Nicolas Jackson put in his best performance in a Villa shirt so far against Man City last week, scoring twice from three shots to secure the three points for Unai Emery’s side.

I’m not surprised that Jackson is improving under Emery, the Villa boss has a track record of improving the movement and finishing of strikers with a good example being the development of Ollie Watkins under Emery.

Jackson has had more shots on target than any other Aston Villa player in the Premier League this season (7 - 1.14 per 90). 

He’s had a shot on target in each of his last four Premier League starts, managing multiple efforts on target in three of these games.

I’m not convinced at all by the direction that this Fulham side have taken under Arbeloa. They’re conceding 14.00 shots per game, and could struggle to handle the threat of Jackson who will be full of confidence following his brace last week.

Josh King is quite clearly Fulham’s most influential player, and has added end product to his game this season - taking more shots (21) and having more shots on target (10) than any other Fulham player.

King has had 2+ shots in seven of his eight Premier League appearances this term, taking 3+ shots in five of these games - including each of his last two. 

King has found the target in six of his eight Premier League appearances this season, and will be able to cause Villa issues with his clever movement. His teammates trust him more too, with King averaging 53.4 touches per 90 compared to 41.5 touches per 90 in the Premier League last season.

Unai Emery has assembled one of the most aggressive and hard working midfield duos with Kamara and Joao Gomes being the perfect players for his system.

Both have got through a lot of defensive work so far this season, but Kamara has been the standout for fouls - committing more fouls than any other Villa player across his eight appearances (18 - 2.27 per 90).

Kamara is also averaging 10.3 defensive contributions per 90 and contesting 12.48 duels per 90, so he’s constantly in battles where he can give away fouls. He’s committed a foul in seven of his eight Premier League appearances, committing multiple fouls in five of these games.

I’m interested in his battle with Josh King here. King is Fulham’s best player and will require quite a bit of attention from Villa’s midfield duo. Only one Fulham player has won more fouls than King in the Premier League this season (12 - 1.63 per 90).

I think this could be a case of one manager really outclassing the other.

Unai Emery saw his side start the season really slowly (again), but they’ve settled into a really nice rhythm and I wouldn’t be put off by their defeat to Bournemouth in the EFL Cup during the week.

Villa rotated quite a bit, and Bournemouth still needed a man of the match performance from Di Gregorio to keep them out.

Fulham have not impressed me at all this season, six of the eight points they’ve earned have come from wins against Coventry and Hull - both 1-0 victories where Fulham looked far from comfortable.

They’ve only managed to win one of their four away assignments in the Premier League, notably losing to both Sunderland and Ipswich on the road. 

We need Villa to score twice here, which is something they’ve managed in seven of their last ten matches. 

David Affengruber averaged 1.1 fouls per 90 for Elche last season, and that figure has increased to 1.4 fouls per 90 since arriving at Fulham. He has been called for six infringements in his last three starts alone, which shows how he has taken a bit of time to adjust to life in the Premier League. 

He will have to deal with the in-form Nicolas Jackson this weekend, which promises to be a difficult assignment. Aston Villa in general have been a team to target for drawing fouls this campaign, ranking fifth in the division for total fouls suffered. Based on that, this looks like a great matchup to target Affengruber for a couple of infringements.

Adam Smith drew three fouls during Bournemouth’s 3-0 victory at Man United last weekend - no Bournemouth player drew more infringements in that game.

What the 35-year-old lacks in athleticism, he certainly makes up for with his experience, and he can be quite a difficult player to come up against. Smith is averaging 1.67 fouls drawn per 90 this season, and he has landed this selection in eight out of ten starts overall. 

Leeds have been a good side to target for committing fouls this season, and they have racked up 50 infringements in their last three games alone. That includes 14 fouls against Sunderland, 16 against Man United, and 20 against Arsenal.

Enzo Le Fee has been a magnet for drawing fouls this season, and he was fouled twice against Leeds last weekend. The Frenchman is averaging 2.4 fouls drawn per 90 across all competitions this season, and he has landed this bet in six out of nine starts overall.

Le Fee is given plenty of freedom by Regis Le Bris in that advanced midfield spot, and he likes to spot around and pick up pockets of space. 

