The impressive Aston Villa face the difficult task of a Premier League encounter at Old Trafford against the in-form team in the Premiership, Manchester United. United are breathing down Chelsea’s neck at the top of the Premier League table and are finally playing the stylish football to match their results, whilst Villa continue to keep themselves in the hunt for that all-important Champions League spot. The match on Saturday should be easy on the eye, but United will once again head into the Premiership fixture as firm favourites.

Despite the defensive crisis facing Sir Alex Ferguson, Man Utd have stepped it up a gear in recent weeks and are playing the free-flowing football that the Red Devils’ fans crave. Michael Carrick did an admirable job deputising at centre half against West Ham, and they will be further boosted by the possible return of Nemanja Vidic at the heart of defence. Elsewhere midfield youngster Darron Gibson has started to make his mark with some stunning strikes, and Michael Owen has pressed his claims for a first-team start against Villa with a hat-trick against Wolfsburg in the Champions League in midweek.

Martin O’Neill will be delighted with the progress that Villa are making, and they have a Carling Cup semi-final to look forward to as well as challenging the top four in the Premiership. They were in cruise control against Hull last time out, and O’Neill will want Villa to give a good account of themselves at Old Trafford. Their defence remains solid, and the midfield has taken a new dimension, with James Milner slotting into the middle of the park due to the return of winger Stewart Downing. Villa should cause United plenty of problems and provide a first real test to the makeshift backline.

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