- Aston Villa U21 have won two, drawn one and lost two of their last five matches.
- Middlesbrough U21 have won one, drawn one and lost three of their last five contests.
- Boro beat Villa 2-0 away in PL2 2025/2026, but Villa are slight favourites at 23/20.
Villans are in the dogfight at the bottom
Aston Villa U21 sit 20th in Premier League 2 - Division 1 2026/2027 with four points from three games while Middlesbrough U21 are 26th on one point from three when the two sides clash at Bodymoor Heath Training Ground on Friday.
Villa have won and lost one of their two home games in PL2 so far, shipping three goals, so Bodymoor Heath Training Ground hasn't been boring but nor has it been a fortress. Similarly, Boro have lost their one away trip, also conceding three, so this match has the potential to be end-to-end.
Josep Gombau's Villa have looked to play a possession-based game, pressing in an organised way and getting their full-backs into the game, but the results just aren't there yet. The Villans have played their most recent two PL2 outings - a 0-2 home loss to Crystal Palace U21 and a 3-3 away draw with Fulham U21 - so they seem a bit shaky at the back but full of fight.
Boro to make this a live game
Mark Tinkler's Boro are much more direct and set up for transition, preferring to go long early and then look to counter attack and win the ball back in the second wave of their attacks. The danger man for Boro is striker Cruz Ibeh, who has scored four of Boro's six goals in their last five games, almost single-handedly keeping the team's nose above water.
Boro beat Villa 2-0 when the sides met away from home in Premier League 2 2025/2026, but the odds are against them this time, with Villa the slight favourites at 23/20 and Boro on the short side of even money at 171/100.
This will be a classic possession versus transition battle and the side that controls the middle third will probably win the game. Villa may just have the edge, but the Boro away threat should make this a very live game, so we'll be going for a Villa win and a plethora of goals by taking Over 2.5 goals at 9/25 and Both teams to score at 39/100.
