Aston Villa take on Manhcester United at Old Trafford at 4pm today
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Boubacar Kamara scored against Tottenham last time out
Villa will be hoping for more celebrations at Old Trafford(Image: Getty Images)
Aston Villa must beat Manchester United today to give themselves the best chance of finishing in the Premier League’s top five.
Unai Emery’s side will qualify for the Champions League if they beat United and either Chelsea fail to beat Nottingham Forest or Newcastle United don’t overcome Everton at home.
Manchester City losing at Fulham is a third possible route for Villa to secure a Champions League place—provided they win at Old Trafford.
United are winless in their last eight Premier League matches, having lost the last three in a row. It’s their longest run without a league win since between November 1989 and January 1990. The last time they lost four in a row in the same season was February 1979.
Ruben Amorim’s side also come into the game off the back of a 1-0 defeat to Tottenham in the Europa League final on Wednesday night.
On Claret & Blue, Dan Rolinson and John Townley discussed what approach Villa should take to overcome the Red Devils.
“Will we sit tight or go all guns blazing? I don’t think it will be either, but I’d prefer us to go all guns blazing if I had to pick one or the other,” Rolinson said.
“Watching the game — if it’s 0-0 after an hour — then I’m not going to be enjoying it at all. If we’re 3-0 up after 30 minutes, then I will be buzzing, obviously.”
“For us, it’s interesting, but the United side of things will be more interesting,” Townley added. “What are they going to do? That could inform what we do.
“Despite losing in Bilbao, it’s the final home game of the season and they will want to beat Villa still.
“They won’t be settling for a draw. It’s the final game of the season for them so they would like to win and try to win.
“That, I think, could help Villa. I don’t think they will be camped behind the ball and playing for a point. That’s just not the United way.
“They also need to entertain on the final day. Those fans are turning up to see a couple of goals. That could help Villa.
“In the 60th minute, they will commit men to attack and try to win. They have to show up. They can’t stink the place out and lose 2-0.”
Rolinson added: “We have a poor record there, but we know we probably have to win. I prefer that scenario, rather than going to a team who needs a point to stay up.
“United will play with freedom and try to score goals, but even if they do, I’d back us to score more. If it is a draw with 10 minutes to go, then we will throw the kitchen sink at it.”
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