Aston Villa vs Man City: Match Preview, Latest Team News and How to Watch

Aston Villa vs Man City: Match Preview, Latest Team News and How to Watch Aston Villa vs Manchester City: Team News, Prediction and Why Villa Park Matters Aston Villa have done this before. Start slowly, look short of rhythm, then settle and start beating teams. Last season followed that script and, so far, this one has too. One point from the opening four Premier League games looked bad because it was bad. Since then, five wins from six in all competitions says they have recovered and found some traction. Now they get the clearest measure available. Manchester City arrive with seven wins from seven in the league, top of the table and doing what elite sides do, which is win while everyone else talks. Enzo Maresca’s team also come into this on the back of a 5-1 Champions League victory over AEK, making it 10 wins from 11 matches since the Community Shield defeat to Arsenal. The wider backdrop around City remains unusual, with a possible points deduction and even relegation hanging over them. That matters in the long term. It has not mattered at all on the pitch so far. They keep winning, and until someone stops them, that is the only relevant football fact. Aston Villa team news ahead of Manchester City clash Villa have issues, but not a crisis. Aaron Wan-Bissaka is out for three to four weeks after suffering a hamstring injury in the win at Newcastle. He had been filling in at left-back, which matters because it gave Villa a bit of steel and flexibility in that area. Ian Maatsen is back in training and could return to contention, which is timely. Matteo Ruggeri is expected to miss around two months with a hamstring problem picked up against Brentford. Amadou Onana remains a long-term absentee, so the midfield load will continue to fall elsewhere. Johan Manzambi is the other concern. He has been in strong form but missed the 3-1 Champions League win over Viking with a minor injury and remains a doubt. If he does not make it, Ross Barkley is expected to operate in the No.10 role, ahead of João Gomes and Boubacar Kamara in the double pivot. Out wide, Alysson did enough in midweek to keep his place on the right. Emi Buendía should continue on the left, with Nicolas Jackson leading the line. That gives Villa pace, direct running and a striker willing to stretch the game, which is useful against a City side that wants to pin you back and keep you there. Photo IMAGO Manchester City team news and key selection calls City are not fully clean on the injury front either. Antoine Semenyo is out for around eight weeks with a knee injury sustained late in the 3-2 win over Ipswich. The early fear was worse, so the current estimate is manageable, but he is still missing and that removes another attacking option. Erling Haaland took a knock against Ipswich and was an unused substitute against AEK. Maresca has confirmed the striker is fit to start at Villa Park. That is the headline item because everything changes when Haaland plays. You can defend well for 70 minutes and still lose because one ball drops in the box and he is there. Mateo Kovacic and Nico O’Reilly both went off against Ipswich, with O’Reilly dealing with a recurring back problem. Matheus Nunes also needed treatment. All three missed the AEK match, though Maresca says they are improving. Whether improving means ready from the start is a different question. Kick-off time and how to watch Aston Villa vs Manchester City Aston Villa vs Manchester City kicks off at 12.30pm BST on Saturday, October 24 at Villa Park. The match will be shown live in the UK on TNT Sports 1 and HBO Max, with coverage starting at 11am. Radio commentary will also be available live. Bottom line, City deserve to be favourites because they have been relentless. Villa deserve respect because they are improving and because this fixture has given City problems before. If City win, nobody will be surprised. If Villa take something, nobody should call it a shock either.