Aston Villavs.Leicester Women

The hosts currently occupy seventh spot in the Women's Super League table, while the visitors are three points adrift in ninth position.

Match preview

After claiming a 2-1 win over Everton, Aston Villa were unable to claim a second straight victory in last Sunday's home meeting with Arsenal.

The Villans enjoyed a successful first half, with Ebony Salmon finding the net to give the hosts a narrow lead at Villa Park.

However, Arsenal pulled a goal back in the opening stages of the second period, before netting two late goals to condemn the Villans to a 3-1 defeat.

Carla Ward's side have seen their last six league games produce two wins, one draw and three defeats, highlighting the inconsistency that has prevented them from matching last season's fifth-place finish.

Having drawn one and lost three three home games, Aston Villa will look to claim their first home win of 2024 in Saturday's fixture.

Since beating Liverpool in the FA Cup quarter-finals, Leicester have gone on to experience two disappointing results in the WSL.

The Foxes lost 1-0 in their away meeting with Tottenham, before they fell short in last Sunday's five-goal thriller against Brighton & Hove Albion.

After giving up a slender lead, Leicester thought they had done enough to rescue a point through Lena Petermann's 84th-minute equaliser.

However, Brighton quickly restored their narrow advantage to condemn the Foxes to a narrow 3-2 loss, representing a third consecutive league defeat.

Jennifer Foster and Stephen Kirby have overseen the last three matches, and the pair will remain in charge after Leicester confirmed the sacking of Willie Kirk following an investigation into an alleged relationship with a player.

Having taken charge of one win and two defeats, Foster and Kirby will be hoping to guide Leicester to their first-ever WSL victory against Aston Villa.

Aston Villa Women Women's Super League form:

L

D

W

L

W

L

Aston Villa Women form (all competitions):

Leicester Women Women's Super League form:

W

L

W

L

L

L

Leicester Women form (all competitions):

Team News

Aston Villa goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing hip surgery earlier this month.

Lucy Parker and Lucy Staniforth will miss out due to ankle issues, while Kirsty Hanson is expected to be absent with a calf problem.

Having scored in the last two matches, Salmon will provide the hosts with one of their main goal threats for Saturday's contest.

As for the Foxes, they are unable to call upon the injured trio of Shannon O'Brien, Denny Draper and Courtney Nevin.

Petermann is in contention to lead the line after coming off the bench to net a late goal in the 3-2 defeat to Brighton.

CJ Bott, Julie Thibaud and Saori Takarada dropped down to the bench last weekend, but the trio could be considered for a recall.

Aston Villa Women possible starting lineup:

Leat; Maritz, Patten, Turner; Mayling, Nobbs, Dali, Pacheco; Leon, Salmon, Daly

Leicester Women possible starting lineup:

Kop; Bott, Howard, Thibaud, Cayman; Whelan, Tierney, Takarada, Momiki, Rantala; Petermann

We say: Aston Villa Women 2-1 Leicester Women

Aston Villa may have experienced disappointment last weekend, but they usually fare well in their meetings with Leicester.

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