Morning all. I can smell three points today and yes, all games are tough and we have to be on our game every match, but Stoke are a good team to be playing now.

I expect Villa Park will be quite full up today also and I just have a good feeling that come 4.45pm we will be sitting on 35 points.

So, this post will be about the match, but, before that, lets have a little look at Manchester City because the talk in the papers today is that regardless of the result, their manager is off and I don´t think any of us would be surprised if it really happens.

Just because Manchester City have money does it really mean they should be considered a threat to anything other than the top eight?I appreciate they have the money but I don´t think they are going to do another Chelsea.

Football isn´t just about money. It is an important factor but the manager is the most important factor and Mark Hughes was always going to fail. The worrying thing is, that the owner is doing it at the right time if Hughes is to get sacked. He will have his new manager in in plenty of time to assess the players and buy in January.

I feel sorry for Gaz Baz though as I fancy he´ll soon be dropped.

Aston Villa v Stoke

We will add team news here as and when we get it but I really wouldn´t be surprised if it is unchanged.

But, for now, there is nothing else. Not a piece of gossip or gay footballer anywhere. Updates here and on Twitter as and when we have some news.

Team News

Friedel, Young, Warnock, Cuellar, Dunne, A Young, Downing, Milner, Petrov, Heskey and Agbonlahor. Again, no changes. Nice.

On the bench: Guzan, Carew, Beye, Reo-Coker, Delph, Sidwell and Collins.