Manchester City can move to the top of the Premier League table if they win their game in hand against Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday.
Pep Guardiola’s side currently sit two points rivals and league leaders Manchester United, while Villa find themselves nine points behind.
Man City head into Wednesday’s match on an eight-game winning streak in all competitions, with five straight victories coming in the Premier League.
It is also worth noting that Guardiola’s men are unbeaten in their previous 15 outings in all competitions.
Man City have also secured four straight clean sheets, with their most recent shutout coming in Sunday’s 4-0 thrashing of Crystal Palace.
John Stones was the unlike hero last time out, bagging a brace. Ilkay Gundogan and Raheem Sterling both scored stunning individual goals.
Following a slow start to the season, Guardiola’s side are on a roll right now. Can Aston Villa stop their seemingly unstoppable run?
Villa’s fixture list has been ravaged by a coronavirus breakout at the club, meaning they have three games in hand of most of the other teams in the division.
Despite that, Dean Smith’s men still find themselves just eight points off the top four, having won eight of their 15 league games this term.
Not only have Villa kept the most clean sheets in the Premier League this season, but they also boast the second-best defensive record – behind Man City.
Aston Villa’s last league game came all the way back on New Year’s Day, with a 2-1 defeat to Manchester United coming almost three weeks ago.
Since then, an extremely young Villa side were beaten 4-1 by Liverpool in the FA Cup, despite 17-year-old Louie Barry netting a memorable equalizer.
Head-to-head: Man City have claimed five straight victories over Aston Villa, scoring 19 goals while conceding just twice.
Guardiola’s side are also unbeaten in their previous nine meeting with Villa in all competitions, with eight wins and one draw coming in that time.
Team news: Man City duo Sergio Aguero and Nathan Ake are sideline through injury, although Eric Garcia and Aymeric Laporte are close to returning to full fitness.
Aston Villa are still without long-term absentee Wesley, while Ross Barkley is nearing a return from injury.
Both these sides have been playing well recently, but Man City’s recent record against Aston Villa is difficult to ignore.
Forebet predicts that Man City will claim a narrow victory over Villa on Wednesday, with both teams getting on the scoresheet.