Manchester City vs Aston Villa

At the Etihad Stadium Manchester City and Aston Villa will fight for Premier League championship points in an important Champions League qualification matchup.

This European top-tier competition now requires increased difficulty for the six clubs vying for spots while maintaining the same competitive spirit before the last stretch.

Both Manchester City and Aston Villa entered the second half of the season with an ideal setup to secure Champions League spots for the next campaign.

City moved closer to third-placed Newcastle United by defeating Everton 2-0 with second-half goals from Nico O'Reilly and Mateo Kovacic as Villa indirectly helped City by beating Newcastle in the late game.

During the last four games Coach Guardiola watched his players gain 10 points while giving up no goals which proved essential to their recent success.

The continuation of their current defensive excellence will be essential for City to qualify for the Champions League due to their 21 home goals allowed during this season.

City enters the match against Aston Villa with confidence because they have kept Real Madrid and Liverpool as the sole teams who have beaten them at the Etihad this season.

The Etihad Stadium became an invincible ground for City when it comes to Villa matches after 14 consecutive victories in this venue making it the second-best record in Premier League history along with a superior 16-game win streak against Newcastle.

A defeat at City Stadium against Aston Villa occurred only before the 2007 takeover under manager Stuart Pearce and has not happened since.

That might change, though, given Villa's outstanding play and City's vulnerability, especially since Unai Emery's team has defeated the defending champions twice in a row, which is as many victories as they had in the 23 games before.

For the first time since the 1962–63 season, the visiting team has the chance to accomplish a league double against City after defeating them 2-0 in the rematch back in December.

Prior to their journey to the Etihad, it was a closely contested match until the hour mark, when Villa quickly put three goals past the Magpies, putting them within two points of Newcastle and only one point behind City.

Villa's incredible run, which is certain to end when they return to the Champions League next season, has only seen one loss in their past 11 games, an away loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their quarterfinal.

For the first time in their top-flight history, Villa has the chance to win four straight away games while keeping clean sheets. Their three consecutive Premier League away victories are their greatest run in over 16 years, and they have done so without giving up a goal.

But with only one point from five games this season, Villa's away record against the best teams has not been great.