Aston Villa vs. Brighton Betting Tips: Two stats-based punts for early kick-off

Aston Villa take on Brighton in Saturday’s early match. Scott Thornton is the man to tackle this Premier League Saturday 12:30pm kick-off with two stats-based selections...

Brighton are currently in the top four but they lost both of their matches against Aston Villa last season. A win for either side would really lay down a marker ahead of this long season.

Both of these sides were delighted to qualify for Europe last season, and despite both making losing starts to their continental ventures, the pair will be happy with the way they have started their domestic campaigns.

This season is set to be the first full season in charge of their respective clubs for Unai Emery and Roberto De Zerbi. Both managers proved to be savvy appointments and have yielded great results.

The Villans have a few key players injured ahead of this game. Emiliano Buendia, Tyrone Mings and Leon Bailey are all ruled out. Fortunately for Emery, he has plenty of depth at his disposal following the summer transfer window. Brighton are also missing some key players. Pascal Gross and Julio Encisio are the most notable absentees. James Milner also faces a late fitness test.

Both Aston Villa and Brighton have made use of a box midfield since their managerial changes. Each looks to achieve numerical superiority in the middle of the pitch and it should make for an intriguing tactical battle on Saturday.

Emery’s side utilises a high line in a bid to make their team shape compact. They have a number of energetic and technically gifted players that can be devastating when the team wins back possession. The likes of Zaniolo and Diaby could prove pivotal against a Brighton side that loves to counter-press.

Brighton have pace in abundance and they could look to target Aston Villa’s high defensive line. The Seagulls were caught offside six times when they visited this ground last season. The Seagulls are averaging 2.83 offsides per league game this season but I’m expecting them to have a little more here.

Since Emery took charge of Aston Villa, no team has forced more offsides in the Premier League. Their opponents in the Premier League are averaging 4.06 offsides per game since his first match. Villa’s opponents this season are averaging four offsides per game.

Aston Villa come into this clash in 6th place, three points behind Brighton, who currently occupy 3rd. The Seagulls have won just once at Villa Park in their last five visits. Both teams have scored in four of those five matches.

Both teams to score has won in all six of Brighton’s league matches so far this season with their games averaging 4.33 goals per game. In fact, both teams have scored in their last 10 league matches dating back to last season.

For our longer odds bet, we are backing the same angles as our main bet with cards added in. This landed comfortably when these sides clashed at Villa Park in May.

Both teams picked up four cards in this fixture last season. There were nine cards in the meeting at the Amex Arena; with Aston Villa picking up seven of those.

Both teams have picked up at least two cards in the last five head-to-heads in the Premier League. Over this period, Villa are averaging 4.4 and Brighton 3.