West Bromwich Albion vs Aston Villa 15/05/19

15 May 2019

West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa go head-to-head at The Hawthorns for the return leg of their Championship semi-final tie as the hosts hope to overturn a one-goal deficit from the first leg.

In spite of taking the lead early on at Villa Park, the Baggies have conceded two goals in a four-minute sequence, which was the second consecutive game in which they’ve allowed over 1.5 match goals. WBA’s defensive frailties have seen them concede at least one goal in eight of their previous nine competitive outings, with James Shan’s men allowing 2+ match goals six times in the process. However, Jay Rodriguez and Co. had no problems finding the net in the same period, having failed to score just twice while netting 2+ match goals on five occasions. An encouraging fact for the home fans is that the Throstles have racked up a five-game home winning streak ahead of this clash, scoring over 2.5 match goals four times along the way.

Meanwhile, the come into this meeting hoping to stretch their unbeaten away run to eight games (W5, D2). Aston Villa’s stubborn defending has seen them restrict their rivals to a maximum on one goal per match on all of their previous nine road trips. But, Villans have scored one goal or less five times in the same period, with nine of 13 goals they’ve scored in that span have come in the second half (69.23%). A potential worry for Dean Smith is that Aston Villa’s last away win over WBA in H2Hs dates back to 2008, after which they’ve struggled to pick up three points in seven straight H2Hs at this venue (D5, L2).

Interestingly, three of the previous five H2Hs between these two sides here have ended with the same 2-2 scoreline.