My Leagues

Countries

Massive West Midlands Derby on tap this weekend

Massive West Midlands Derby on tap this weekend

The West Midlands Derby between Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers is always big. They are the regions two most historic teams, and both are looking for a return to past glories.

This weekend's match has added significance as Wolves sit 10 points ahead of Aston Villa in the Championship. Wolverhampton have led the Championship since week 15. Since then, everyone else has been chasing the pace setters. Whether anyone can catch Wolves is debatable, but a win for Villa at home could see Nuno Espirito Santo's team's lead reduced.

Aston Villa are coming off of a 3-0 win over Sunderland in midweek. The team strolled to victory and notched its 19th win of the campaign. Things were so lopsided for Villa, that Sunderland fans walked out of the stadium halfway through the contest.

Albert Adomah continues to lead Villa in goals with 13. Adomah has had a hand in Villa goals in the team's last three matches. Two goals and two assists have been recorded by the 30-year-old. Despite Adomah's scoring and Villa's play, manager Steve Bruce has stated the team's results are better than their on-field play. Villa may be winning ugly at times, but the team is still accumulating points for the promotion playoffs. Despite Villa's great run of form, the team doesn't seem to be getting any closer to the automatic playoff places. Still four points back of Cardiff for second, Bruce's team need a win to keep itself within touching distance of the Bluebirds.

Wolves had a tricky fixture at Leeds United in midweek. However, the club came through it with flying colours with a 3-0 win. The team dominated play with nearly 54% possession and tallied seven shots on target.

Santo got a striking boost as well during the fixture. January loan signing Benik Afobe scored his first goal since returning to Wolves. The team's biggest problem of late has been misfiring strikers. If Afobe can find form in front of goal, Wolves could be just as deadly as they were pre-Christmas.

Wolves' defensive midfielder Ruben Neves is expected to return to the team following a two-match suspension. Santo currently has all of his usual suspects available for selection now. Bruce doesn't have any new injury worries either. Against Sunderland on Tuesday night, Bruce welcomed back 22-year-old attacking midfielder Jack Grealish. The player had missed the three previous matches with a calf injury. He played only 23 minutes but should play a bigger part against Wolves.

The last time these two sides met in October, Wolves ran out 2-0 winners at Molineux. However, Aston Villa are far better at home than on the road. The Villains have won 36 of 51 possible points at home. The team will need its home support, but even then, it won't be enough. This match should end with a draw.

Championship Regular Season
OVERALL TABLE PTS GP W D L +/-
1
Leicester City 97 46 31 4 11 48
2
Ipswich Town 96 46 28 12 6 35
3
Leeds United 90 46 27 9 10 38
4
Southampton 87 46 26 9 11 24
5
West Bromwich 75 46 21 12 13 23
6
Norwich City 73 46 21 10 15 15
7
Hull City 70 46 19 13 14 8
8
Middlesbrough 69 46 20 9 17 9
9
Coventry City 64 46 17 13 16 11
10
Preston North End 63 46 18 9 19 -11
11
Bristol City 62 46 17 11 18 2
12
Cardiff City 62 46 19 5 22 -17
13
Millwall 59 46 16 11 19 -10
14
Swansea City 57 46 15 12 19 -6
15
Watford 56 46 13 17 16 0
16
Sunderland 56 46 16 8 22 -2
17
Stoke City 56 46 15 11 20 -11
18
QPR 56 46 15 11 20 -11
19
Blackburn Rovers 53 46 14 11 21 -14
20
Sheffield Wednesday 53 46 15 8 23 -24
21
Plymouth Argyle 51 46 13 12 21 -11
22
Birmingham City 50 46 13 11 22 -15
23
Huddersfield 45 46 9 18 19 -29
24
Rotherham 27 46 5 12 29 -52

Pick of the day


Top trends

Video Highlight