The FA Cup’s fifth round will kick off with the game between Aston Villa and Cardiff City. A Premier League side versus a Championship one is a common occurrence in this tournament and often surprises happen. Given the tight schedule and multiple fronts for Aston Villa and the fact that Cardiff will likely pour all of their strength at Villa Park, expectations are that this game could be a very interesting one.
Aston Villa Team News
Aston Villa have taken the foot off the pedal in recent weeks and their performances have suffered because of that. The team was in the top 4 not too long ago, but a string of unsatisfactory results in the league have left them at 10th spot. In truth, Villa’s schedule is quite congested as they are fighting on several fronts – Premier League, Champions League and the FA Cup. Their path in the FA Cup has seen them eliminate 2 other Premier League sides – West Ham and more recently Tottenham. Both of those games were won 2-1 by The Villains and the fixture against Cardiff will be the third consecutive home fixture for the team in the tournament. It remains to be seen whether Unai Emery’s men will underestimate their current opponent in light of their success against more affluent teams in the previous rounds.
Cardiff City Team News
Cardiff City’s position in The Championship is a rather unsatisfactory one, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them go all out at Villa Park, as a deep run in the FA Cup looks like the most likely success for the team this season. Mind you, the team is already battle-hardened in the competition as their previous two matches were away fixtures for Cardiff, yet they managed to find a way. Their thrilling 3-3 draw with Stoke City in the fourth round was one of the most interesting encounters from that stage of the tournament and it was down to penalties to decide the winner. While such an ordeal looks like a tall order against Aston Villa, the FA Cup is always full of surprises and Cardiff might just find enough to take advantage of Villa’s recent sub-par results and presumed fatigue.
Head-to-Head-Games
The last official game between Aston Villa and Cardiff City dates back to 2018 during that year’s Championship. Back then it was the Villains who won the match, but looking at the last 5 competitive H2Hs between these sides will reveal that each has 2 wins to their name with the remaining one game ending in a draw. However, all of those games shouldn’t affect anything in the current setting as they took place quite a while ago.
Aston Villa – Cardiff City Betting Prediction
My pick for this game is both teams to score. Aston Villa might field an alternative starting XI to keep key players fresh and to give chances to others who feature less. Such a move will not be surprising given the fact that Unai Emery’s team is still battling on 3 fronts and his squad isn’t that large. All of Villa’s FA Cup games have seen them both score and concede, with Cardiff City also managing to score in all of their previous FA Cup showings this season. Given the tournament’s habit of surprise results and the fact that both teams manage to regularly find the net in it, going with both teams to score could be a good option, especially in light of some interesting outcomes in previous rounds.
Betting Tip: Both Teams To Score: Yes
Bookmaker: Stake
Odds: 2.34
Stake
Place your bet on Aston Villa – Cardiff City at Stake