Paul Merson expects Aston Villa’s superior defence to swing Sunday’s Premier League clash with Leicester City in favour of Steven Gerrard’s side, via his Sportskeeda column.
The Villans welcome the Foxes to Villa Park this weekend looking to bounce back from their first defeat under Gerrard. Manchester City edged a 2-1 win over the Birmingham outfit on Wednesday after goals from Ruben Dias and Bernardo Silva.
Aston Villa snapped a five-game losing streak in Gerrard’s first fixture in charge with a win over Brighton. They then followed the result with a first win at Crystal Palace since 2014.
Leicester won on their travels to Aston Villa last season with Brendan Rodgers overseeing a 2-1 win in February. James Maddison and Harvey Barnes provided the Foxes’ goals, before Bertrand Traore’s strike offered the Villans hope of a comeback.
Merson believes Maddison’s recent return to form at the King Power Stadium will now give Leicester hope of a repeat. But he still feels Aston Villa’s defence gives them the advantage.
“I like Leicester, but they’re going through a rough patch at the moment,” Merson wrote. “They’re conceding far too many goals and have been very poor defensively.
“Leicester are doing well going forward, however, and it bodes well for them that Maddison seems back to his best. I reckon this will be a high-scoring game.
“Both teams will score goals, but Aston Villa are the better team defensively than Leicester at the moment and hold a slight upper hand this weekend.”
Leicester offence must fire to make up for defensive struggles at Aston Villa
Aston Villa beat Brighton 2-0 in Gerrard’s first game at the helm, before conceding one at Crystal Palace and two to Manchester City.
Leicester, meanwhile, have shipped seven goals in their last three Premier League games, with Chelsea scoring three before Watford and Southampton both netted twice.
Maddison’s goal clinched Leicester a point at Southampton on Wednesday, but Rodgers will have sensed a win. Jamie Vardy had chances to find the back of the Saints’ net, yet squandered a glaring chance for all three-points.
Alex McCarthy also saved from Barnes in midweek, as Leicester’s attack could not overturn their defensive struggles. Only Newcastle United (30), Norwich City (28) and Watford (26) conceded more goals than the Foxes (25) over the first 14 games of the season.
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