Aston Villa vs West Ham United: prediction, preview and team news

Aston Villa host West Ham United on Wednesday as two of the Premier League’s surprise packages go head to head under the lights at Villa Park.

Both teams have been impressive this season and have a point to prove going into this game.

The Hammers make the trip to Birmingham looking for the victory which would keep the club in contention for the Champions League positions.

West Ham United are in fifth place in the Premier League table at the moment and have exceeded expectations this season. The Hammers suffered a 3-1 defeat against reigning champions Liverpool over the weekend and will want to return to winning ways in this fixture.

Aston Villa, on the other hand, have been inconsistent this season and have lost their place in the top four over the past few weeks. The home side edged Southampton to a 1-0 victory in its previous match and will be confident ahead of this game.

Reason for Aston Villa vs West Ham United predictions:

Aston Villa have taken seven points from the last nine on offer at home.
Villa have won 10 matches at the halfway point of a top-flight season for the first time in 11 years.
They have only twice had as many as 11 wins after 20 Premier League games: in 1998-99 and 2008-09.
West Ham have dropped points in 50% of their away games in the league this season.
West Ham have scored one or fewer goals in five of their last seven league matches on the road.
They have already equalled last season’s total of 10 Premier League victories.
An eighth Premier League clean sheet would be the most in a season by West Ham since 2017-18, when they kept 10.
Aston Villa were unbeaten in 70% of their last 10 home league fixtures.

A win on Wednesday would give West Ham 38 points, their highest tally after 22 matches of a top-flight season since 1985-86.

This is the 100th top-flight fixture between Aston Villa and West Ham. The East London side have 34 wins to Villa’s 33, with 32 draws.

Aston Villa’s only Premier League victory in the past nine meetings was 1-0 at home in May 2015 (D5, L3). They scored just four goals in those matches.

West Ham United have a good record against Aston Villa and have won 41 games out of a total of 113 matches played between the two sides. Aston Villa have managed 34 victories against West Ham United and will want to improve their record in this fixture.

The previous meeting between the two sides took place last year and ended in a hard-fought 2-1 victory for West Ham United. Both teams were fairly evenly matched on the day and will have to work hard in this match.

West Ham won the first meeting between the sides 2-1 at the London Stadium in late November and although their recent unbeaten run came to an end against Liverpool on Sunday, they have won their last three on the road in all competitions. Villa’s recent results may have been mixed, but their performances have been consistently good, even in the recent 3-2 defeat away to Burnley.

Our Prediction: Aston Villa @ 2.29