Aston Villa continue the search for their first Premier League points of the 2019/20 season with a home fixture against Everton on Friday night.
The Villans have fallen to defeat in their first two games of the new campaign after securing promotion back to the top-flight via a playoff final victory over Derby County in May. Dean Smith's side spent over £100m during the summer transfer window, but lost 3-1 to Tottenham Hotspur on opening day, before going down 2-1 at home to Bournemouth.
Everton's beginning to the year has been far more encouraging, with the Toffees currently unbeaten and sitting on four points. They have hardly been prolific - Bernard collected their only goal of the season against Watford last weekend - though supporters will be pleased to see Marco Silva's recruits show solidity in defence.
Team NewsThere will be no Villa debut for new signing Kortney Hause, who is still receiving treatment for an ankle injury. The former Wolverhampton Wanderers defender is joined on the sidelines by fellow centre-back James Chester, with the Welshman nursing a thigh problem.
Smith is also deprived of the services of forward Jonathan Kodjia. An ankle complaint prevents the 29-year-old from making his maiden Premier League appearance, whilst opposition midfielder Fabian Delph may have to wait a while longer for his first competitive outing for Everton.
The England international is struggling with a groin strain, but could still be fit for Friday night's clash. The same is true of Toffees left-back pairing Lucas Digne and Leighton Baines, though Morgan Schneiderlin will definitely be available after serving a one-game suspension.
Head to Head RecordAs two bastions of English football, Villa and Everton have met on many occasions over the course of history. The overall record is well balanced, with the latter collecting two more wins than their opponents, who have secured the victory 80 times.
However, the Merseysiders have had much the better of it in the last decade. The Midlands side have beaten the Toffees just twice in their 16 most recent meetings and have lost five of the last six.
A clinical performance from Everton left Villa staring relegation dead in the face when these two last locked horns. Ramiro Funes Mori, Aaron Lennon and Romelu Lukaku gave the visitors a three-goal advantage, with a late Rudy Gestede consolation doing little to lift the gloom at Villa Park.
Recent FormSmith's men were far from a shambles in their 3-1 loss to Tottenham, yet they showed a lack of organisation in the closing stages as Spurs mounted a comeback to steal the points.
When pressurised by the Lilywhites, Villa crumbled and allowed a lead to slip through their fingers. That weak underbelly was exposed once more as the Cherries left Birmingham with a 2-1 victory on Saturday.
Douglas Luiz scored a peach of a goal against the Seasiders as he arrowed a long-range effort beyond the clutches of Aaron Ramsdale and his side may need another stunner to overcome Everton.
Jordan Pickford has been a standout figure for Silva, keeping two clean sheets in the Toffees' first two matches of the year.
Nevertheless, they must bring more accuracy to their shooting after letting numerous opportunities slip them by versus Watford and Crystal Palace.
Here's how the two teams got on in their last five matches:
VillaWalsall 1-5 Aston Villa
Charlton Athletic 1-4 Aston Villa
Red Bull Leipzig 1-3 Aston Villa
Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 Aston Villa
Aston Villa 1-2 Bournemouth
EvertonMonaco 0-1 Everton
Wigan Athletic 0-0 Everton
Werder Bremen 0-0 Everton
Crystal Palace 0-0 Everton
Everton 1-0 Watford
Source
90 Minutes
