Aston Villa return to Premier League action this weekend on the back of their latest Champions League triumph over Bologna.
Aston Villa supporters have been propelled into dreamland this term after watching their amazing start to the season.
The Villans have tasted just one defeat in the Premier League, currently sitting fourth, while they’re top of the Champions League table after winning their first three games without conceding.
Following Unai Emery’s latest win over Bologna, Jason Cundy even suggested Villa could finish above Arsenal this season, with Gary Neville now sharing his prediction for their clash against Bournemouth.
Gary Neville predicts the result of Aston Villa vs Bournemouth
Cundy’s prediction of Aston Villa to finish above Arsenal goes against what many pundits said before the season kicked off, with Jamie Carragher predicting Villa to struggle while juggling Champions League commitments.
So far, Emery has proven the doubters wrong given how well they’ve started however, Bournemouth could turn out to be tricky customers this weekend.
The Cherries have made a solid start to the season under Andoni Iraola, most recently securing a 2-0 victory over Arsenal.
Neville believes they could cause Aston Villa a problem, citing that Emery’s men ‘looked a bit scruffy’ the last time they played a game days after a Champions League night.
Despite raising those concerns, Neville has still predicted Villa to secure a 2-1 win. “Do you know Villa worked weren’t very good after the Champions League last time, against United? They were a bit scruffy,” he said on the Stick To Football podcast.
“I think they’ll win though. They’ll win, but I think Bournemouth, to be fair, will cause them a problem or two. It was against United last time, after the Champions League, against Bayern. We’ll go two, one.”
Unai Emery’s ridiculous Aston Villa depth
Villa can compete across all fronts this term due to having ridiculous depth in most positions.
Jhon Duran made his only second start of the season on Tuesday against Bologna, capping it off with a goal, leaving Ollie Watkins on the bench.
Watkins was joined by several quality players on the sidelines, including the returning Tyrone Mings and Boubacar Kamara, as well as Ross Barkley, Emi Buendia, Jaden Philogene, Matty Cash, etc.
It just shows that, while playing three games in the space of a week is demanding, Emery has the squad depth to rotate and this will serve them well as they go deeper into the season.
