Four points separate Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League table as the two sides prepare to face off at Villa Park on Sunday.
Eighth-place Tottenham currently sit ahead of ninth-place Villa in the standings, although Dean Smith’s men have a game in hand over Spurs.
Aston Villa got off to a flying start this season, winning eight while losing just four of their opening 14 matches.
However, it’s fair to say that Smith’s side have fallen by the wayside in recent months, with talisman Jack Grealish sidelined through injury.
Villa have only managed to win one of their previous six Premier League games, recording three draws and two defeats in that time.
Having been held by Wolves and Newcastle in their previous two outings, Villa head into Sunday’s match on the back of successive draws.
It is also worth noting that each of Villa’s last four games have produced under 2.5 goals, while each of their previous seven matches have produced under 3.5 goals.
Interestingly, Tottenham haven’t registered a single draw in each of their previous 11 Premier League games.
During that period, Jose Mourinho’s men have registered five wins and six losses, with five defeats coming in the space of six games across January and February.
After securing three straight wins against Burnley, Fulham and Crystal Palace, it looked as though Spurs had turned a corner.
However, Tottenham suffered a 2-1 loss in the North London Derby last weekend, despite taking the lead at the Emirates.
Despite winning the first leg 2-0, Tottenham were knocked out of the Europa League in spectacular fashion on Thursday, losing 3-0 to Dinamo Zagreb.
Head-to-head: Aston Villa and Tottenham are yet to face each other this season, although Spurs claimed two victories over the Villains last term.
In fact, Tottenham have claimed five straight wins over Villa, scoring over 1.5 goals on every occasion in that time.
It is also worth noting that Spurs are unbeaten in their last ten away games against Aston Villa in all competitions.
Team news: Aston Villa will be without injured pair Bertrand Traore and Wesley this weekend, although Jack Grealish and Kortney Hause could come back into Smith’s starting XI.
Son Heung-min and Giovani Lo Celso are both doubts for Tottenham, while Erik Lamela is suspended after picking up a red card last weekend.
Both Aston Villa and Tottenham have picked up a series of indifferent results lately. Still, Spurs’ record against Villa is very difficult to ignore.
With that in mind, Forebet predicts that Tottenham will keep a clean sheet on their way to beating Aston Villa on Sunday.