Aston Villa vs Bayern Munich (19:00, October 2): Revenge After 42 Years

After more than 42 years since the 1982 European Cup final, Aston Villa and Bayern Munich finally meet again.

Time & Venue

• Time: 19:00, October 2, Wednesday
• Venue: Villa Park (England)

Form

In their only previous encounter, Villa defeated the Bavarian side 1-0 to win the European championship.

Both teams had convincing wins in their Champions League openers this year. Villa scored 3 goals against Young Boys in Switzerland, while Bayern impressed even more, netting 9 goals against Dinamo Zagreb.

Last weekend, Villa seemed on course for their 7th win in 8 games, which would have placed them second in the Premier League table, but they were held to a 2-2 draw by newly promoted Ipswich Town in the final minutes.

Under Unai Emery, Villa has not only made great strides domestically but also won all six home matches on their way to the Conference League semifinals last season. Emery, a seasoned tactician, has defeated Bayern Munich twice. His teams have only lost 3 out of 20 Champions League group stage matches.

Bayern Munich started their Champions League campaign with a record-breaking win. Die Roten is the only team to score 9 goals in a single Champions League match and recorded 19 shots on target – another tournament record.

Their 9-2 victory over Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb brought Bayern’s tally to 30 goals in their first 7 matches under new coach Vincent Kompany. Although Kompany’s perfect record ended with a 1-1 draw against Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen recently, Bayern’s performances have been truly impressive.

Squads

Aston Villa
Coach Unai Emery will be without Boubacar Kamara, Tyrone Mings, and John McGinn due to injury, while Matty Cash is also likely to miss the match.

Bayern Munich
Harry Kane’s availability is in doubt after leaving the pitch with an ankle injury during Saturday’s draw with Bayer Leverkusen. Josip Stanisic, Hiroki Ito, and Sacha Boey are confirmed absentees for the visitors.

Predicted Lineups

Statistics

Bayern Munich is unbeaten in their last 6 away matches. Aston Villa averages 2.10 goals when playing at home, while Bayern Munich averages 2.76 goals in away games this season. Villa has scored at least one goal in their last 5 consecutive matches.

Goal & Conceding Rates

Prediction

Aston Villa enters the big match at Villa Park following a 2-2 draw with Ipswich on Sunday. Unai Emery’s side came from behind to lead 2-1 at Portman Road but ultimately couldn’t secure all three points. Bayern Munich was also held to a draw at home over the weekend against Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen. They are, of course, considered superior in terms of squad depth, experience, and quality.

Both teams had smooth starts in the Champions League two weeks ago, and barring any surprises, the visitors are expected to secure their second victory.

Predicted score: Aston Villa 1-2 Bayern Munich (according to Whoscored).