Norwich v Aston Villa commentary and teams: Dean Smith to take on former club

Steven Gerrard has enjoyed an excellent start to life at Villa Park but endured a 1-0 defeat to former club Liverpool on Saturday afternoon.

However a clash against the relegation battlers could be the ideal chance to get back on track.

Smith only took charge at Carrow Road last month and will face his former club for the first time since leaving his boyhood team.

After back-to-back defeats against Tottenham and Manchester United, Norwich will be eager for points as they continue their fight against the drop.

Norwich City vs Aston Villa: Date and time

The Premier League fixture is due to take place on Tuesday, December 14 at Carrow Road in Norwich.

Kick-off is scheduled for 7.45pm.

Victory would put Norwich level on points with 17th spot Watford while a Villa win will move them up to eighth.

Norwich City vs Aston Villa: talkSPORT commentary

Commentary will come from Joe Shennan and former England defender Alvin Martin.

Norwich City vs Aston Villa: Team news

Brandon Williams returns for the Canaries after being ineligible to face parent club United in their last game.

Ben Gibson could return, however Christos Tzolis, Mathias Normann, Christoph Zimmermann, Andrew Omobamidele and Milot Rashiva are set to miss out, as is Grant Hanley would hobbled off with a shoulder injury at the weekend.

Villa will be without Leon Bailey and Bertrand Traore for this one with both players likely to be out until the New Year.

Marvelous Nakamba is also set to miss out with Morgan Sanson, Emi Buendia and Danny Ings in contention to start.

Norwich City vs Aston Villa: Match facts

Norwich have lost six of their last seven Premier League games against Aston Villa, with the exception being a 2-0 home win in December 2015.

Aston Villa won 5-1 in their last away league game against Norwich in October 2019, having lost each of their previous four at Carrow Road before this (though three of these were in the Championship).

Norwich have never won a Premier League game on a Tuesday before (D4 L11), with only West Bromwich Albion playing more games on a specific weekday without victory in the competition (32 on Tuesdays).

Aston Villa have won their last two Premier League games on a Tuesday, though this is their first such match since July 2020 (1-0 vs Arsenal). They last won more consecutively on this weekday in the division between January 2008 and December 2009 (4).

As well as being the Premier League's lowest goalscorers this season (8), Norwich have failed to score in a league-high 10 games so far, and have had the fewest shots on target (49) in the division.

Aston Villa have kept just one clean sheet in their last 14 Premier League away games, doing so in a 1-0 victory against Manchester United at Old Trafford in September.

76% of Aston Villa's Premier League goals this season have come in the second half of games (16/21), while Norwich have netted a league-low three times after half-time this term.

Norwich boss Dean Smith was in charge of Aston Villa for 11 Premier League games this season - this will be the 32nd occasion of a manager taking charge of a Premier League match both for and against a side in the same season, and first since Mark Hughes did so for and against Southampton in 2017-18. Smith will be the third manager to take charge for and against Aston Villa in a single Premier League campaign (also Ron Atkinson in 1994-95 and Stuart Gray in 2001-02).

Aston Villa striker Danny Ings has scored in all three of his Premier League games against Norwich, doing so in September 2015 with Liverpool and in both of Southampton's games against the Canaries in 2019-20.

Aston Villa's Emiliano Buendía played for Norwich between 2018-19 and 2020-21, and was the Canaries' leading chance creator (83) and assister (7) in his solitary Premier League campaign in that run. He could become the sixth different player to score a Premier League goal against Norwich having previously played for them in the competition, after Chris Sutton, Efan Ekoku, Ruel Fox, Harry Kane and Nathan Redmond.