MX23RW : Sunday, November 24 16:48:59| >> :60:1158:1158:
[monks data]
Aston Villa logo
Premier League | Gameweek 4
Oct 4, 2020 at 7.15pm UK
Villa Park
Liverpool logo

Aston Villa
7 - 2
Liverpool

Watkins (4', 22', 39'), McGinn (35'), Barkley (55'), Grealish (66', 75')
Luiz (46'), Nakamba (90+2')
FT(HT: 4-1)
Salah (33', 60')
van Dijk (38')

Aston Villa boss Dean Smith looking forward to Liverpool test

Dean Smith's men have won their opening two league matches of the Premier League season.

Boss Dean Smith believes the visit of Liverpool will show exactly how Aston Villa have improved.

Villa host the reigning champions on Sunday aiming to maintain their 100 per cent Premier League start.

They beat the drop by a point on the final day of last season but have impressed this season after a summer spree which saw them sign Ollie Watkins in a club record deal worth £33million.

Emiliano Martinez, Matty Cash and £17million Bertrand Traore have also joined and Smith feels Villa now face a true barometer of their level.

He said: "Last season was new to us. We tried to keep the core together but had to add 13 players to a newly-promoted squad so there was always a question mark over what we would get from week to week.

Bristol City v Aston Villa – Carabao Cup – Third Round – Ashton Gate
Dean Smith thinks Aston Villa are heading in the right direction (Peter Cziborra/PA)

"I feel since Project Restart we have seen a different Aston Villa team. Players who have grown in stature, players that feel and believe they are Premier League players now.

"Since the end of last season we have added quality to that and there is a different dimension to our team now. So in terms of what lines up against Liverpool it will be a great marker for us to see how far we have moved on."

Two goals in the last three minutes from Andrew Robertson and Sadio Mane earned Liverpool a 2-1 win in last season's trip to Villa Park.

Klopp's side won 2-0 at Anfield having returned from lockdown, after Villa beat a Reds youth team 5-0 in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals.

Villa ran the champions close in the league and Smith believes they can again.

"It's going to be very tough because you just have to look at the cumulative totals they've got over the last two years and they've started this season exactly the same," he said.

"We feel, with the additions we've made, we should be closer than we were last season to them but where that takes us, who knows.

"Them and Man City over the last two or three seasons have been the ones (to beat) but they pushed on from City last season. It's going to be intriguing to see how City come back at them."

ID:417041: cacheID:417041:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5142:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Aston Villa manager Dean Smith pictured on September 24, 2020
Read Next:
Dean Smith looks to Aston Villa new boys to take pressure off Jack Grealish
>
Read more about Dean Smith Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
6pm
Vikings
@
Bears
6pm
Lions
@
Colts
6pm
Patriots
@
Dolphins
6pm
Buccaneers
@
Giants
6pm
Chiefs
@
Panthers
6pm
Titans
@
Texans
6pm
Cowboys
@
Washington
9.05pm
Broncos
@
Raiders
9.25pm
49ers
@
Packers
9.25pm
Cardinals
@
Seahawks
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool1210112481631
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
10Fulham125341717018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Crystal Palace121561017-78
19Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
20Southampton121110924-154


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!