Aston Villa find themselves level on points with Man City and just four points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal after the Gunners suffered a home defeat to Manchester United last weekend
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery during their win over Newcastle United
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery during their win over Newcastle United(Image: 2026 Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA)
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Aston Villa's fine form has not gone unnoticed by many Premier League fans as Unai Emery's side picked up yet another crucial win at the weekend. Their win at Newcastle means they have picked up an impressive 10 wins in their last 13 league outings which has seen the Villans jump from 11th to 3rd in the Premier League table.
In that time they went on an impressive eight-match winning streak in the league which saw them beat the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Bournemouth as they moved themselves from mid-table mediocrity to Champions League hopefuls by the start of the festive period.
Now, there is some serious consideration that Villa have a good chance of competing for the title after last weekend's results. Arsenal's defeat at home to Man United means their lead at the top of the Premier League table has been cut from seven to just four points and while the top two have a far superior goal difference to Emery's side, they are still within a shot.
The opportunity is there for the taking too with Arsenal failing to win in their last three league outings and Man City picked up their first win in five matches. In fact, if Villa managed to beat both Crystal Palace and Everton before their trip to St James' Park they would be level on points with the title favourite right now.
Right now, the bookies still have them as outsiders at 16/1 but went into the weekend at 40/1 so at this point the momentum is with Villa to establish themselves as late title challengers if they are able to maintain their form. Their next three matches are Brentford, Bournemouth and Brighton having narrowly lost to the Bees 1-0 at the start of the season but then beat the other two in the reverse fixture, there is a strong possibility we could be talking about a new serious title contender by the end of February.
Premier League Outright Odds
Arsenal - 2/5
Man City - 11/4
Aston Villa - 16/1
Man United - 50/1
Bar 100/1
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