Aston Villa Women v Manchester City Women: Preview, Team News and Prediction

Manchester City Women travel to Aston Villa on Saturday, looking to continue their recent good form in the WSL. The blues have lost just one of the last five WSL matches, including a 5-0 thrashing of Villa when the two met at the Academy Stadium in December.

While the blues have now set their sights on a top four place, Villa are struggling at the other end of the table and won’t relish an in-form City side who beat them comfortably on the opening day of last season.

Villa are yet to play in 2022 and their last outing was just before Christmas, when a trip to Manchester United ended with another 5-0 hammering, and Carla Ward’s side will be eager to avoid another repeat of that scoreline.

Team News

Gareth Taylor may welcome back four players from injury, with Laura Coombs, Bunny Shaw, Caroline Weir and Karima Taieb all possibilities to join the squad. All four missed Wednesday’s convincing win at Leicester and Taylor confirmed the quartet are in contention for the trip to Walsall’s Banks’s Stadium.

Steph Houghton and Lucy Bronze will also be in contention after successfully coming through the Leicester test and affirming their places back in the starting line-up. Long-term absentees Chloe Kelly, Esme Morgan and Ellie Roebuck are still out injured.

Villa’s new loanee signing from Arsenal, Anna Patten, may make her debut for the club, but Remi Allen, Ramona Petzelberger and Elisha N’Dow are expected to miss the match.

Villa’s Emily Gielnik, along with City’s Alanna Kennedy and Hayley Raso will miss the match due to the Women’s Asia Cup.

Prediction

With Houghton and Bronze back once more, the defence looks solid again, and the fact that Villa are yet to play could hinder the midlands club, leaving City free to take the three points, which they will.

Aston Villa 0-4 Manchester City.