Champions League
2024-11-27 - Aston Villa vs Juventus
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: UEFA Champions League Group Stage
Wednesday 27th November 2024 - Kick Off 8pm
This game is live on TV
Aston Villa
The win over Bayern Munich should have sparked the season for Aston Villa, but Unai Emery continues to be a little frustrated by some of the results being put together. They cannot get out of their own way, which was highlighted on Saturday when Aston Villa missed a Penalty that would have seen them take the lead against Crystal Palace, only to fall behind a minute later from their own corner kick.
The character of the players cannot be dismissed and Aston Villa did fight back for a 2-2 draw, but it is another fixture without a win and the fans will be hoping this big Champions League game offers the squad the opportunity to bounce back. On Match Day 4, Tyrone Mings made an error that even a schoolboy would be disappointed by and that saw Aston Villa lose in Brugge and fall to 8th place in the Champions League table at the halfway mark of the Group Stage.
Aston Villa have only won 2 games out of 9 played since beating Bayern Munich in the Champions League, while they have failed to win any of 6 in all competitions following the victory over Bologna. The draw with Crystal Palace on Saturday snapped a 4 game losing run, but also means Aston Villa have won 1 of their last 5 at Villa Park in all competitions.
A number of players are edging closer to a return, but this fixture may be too soon for them. Unai Emery has chosen to rotate his squad between Premier League and Champions League fixtures, but a strong team can be expected to get the club back on track.
Juventus
In recent years, Inter Milan, AC Milan and Napoli have made decent impacts in the Champions League without winning the trophy. The Old Lady of Italian Football have not quite been at the level of previous seasons, but Juventus are quietly going about their business at home and in European Football without really being seen as a contender to win either the Italian title or Champions League.
The side made a strong start to the Champions League, but Juventus have only earned a single point from the last 2 matches and that means they are in 11th place in the new table format. However, Juventus are in touch with those above them in the top eight, and a win in England would see them move past their hosts in the standings.
Juventus were surprisingly beaten 0-1 by Stuttgart in the Champions League on Match Day 3, but they are unbeaten in 6 in all competitions following that result. Draws have been the main result in that run with 4 of the 6 ending with the points shared, but the team should be confident as Juventus are unbeaten in 8 away games in all competitions this season.
Juan Cabal is out and Dusan Vlahovic has to be considered a doubt.
Head to Head
The last time Aston Villa played in the premier UEFA competition was as defending Champions in the 1982/83 season and it was Juventus who ended their defence with wins in both home and away Legs.
Prediction
The new eight game format of the Group Stage of the Champions League is still a situation that teams will be trying to figure out, especially when it comes to the amount of points needed to finish in the top eight places and earn the Bye through to the Last 16.
Both Aston Villa and Juventus have to be targeting those spots having made decent starts through the first half of the Group.
Of course that means the head to head matches increase with importance and this is a big one at Villa Park.
Unai Emery's team have been struggling for form, although they have not really had a lot of luck in recent matches. It is surprising that they keep conceding goals from their own corner kicks, which is quite unforgivable, while Aston Villa have simply been punished for any mistakes being made.
This makes this a tough game for them, but Aston Villa have beaten Bayern Munich and Bologna here and they do have players that can cause problems for Juventus.
In previous years Juventus may have felt like a contender to win the Champions League, but this current team is inconsistent and the likes of Inter Milan are considered the stronger clubs representing Italy.
Juventus have proven to be a stubborn team in recent weeks with 4 draws in their last 6 games in all competitions, including at Lille on Match Day 4. You have to respect that, but this is a team that were beaten by Stuttgart and have struggled for consistency in the final third, and that may just give the English Premier League hosts the edge to come away with a very important win.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Aston Villa 1-0 Juventus
