Manchester City travel to Villa Park on Saturday lunchtime looking to make it eight Premier League wins out of eight, but Aston Villa are the side who have caused them more trouble than anyone in recent years.
Win, and City join an exclusive club. Only Chelsea in 2005-06, who won their first nine, and Liverpool in 2019-20, who won their first eight, have started a Premier League season this strongly. Enzo Maresca is already the first manager to win his first seven games in charge of a club in the division.
Villa Park has not been kind to City, though. They are winless in their last four visits and have lost the last three, and Unai Emery’s side arrive in excellent form.
Aston Villa vs Man City kickoff
Date: Saturday 24 October 2026
Kickoff: 12:30pm BST
Venue: Villa Park, Birmingham
Aston Villa vs Man City match officials
Referee: Peter Bankes
VAR: Paul Tierney
Aston Villa vs Man City team news
Aston Villa team news
Villa are without Amadou Onana (ACL), Matteo Ruggeri (thigh) and Aaron Wan-Bissaka (hamstring). Johan Manzambi, last week’s match-winner at Newcastle, has been doubtful since a muscle injury kept him out of the win over Viking, and young defender Modou Keba Cisse is a minor doubt with a groin problem.
Matty Cash is expected back at right-back, and Ian Maatsen could return on the left after recovering from an ankle injury, with Tyrone Mings available if needed. If Manzambi misses out, Emiliano Buendía is set to play as the No.10 behind Nicolas Jackson, with Alysson, Ibrahim Mbaye and John McGinn competing for the wide spots.
Man City team news
Antoine Semenyo is the big absentee, ruled out for around eight weeks, potentially until Christmas, with a knee injury. Maresca has confirmed Erling Haaland is “100% available” after a midweek rest, despite the foot knock he picked up against Ipswich Town.
Nico O’Reilly has a lingering back issue, which could see Joško Gvardiol, one of Maresca’s centre-back options, start at left-back, while Mateo Kovačić and Matheus Nunes may need late fitness tests. If Nunes is not ready, Rico Lewis could keep his place after impressing against AEK Athens, with Abdukodir Khusanov another option.
Aston Villa vs Man City pre-match tactical analysis
City have been relentless. They sit top on 21 points, three clear of champions Arsenal, and their only defeat in 11 games in all competitions was the 4-2 loss at home to Paris Saint-Germain. Maresca rotated heavily in midweek and still saw his side thrash AEK Athens 5-1, while last weekend’s 3-2 win over Ipswich, Gary O’Neil’s side, showed they can grind out results when they are not at their best.
Villa’s numbers tell a different story at home. They are still waiting for their first Premier League win at Villa Park this season, with one draw and two defeats, and sit 12th, only two points off the top six. But the momentum is real: they are seven unbeaten in all competitions, have won five of their last six, took seven of their last nine league points and beat Newcastle 1-0 away, Emery’s 100th Premier League win. In Europe they have won all three Champions League games, including two home wins by a combined 9-1.
History is firmly on Villa’s side. They did the double over City last season, including a 2-1 win at the Etihad in Pep Guardiola’s final match, and Emery has won two of his three meetings with Maresca. Villa have never beaten City three times in a row in the Premier League era, and City have not lost three straight in this fixture since the 1960s. City’s last win at Villa Park came in December 2021, a 2-1 victory with goals from Rúben Dias and Bernardo Silva. Their last three trips there have ended in defeat by an aggregate of 4-1.
Aston Villa vs Man City key players
Erling Haaland
The Premier League’s leading scorer has 12 goals in just 10 appearances this season and comes in fresh after sitting out the AEK Athens game, having already scored both goals in the Champions League win over Porto. His record against Villa is the one blot on his CV, though: one goal in five games against them.
Phil Foden
Foden has scored four goals in his last two appearances, including a superb Champions League hat-trick in midweek, and is pushing hard for a start on the right flank.
Emiliano Buendía
Buendía scored in the 3-1 win over Viking and is in line to step into the No.10 role if Manzambi misses out, making him central to how Villa try to hurt City.
Aston Villa vs Man City predicted lineups
Aston Villa predicted lineup (4-2-3-1): Suzuki; Cash, Lindelöf, Torres, Maatsen; Kamara, Gomes; Alysson, Buendía, McGinn; Jackson
Man City predicted lineup (4-2-3-1): Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Guéhi, Gvardiol; Anderson, Bouaddi; Foden, Cherki, Doku; Haaland
Aston Villa vs Man City prediction
This is the sort of game that tells you whether City can genuinely dethrone Arsenal. Villa are confident, rested in all the right places and have the recent record to back it up, so this will be a proper test. But with a fresh Haaland leading the line and Foden in this kind of form, City’s ability to win ugly should just about see them through.
Prediction: Aston Villa 1-2 Man City
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