Unai Emery’s team are one of the strongest sides in the Premier League at home, with only Manchester City (26) and Arsenal (29) picking up more points at home this season than Aston Villa (25). Villa have won eight of their 10 home matches this term, with only Newcastle and Crystal Palace managing to take points off Villa at home this season - those games were also right at the start of the season, when Villa were really struggling, so Emery’s side have been faultless at home since those early blips. 

Unai Emery’s side have scored 18 goals across those matches, and only conceded eight. This tightness at the back is likely to prove problematic for Everton, who have only managed to score nine goals across their 10 away matches in the Premier League this term. Everton’s recent form has also been quite poor, with their only win across their last five matches coming against a relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest side.

Everton have lost on their last four trips to Villa Park in the Premier League, with the Toffees losing 3-2 in this fixture last season. They have managed to win at Villa Park in the EFL Cup in this period, though that clash saw both sides heavily rotate, and we can expect Villa to have a near full strength side here.

That translated to six corners, while Everton contributed an additional two to get over this mark. This selection landed comfortably when the sides last met, as there were a total of 13 corners at the Hill Dickinson Stadium - Everton contributed 10, and Aston Villa managed the other three.  

The Toffees are averaging exactly 9.0 corners per game on their travels this season, with this bet landing in each of their last three matches. There were a total of 11 corners on their last away day against Nottingham Forest, with the hosts amassing nine corners at the City Ground. Prior to that, Burnley even managed six corners against Everton, highlighting how David Moyes’ side haven’t been too strong at the back in recent games. 

Meanwhile, Aston Villa are averaging 9.4 corners per game across all competitions at Villa Park this season, with 5.3 corners for, and 4.1 corners conceded.

Morgan Rogers was involved in a post-match scrap against Tottenham last time out, but the England international stole the headlines for his stellar performance in an advanced midfield role. Rogers has been in exceptional form in recent weeks, and has scored five goals in his last seven starts across all competitions. He is averaging 3.6 shots per game in that stretch, and has registered multiple shots in all seven of those matches. 

Last time out at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the 23-year-old accrued a total of four shots, with two of those hitting the target. Rogers has been able to really express himself and play with confidence in recent weeks, and has landed this selection in his last two. Aston Villa should once again find plenty of chances against an out-of-sorts Everton side, and Rogers is the one to watch.

Morgan Rogers has contributed a lot more than just goals for Villa this season - he also has his fair share of defensive work to get through, and the Englishman has committed more fouls than any other Aston Villa player across all competitions. John McGinn ranks 2nd, and has registered just one infringement less, but the Scottish international has played fewer games than Rogers this term. 

McGinn is averaging 1.4 fouls per 90 in all competitions this campaign and has landed a foul in 11 of his last 13 appearances. He registered two fouls when he faced Everton earlier in the season, because he plays on the same flank as Jack Grealish. The winger has drawn the most fouls of any Premier League player this season, and might not get the warmest of welcomes back to Villa Park. McGinn isn’t the type of player to pull out of a challenge, and draws an excellent matchup this weekend to commit a foul.

Boubacar Kamara lasted just nine minutes against Tottenham last time out, and is set for a few weeks on the sidelines. The Frenchman joins Amadou Onana and Ross Barkley in the treatment room, leaving Villa incredibly short on midfield options. That puts a big responsibility on the shoulders of Lamare Bogarde, who is likely to start alongside Youri Tielemans in the double pivot on Sunday. 

Bogarde has featured sporadically this season and has started just 10 games across all competitions. However, he is averaging 1.77 fouls per 90, and has been booked five times. In fact, he has been booked in three of his last six appearances, despite coming off the bench in two of those. In his last home outing, he featured for just 10 minutes off the bench against Nottingham Forest, but received a card in the dying embers for a cynical foul.

Ezri Konsa is averaging 1.48 fouls drawn per 90 this season, rising to 1.66 when playing at Villa Park. For a centre back, those numbers are certainly impressive, and he has landed this selection in six of his last 11 home games. Konsa is adept at drawing free kicks to alleviate the pressure on his side, and he draws an excellent matchup this weekend to improve those fouls drawn numbers.

Thierno Barry is likely to lead the line for Everton here, and he is averaging 1.86 fouls per 90 across all competitions this season. The 23-year-old isn’t shy to put himself about and contest duels, but he can be a bit clumsy at times and rack up infringements. His usual replacement, Beto, is quite similar in that sense. He is averaging 2.03 fouls per 90, and fouled five times against Sunderland last time out.

James Garner scored the only goal of the game for Everton against the Black Cats, but it wasn’t enough as the Toffees were eventually knocked out of the FA Cup. Garner sent the game to extra time by converting a spot kick in the 89th minute, although he was denied in the penalty shoot-out by Robin Roefs. Still, Garner stepped up first for Everton, highlighting just how much responsibility he has. 

Garner has accumulated more shots than any other Everton player this season, averaging 1.53 shots per 90. Considering the Englishman has also filled in at full back this season, that is an impressively high figure.

Despite playing in a defensive midfield position, Garner isn’t shy to try his luck from distance, and does often find his way into promising positions. He racked up four shots against Nottingham Forest on his last away outing, finding the back of the net against his former club.