Manchester United at Villa Park and match facts from the BBC

It's been a long year so booked a last minute trip and that's the reason for no post recently. I've found myself on Gran Canaria, sunburnt and hungover. But it's match day and a post is needed. But because of where I find myself, it will likely be a short one and while it might not start how you want it to, it will end well. 

And it's not going to start well, because are due a defeat and Manchester United are due a win. And if we have ever had a bogey team, it's them. Realistically, what are the chances our run continues today?

This isn't just my view, look at the numbers. We are the best team in the Premier League on current form, even after the two teams above us won yesterday and Manchester United have only won two of their last six. That's the same as Leeds and half as good as Nottingham Forest. I ask again, what are the chances of us continuing this today?

Well, I can tell you they are better than they were before Emery came to the Club. We've also have had a nice little break since the last match and we are at Villa Park under the lights. And Manchester United are not the side they were.

But they are still Manchester United and statistically speaking the chances of us winning again today are not great. And we do have a little comfort zone if we don't win. We'll still be four points above everyone below us and that scares me. That is a reason for the players to think they're in a good place. And that's something that has haunted us in the past.

But that was before Emery and while it's not just him, it's the eleven players on the pitch, I think he's rubbed off on them. I think the players know why this match is important. They know they've got the four point cushion if we don't win, but they also know a win takes us to three points off Arsenal. 

They also know we have Chelsea and Arsenal in London coming up. Winning today gives us a realistic chance of finishing the year on the same points as Arsenal. And every single match in this League is important and we are better than we were.

For all the pundits questioning if we have the depth of squad or the mindset, today is one of those days where we get to demonstrate we are good enough and we have what it takes. And what was it Ron Saunders used to say?

Match facts from the BBC

• Aston Villa have won just one of their last 26 Premier League home games against Manchester United (D9 L16), beating them 3-1 in November 2022 in Unai Emery’s first match in charge.

• Manchester United have won 41 Premier League games against Aston Villa, with 18 of those coming away from home. Only the Red Devils themselves have beaten an opponent more both overall and on the road (42 overall, 19 away vs Everton).

• Only Manchester City (46) have won more home Premier League points in 2025 than Aston Villa (40), while the Villans have lost the fewest home games of any ever present side (1). Should they avoid defeat here, it’ll be their fewest home top-flight defeats in a year since 1983 (1 in 22 games).

• Manchester United have won their last two away Premier League matches, last winning three in a row in February 2024. The Red Devils have netted at least twice in their last five on the road, last doing so in more consecutively between June and December 2020 (11).

• Aston Villa have won their last six Premier League games, and their last nine in all competitions. As a top-flight side, they last won seven straight league games between December 1989 and February 1990, while they last won 10+ in all competitions between January and March 1914 (11).

• Manchester United have dropped 10 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season, just one fewer than they did in the whole of 2024-25. Coming into this weekend’s games, only Brentford (13) and Newcastle (11) have dropped more.

• In all competitions, Aston Villa have won their last nine home games. They’ve already had one winning run of 10 home games in a row under Unai Emery (March – September 2023) and the Spaniard could be just the second Villans manager to have two separate runs of 10 wins in a row, after George Ramsay (five different ones between 1888 and 1905).

• Bruno Fernandes has assisted in each of his last five away Premier League appearances for Man Utd – should he get one in this game, he’ll be the first player in Premier League history to assist in six away games in a row.

• Morgan Rogers has been involved in eight goals in his last 11 Premier League games for Aston Villa (5 goals, 3 assists). However, each of the last six of these have come away from home.

• Bruno Fernandes has both scored and assisted a goal in his last two Premier League appearances. The only Man Utd player to do so in three in a row is Ryan Giggs in April 2003.