Dean Smith and his Aston Villa side will be waiting for the arrival of Southampton at the Villa Park and will be doing so in eagerness as they hope to clinch victory in their most recent fixture against the Saints. Aston Villa will also be looking to do well enough to avoid defeat against a side with whom they are fighting for European places.

The game the home side played against Burnley last season was one to be forgotten despite being the dominant side all through the match. However, Smith paid tribute to his players and gave them moral support by choosing to back every single one of them after the game despite the result.

And just 72 hours after that game the Villans will now take on Ralph Hasenhüttl’s confidence-driven Southampton side on Saturday. Beating the Saints will spark some exciting and wild celebrations in the Aston Villa dressing room given that they have failed to do so in their last nine attempts. Southampton, on the other hand, will be beaming with confidence as they look to defeat a side standing just above them in the Premier League table.

According to the team news available for this fixture, the latest Aston Villa signing Morgan Sanson is passed fit and available to feature in the match after he completed his £15.5 million signing from French Ligue 1 club Marseille last Wednesday.

As of 10 days ago, Sanson was still a Marseille player and even featured in the French side’s game back then. Before sealing the move to the Premier League, he played in 19 games for Olympique Marseille and will now be raring to go as he wishes to make an instant impact in English football.

Predicted Aston Villa Lineup:

Emi Martinez; Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Matt Targett; Morgan Sanson, Douglas Luiz, John McGinn; Bertrand Traore, Ollie Watkins, Jack Grealish.