Middlesbrough v Aston Villa

Middlesbrough vs Aston Villa Preview

Middlesbrough's inconsistent streak of results continued on New Years Day when Boro slumped to a disappointing 3-1 defeat at home to Coventry City despite going a goal up while Aston Villa found a way to pick up all three points in the Premier League again when they registered a 3-2 home win against lowly Burnley.

Following a purple patch of form which brought Middlesbrough an impressive seven-match winning streak from the end of September through towards the end of October, Middlesbrough have struggled to put together any sort of consistent sequence of results under manager, Michael Carrick, as the north-east hosts have picked up seven wins, one draw but have also slipped to seven defeats within their subsequent 15 games overall in all competitions.

Only three of Middlesbrough's seven wins during this period have been captured on home soil at their Riverside Stadium as well, with the hosts recording wins against Leicester City, Preston NE and West Brom respectively although recent weeks have seen Boro's form decline at the Riverside Stadium.

Michael Carrick's side have lost three of their last four games at home with defeats incurred at the hands of Ipswich Town, Hull City and Coventry City, the latter being a heavy 3-1 loss.

Aston Villa bounced back from their recent 3-2 defeat away from home at Manchester United with a 3-2 win of their own when they played host to lowly Burnley as Villa found a way to secure all three points against their plucky Lancashire visitors.

With just one defeat from their previous 12 games in all competitions and collecting no fewer than eight wins in the process, Aston Villa's consistent streak of results continue to impress under the guidance of manager, Unai Emery, whose side are making a serious challenge for a possible Premier League title charge.

The bigger picture shows the west midlands club have been handed just the two defeats from their last 19 matches in all competitions which further underlines Villa's solid and consistent form under the former Arsenal boss while results away from home suggest the visitors may also hold the upper hand in this upcoming FA Cup tie at the Riverside Stadium as well.

Aston Villa have suffered just two defeats in their previous nine outings on the road in all competitions and includes picking up important wins on their travels at the likes of Chelsea, AZ (Europa Conference League), Tottenham and Brentford, so Emery's side look the more likely to progress through to the next round of this competition.

Middlesbrough v Aston Villa Verdict

The last time these two clubs met was four years ago in the Championship but it's been Aston Villa who have held the upper hand as the visitors have won four of the last five meetings against Middlesbrough.

Therefore, our main bet will be Aston Villa win @ 1.57

Other side bets worth considering:

Aston Villa win & Over 2.5 goals @ 2.20

Correct Score: Aston Villa 3-1 @ 12.00