Preview: Aston Villa vs. West Ham United - prediction, team news, lineups

Both opening their latest FA Cup quest successful this season's 3rd round, Premier League sides Aston Villa and West Ham United volition combat for triumph astatine Villa Park connected Friday evening.

The archetypal gathering betwixt the 2 claret-and-blue clubs successful England's nationalist cupful since 1980 - erstwhile West Ham went connected to assertion glory successful the last - comes with the Hammers successful turmoil, some disconnected and connected the pitch.

Match preview

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Extending their unbeaten tally connected location turf to 10 top-flight matches, Aston Villa edged retired Leicester City past weekend, arsenic Leon Bailey ended his agelong idiosyncratic drought to people the hosts' winning extremity successful a 2-1 success.

Without putting connected a stellar performance, triumph improved the Villans' hopes of claiming a European spot astatine the extremity of the season, taking them eighth successful the Premier League table - adjacent down chap challengers Bournemouth, Manchester City and Newcastle United.

Unai Emery's broadside had won conscionable 1 of their last 4 fixtures of 2024, truthful starting the caller twelvemonth with maximum points volition person boosted morale astatine the Birmingham club's Bodymoor Heath grooming complex.

Seven-time winners of the FA Cup, Villa present instrumentality to the celebrated knockout contention looking to amended a dismal tally of results, having mislaid 7 consecutive third-round ties betwixt 2017 and 2023.

Last term, they yet ended that streak by beating Middlesbrough 1-0, but they person mislaid each of their past six location games successful the cup; non-league teams excluded, lone Rotherham United person ever suffered much consecutive location defeats passim the competition's agelong history.

This time, Villa volition tackle West Ham - who they defeated 2-1 successful the league astatine the commencement of the play - portion wearing an all-black 150th day kit to observe a peculiar landmark moment.

The sides are scheduled to conscionable again aboriginal this period successful the Premier League, by which clip the Hammers could beryllium a precise antithetic proposition nether caller management.

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Emery's chap Basque brag Julen Lopetegui endured an interminable hold to beryllium enactment retired of his misery, but the erstwhile West Ham caput manager was sacked connected Wednesday, pursuing an unimpressive spell successful eastbound London.

The superior nine had won conscionable six league games during his tenure, with past Saturday's 4-1 decision by Manchester City being their ninth nonaccomplishment successful 20 top-flight matches this season.

Though the Hammers are inactive wide of relegation occupation - occupying 14th spot successful the table, 7 points supra the driblet portion - back-to-back defeats for the nonaccomplishment of 9 goals proved excessively overmuch for the committee to take.

After a 5-0 thumping by league leaders Liverpool, adjacent ailing Manchester City were capable to enactment 4 past Lopetegui's squad successful their year-opening fixture, meaning they person present mislaid by 3 oregon much goals connected half-a-dozen occasions.

Awaiting the assignment of a caller manager - astir likely, starring campaigner Graham Potter - West Ham person the worst antiaircraft grounds extracurricular of the promoted sides this season, conceding goals astatine a complaint of astir 2 per game.

Eliminated from the FA Cup by Bristol City this clip past year, they person not suffered consecutive third-round exits since a tally of 3 betwixt 2012 and 2014 - but caller events suggest that fewer volition fancy them to prevail connected Friday night.

Aston Villa signifier (all competitions):

West Ham United signifier (all competitions):

Team News

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With injuries mounting up, Unai Emery is acceptable to marque changes to Aston Villa's starting XI - peculiarly facing a tally of 7 games successful 22 days - truthful fringe players specified arsenic Emi Buendia and Ian Maatsen could beryllium selected.

Morgan Rogers is present backmost from suspension, but skipper John McGinn sustained a hamstring wounded against Leicester, joining centre-backs Pau Torres and Diego Carlos connected the sidelines.

Heavily linked with a determination to West Ham past summer, Jhon Duran completes a three-match prohibition for convulsive conduct, truthful Ollie Watkins volition pb the enactment up front.

The Hammers' attacking options are besides constricted by absences, arsenic Jarrod Bowen precocious fractured his ft and Michail Antonio is facing a agelong roadworthy to betterment from his car crash; therefore, Niclas Fullkrug should spearhead the visitors' attack.

Emerson Palmieri remains a uncertainty with the insignificant wounded that saw him skip past week's Premier League defeat, portion seasoned goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski is inactive ruled retired by concussion.

It remains to beryllium seen whether large changes volition beryllium made successful West Ham's archetypal crippled pursuing the departure of Julen Lopetegui: Konstantinos Mavropanos, Guido Rodriguez and ex-Villa striker Danny Ings are each contenders for promotion from the bench.

Aston Villa imaginable starting lineup:
Martinez; Bogarde, Konsa, Mings, Maatsen; Barkley, Onana; Bailey, Buendia, Ramsey; Watkins

We say: Aston Villa 2-1 West Ham United

This contention represents some clubs' champion accidental of silverware; yet neither broadside is expected to marque it a priority, truthful first-choice stars could beryllium rested - and that makes the result much unpredictable.

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