Le Fee excels at using his body to draw contact and win free-kicks in dangerous positions, and he will find duels against Caleb Yirenkyi in midfield this weekend. The Coventry midfielder is averaging 3.1 fouls per 90 across all competitions this campaign.

Ruben Dias is averaging 1.6 fouls per 90 across all competitions this season, which is one of the highest figures in the City squad.

He has been an aggressive presence at the back for Enzo Maresca, who likes his centre backs to be aggressive in their duels to win possession back quickly and sustain pressure. Dias has recorded multiple infringements in five of his last six starts, with the only miss coming against PSG in that stretch. However, Dias was replaced at half-time. 

The Portuguese centre back will now have to deal with Charalampos Kostoulas, who has been fouled 11 times in his last seven starts. That is a matchup to keep an eye on.

There was no love lost for Conor Gallagher last weekend, as he took just 16 minutes to pick up a yellow card against his former club, Chelsea.

The midfielder came on to replace the injured James Maddison, and was booked shortly after for a cynical foul. With Maddison expected to miss out this weekend with a groin injury, Gallagher looks set to start. He is averaging 1.57 fouls per 90 across all competitions this season, and he landed this selection in the last game he started. 

Gallagher recorded two infringements against Man United, and he will now find duels against the likes of Adam Wharton and Daichi Kamada in midfield. The Palace pair have combined for 2.9 fouls drawn per 90 in the league this season.

Nicolas Jackson put in his best performance in a Villa shirt so far against Man City last week, scoring twice from three shots to secure the three points for Unai Emery’s side.

I’m not surprised that Jackson is improving under Emery, the Villa boss has a track record of improving the movement and finishing of strikers with a good example being the development of Ollie Watkins under Emery.

Jackson has had more shots on target than any other Aston Villa player in the Premier League this season (7 - 1.14 per 90). 

He’s had a shot on target in each of his last four Premier League starts, managing multiple efforts on target in three of these games.

I’m not convinced at all by the direction that this Fulham side have taken under Arbeloa. They’re conceding 14.00 shots per game, and could struggle to handle the threat of Jackson who will be full of confidence following his brace last week.

Bournemouth have found their feet after a tough start to the Premier League season, and they come into this match having won each of their last five matches across all competitions. They are not short of talent in the final third, and Ryan Christie perhaps goes under the radar as a player who poses a threat going forward. 

The Scottish international is averaging 3.15 shots per 90 across all competitions this campaign, which is one of the highest figures in the Bournemouth squad. Even last season, he had an average of 2.12 shots per 90 across all competitions, rising to 3.09 when playing at the Vitality Stadium.

Brandon Thomas-Asante is averaging 2.2 shots per 90 across all competitions this season, making him one of Coventry’s main threats in the final third.

The winger likes to be direct when he receives possession, looking to move inside rather than staying out wide. Frank Lampard has used Thomas-Asante on the left wing, right wing and through the centre, which highlights his versatility and importance in forward areas. 

Sunderland are conceding an average of 12.5 shots per game across all competitions this season, rising steeply to 14.3 when playing away. The Black Cats haven’t been too convincing on their travels this campaign, so Thomas-Asante should find chances here.

Fabian Hurzeler opted for rotation midweek, so Charalampos Kostoulas was completely left out of the squad. The Greek international has had a week to rest and prepare for this fixture, and he registered four shots against Liverpool last weekend.

One of those efforts hit the target, meaning Kostoulas has landed this selection against Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Man United this season. He thrives in tougher matchups. 

Brighton found plenty of success going forward against Man City midweek, And Georginio Rutter recorded five shots, of which four hit the target. Kostoulas will likely lead the line this weekend, and based on those numbers from Rutter, he has every reason to be looking forward to this game.

Sandro Tonali accounted for two of Tottenham’s 15 shots against Chelsea last weekend, taking his average to 1.7 shots per 90 across all competitions this season.

This upcoming clash looks like an excellent chance for him to improve those figures, as Palace have been one of the worst defensive units in the Premier League so far. They are conceding an average of 16.9 shots per game in the league, and no side has conceded more goals than them this term. 

There should be plenty of opportunities for Tonali to get forward, and he isn’t shy to try his luck from distance. Both efforts against Chelsea last weekend came from outside the box.