Arsenal v Aston Villa: Where to watch, stream details, team news & more

Aston Villa will be looking to bounce back from Saturday’s bitterly disappointing defeat to Wolves when they head to London to take on Arsenal on Friday evening.

Villa don’t need reminding of the complete capitulation that occurred during the derby day loss and will be determined to put that right against the Gunners.

Dean Smith’s men have a good recent record against Arsenal. They’ve won all of their last three games against them without conceding a single goal.

Whether they can quite expect that is yet to be seen but it certainly bodes well and gives them a slight mental advantage heading into the contest.

When is the game?

The game is set for Friday 22nd October at Arsenal’s The Emirates Stadium with a kick-off time of 20:00 (GMT).

Is the game on TV?

It will be shown live on both Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League with coverage beginning an hour prior to kick-off at 19:00.

How can I stream it?

Sky customers will be able to access the game via the Sky Go app using their smart devices.

If you aren’t in a position to watch or listen to the match, BirminghamWorld’s football writer Ben Ramsdale has you covered and will be providing live updates via Twitter @benaramsdale.

Team news

There are no fresh injury concerns for Villa. The hope will be that both Bertrand Traore & Leon Bailey can come back into contention but that will be a case of wait and see what the manager has to say pre-match.

Bukayo Saka hobbled off for Arsenal in their draw with Palace and he will be assessed ahead of the game on Friday.

Form guide

Arsenal: WWWWDD

Aston Villa: LWDWLL

Villa’s form as of late has been inconsistent to say the least. A fantastic win at Old Trafford was followed up by an abject performance against Tottenham Hotspur and the capitulation against Wolves in the final 10 minutes of their last match is something no fan needs reminding of.

The quality is there within the side as shown on numerous occasions but backing that up with consistency is where they are lacking.

Arsenal on the other hand started the campaign miserably but now find themselves unbeaten in their last six. A last minute equaliser against Crystal Palace on Monday Night Football showing they now have the ability to play poorly and still pick up a result.

Head-to-head record

The last two seasons have been kind to Villa when they’ve come up against the Gunners.

Dean Smith’s men have won the last three games between the sides; 1-0, 3-0 & 1-0.

But it’s best to not look any further back than that when looking at head-to-head records. The seven games prior to those three results all went in favour of Arsenal.

The two haven’t tied a game against each other in nearly a decade. The last time the points were shared was back in November 2012 in a 0-0 draw at Villa Park.

Predicted line-ups

Arsenal (4-1-3-2): Ramsdale; Tomiyasu, White, Gabriel, Tierney; Partey; Pepe, Smith-Rowe, Saka; Aubameyang, Lacazette

Aston Villa (3-4-3): Martinez; Konsa, Hause, Mings; Cash, Targett, Luiz, McGinn; Young, Ings, Buendia

Score prediction

Arsenal 2-2 Aston Villa

I think Villa halt their two game losing streak but with the reward of a point rather than three.

Both sides have shown similarities in that where they are capable of scoring goals, they are also more than capable of leaking them.

I’m expecting a good entertaining game (cue boring 0-0) with a few goals. Looking at the head-to-head record, too, it’s fair to say the two are due a draw.

Betting odds

Arsenal: 10/11

Draw: 13/5

Aston Villa: 3/1