Liverpool vs Aston Villa Preview - Champions Under Pressure Ahead of Saturday Night Showdown

Aston Villa travel to Anfield to face the struggling defending champions on Saturday night (20:00 kick-off), aiming to extend Liverpool’s losing streak as they sit just behind the Reds in 8th place in the Premier League table.

While Aston Villa have recovered from an early difficult spell finding their first Premier League win in their sixth fixture of the season they now go into the clash unbeaten in four matches, including last weekend’s victory over Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City.

Liverpool, meanwhile, continue to struggle in a worrying run of form. They have not managed a league win since the Merseyside Derby and have now suffered six defeats across all competitions. Their only respite came in a 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt a result that proved to be a false dawn as Liverpool then lost midweek to Crystal Palace, their third defeat against the South London side this season.

Although Liverpool boast a strong record in this fixture losing just one of their last 15 Premier League games against Aston Villa their recent struggles and loss of rhythm have slightly nullified that historical advantage.

Team News

Ryan Gravenberch is back in training ahead of the Villa clash, with a strong likelihood he will return from his ankle injury in time. Alexander Isak and Curtis Jones, both sidelined with groin injuries, have only a “0.01% chance” of featuring this weekend, according to Arne Slot. Alisson Becker (hamstring), Jeremie Frimpong (hamstring), and Giovanni Leoni (ACL) will also miss this fixture, as well as next week’s meeting with Real Madrid.

Mohamed Salah is one goal or assist away from equalling the Premier League record for most goal contributions for a single club just one shy of Wayne Rooney’s 276 for Manchester United. Salah has 13 goal involvements in his last 10 Premier League starts against Villa, so this record could well be reached on Saturday.

Aston Villa remain without Youri Tielemans, who continues his recovery from a calf injury. Emiliano Buendía, who went off last weekend with a foot problem, is not expected to be sidelined for long. That could open the door for either Jadon Sancho or Donyell Malen to feature in the squad. Unai Emery cannot call upon Liverpool’s own Harvey Elliott, though the Englishman did not make the squad against City last weekend regardless.

With both sides entering the clash from contrasting runs of form, Saturday night’s meeting at Anfield feels more unpredictable than history might suggest. Liverpool will be desperate to halt their alarming slide and rediscover the rhythm that once made them so formidable, while Aston Villa arrive with the confidence of beating Manchester City. All signs point to a tense and high-stakes encounter under the lights.