We’re in west London for Saturday’s early evening Premier League match. It’s a mid-table tussle for the ages, with 11th placed Brentford hosting 10th placed Aston Villa at the Gtech Community Stadium.
The visitors still have a very slim chance of qualifying for the Champions League for a second straight season. This match is huge for Villa as this is one of their easier remaining games (with six of the other nine against teams who start the weekend above them).
But can Unai Emery’s men return to the Midlands with the three points? They are unbeaten in their five clashes with the Bees under the Spaniard, so maybe they can.
Here are Andrew Beasley‘s five best bets for Brentford v Aston Villa.
Brentford v Aston Villa Forest betting tips
Brentford to win
Ollie Watkins to score
Aston Villa to have most corners
Over 11.5 corners
Over 4.5 cards
- A Bet Builder with these bets pays at approximately 93/1 with Paddy Power. CLICK HERE TO ADD IT TO YOUR BETSLIP.
WHEN: Saturday, 8th of March, 5:30pm
WHERE: Gtech Community Stadium, Brentford
TV: Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League
Brentford to win
Paddy Power isn’t writing off the chances of an away win, but Brentford are favourites.
There are several reasons why this makes sense. Villa sit fifth bottom of the Premier League away table, with only one win from their previous nine matches on the road.
As much as Brentford’s absurdly good start to the campaign at the Gtech has cooled off, it’s not a place you want to go to reignite your away form.
Villa’s dreadful record when travelling is also fully justified if you put your faith in expected goals. Those statistics suggest the Bees’ price for a win should be shorter here.
Finally, the Villans have a criminal record in games following a midweek match this season. They won at Club Brugge on Tuesday but failed to win their last seven league games on weekends following Champions League matches.
The four such fixtures they’ve played on the road? Villa lost them all. Brentford can take advantage of this to win.
Ollie Watkins to score
This isn’t to say Villa can’t make a game of it. Their striker Ollie Watkins used to play for Brentford, and he has frequently had to respectfully not celebrate after scoring against them.
The England international has five goals in seven games versus his former employer. There are only four sides against whom Watkins has scored more times in his career.
The 29-year-old might not be in the best form, but has scored in each of the last three meetings of these teams, with four goals in total in those games. Back Ollie Watkins to score any time.
And with Emery able to call upon Marco Asensio, the top scoring substitute in Champions League history, he may be able to save our bet from the bench thanks to Paddy’s Super Sub offer.
Aston Villa to have most corners
Another minor positive for Villa is that they will likely win the corner count. It won’t mean much to them if they lose but at least we can win a few quid.
Emery’s side have had more corners than their opponents in 19 league matches this season, just one off the joint-most in the division. With Brentford losing the Corner Match Bet 16 times in 2024/25, take Aston Villa in that market.
Over 11.5 corners
And don’t stop there regarding this type of set piece. In the last five meetings of these teams, there were an average of 14.6 corners and at least 12 every time.
With both clubs among the top six for total corners per match in the 2024/25 Premier League, a bet on Over 11.5 in the Corner Over/Under Markets looks a very decent option.
Over 4.5 cards
This fixture last season was a disciplinary nightmare. There were 10 yellow cards, with dismissals for Ben Mee and Boubacar Kamara ensuring it was 10-a-side by full time.
While that was extreme, only one of these clubs’ previous Premier League meetings saw fewer than four yellow cards. Match referee Jarred Gillett has averaged 4.5 bookings per game since the start of last season, so take Over 4.5 in the Cards Over/Under Markets.
With these teams and that ref, a minimum of five cards looks inevitable.
Brentford v Aston Villa Forest betting tips
Brentford to win
Ollie Watkins to score
Aston Villa to have most corners
Over 11.5 corners
Over 4.5 cards
- A Bet Builder with these bets pays at approximately 93/1 with Paddy Power. CLICK HERE TO ADD IT TO YOUR BETSLIP.
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
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