Stoke City vs Aston Villa. Premier League.
Bet365 StadiumAttendance27,703.
Saturday 27 February 2016 15:04, UK
Marko Arnautovic should return to the Stoke starting line-up against Aston Villa after missing the last match through illness.
The Austrian, who is Stoke's top scorer this season, did not play any part in the 3-1 win at Bournemouth on February 13.
Since that victory, the Potters have been on a warm weather training camp to Dubai to prepare for the final 12 games of the Premier League season.
Villa, by contrast, have stayed in the UK following their 6-0 home defeat to Liverpool that has left them rooted to the foot of the table, eight points from safety.
Former Villa owner and chairman Doug Ellis thinks it is a "certainty" the club will be relegated, but manager Remi Garde is not giving up hope yet.
"Until the last day that we have the possibility of being safe in this Premier League, I won't give up," he said.
"My job is to still believe and make the players believe that if we have a good spell of games, like we had previously, maybe we can still be in the Premier League next season. I am still fighting and I have to accept the comment coming from this kind of person."
Team news
Arnautovic is in line to return for Stoke but defenders Ryan Shawcross, Glen Johnson and Marc Muniesa remain out.
Geoff Cameron has a chance of being involved after nearly two months out with a niggling ankle injury.
Rudy Gestede is available for Villa after missing the last four games with a hamstring injury.
Gabriel Agbonlahor is back after suffering a dizzy spell during the 6-0 defeat to Liverpool but Jack Grealish (ankle), Carlos Sanchez (hamstring), Libor Kozak (ankle), Jordan Amavi (knee), Adama Traore (foot) and Jordan Ayew (suspension) are all absent.
Opta stats
Stoke have won four and lost one of the last five Premier League games against Villa.
The Villans have now lost more games than any other team in Premier League history (322) as well as having drawn the most (274).
Villa have the lowest chance conversion rate in the Premier League in 2015/16, scoring with just 10 per cent of their shots.
This is Stoke's joint-highest points haul after 26 Premier League games along with last season (36).
Villa have scored the highest proportion of second-half goals of any team in the Premier League this season (70 per cent).
Merson's prediction
I can't see anything but a Stoke win. When you look at the league table and their recent results, Aston Villa look doomed.
Mark Hughes' side hit form with an excellent result at Bournemouth and I can seem them scoring three without reply against Villa. I'm backing Marko Arnautovic to score the first goal.
PAUL PREDICTS: 3-0 (Sky Bet Odds 10/1)
Betting
Stoke are Sky Bet's odds-on favourites for the victory at 4/6 with Aston Villa 9/2 for a rare win and 13/5 to leave with a point.
Remi Garde's men are considered all but down with the bookies, with odds of 25/1 on them staying up, while they are just 1/8 to finish bottom.
Mame Biram Diouf and Jonathan Walters share favouritism at 4/1 in a wide-open first goalscorer market, while Rudy Gestede is considered the visitors' main threat at 17/2. The Britannia Stadium clash is part of this weekend's Super 6 line-up, with a bumper £1m jackpot up for grabs
