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Villa have lost nine of their 11 top-flight fixtures this season against teams currently above them in the table.

However, they have failed to score in only one of their 13 home league games in 2021-22, a 1-0 defeat by Watford on 19 February.

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Coutinho has also scored four Premier League goals against Arsenal, more than he has against any other side.

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We’ve got a mouth-watering FA Cup tie coming up later this afternoon as Championship Middlesbrough – who have knocked out Manchester United and Tottenham on their way to the quarter-finals – face last season’s finalists Chelsea.

Join us from 16:15 for live build-up from the Riverside Stadium.

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Steven Gerrard has urged his Aston Villa players not to be disheartened by their omission from Gareth Southgate's latest England squad.

Tyrone Mings was the only Villa player to make the 25-man squad for this month's friendlies against Switzerland and the Ivory Coast.

Gerrard said: "In terms of Ollie Watkins, Danny Ings and other people who haven’t made the squad, the only way to get back in is to play well at club level, score goals consistently and perform well enough so that when the next squad’s named, you might force your way back in.

"Listening to what Gareth Southgate said, JJ (Jacob Ramsey) was certainly very close. He’s got eyes on him and he’s watching him very closely, that should be exciting for JJ."

As always, we want to hear your thoughts on the day’s action. Will the Gunners bounce back from Wednesday's loss to Liverpool? Will Villa inflict a second successive defeat on Arteta's troops?

Get involved by tweeting #bbcfootball or text 81111.

BBC One

Football Focus is about to get under way on BBC One.

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Five players off injured in less than an hour, 22 minutes added on, a controversial red card, a stunning comeback and a last-minute winner.

Leeds' Premier League trip to Wolves on Friday had it all.

Read Simon Stone's match report from a "bizarre, bruising and breathless" encounter at Molineux here.

Mark Lawrenson
BBC football expert

Arsenal played well against Liverpool on Wednesday and the game really swung on Alisson's save from Martin Odegaard after Thiago's poor back-pass. I thought Gabriel Martinelli, Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey all played well for the Gunners, despite their defeat.

Aston Villa had their own good run ended at the weekend, in a defeat by West Ham, but I've been impressed by them in recent weeks. I know Arsenal are higher up the table but I wouldn't say there is much between the two teams at the moment.

Prediction: 2-1

Lawro's full predictions v LIFE frontman and Mez Green

BBC Radio 5 Live

There will be updates from Villa Park on BBC Radio 5 Live from 12:00 GMT.

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• Aston Villa have won their last two top-flight home games against Arsenal 1-0. It is their longest winning run against the Gunners at Villa Park since a four-match sequence between 1975 and 1979.
• Arsenal have won 12 Premier League away matches versus Villa - the only side they have a better record against is West Ham (13 victories).
• Villa have won just 11 of their 53 Premier League fixtures against the Gunners.

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Arsenal are appealing for witnesses after a fan was racially abused during the defeat by Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.

The club said the supporter had been a victim of racial abuse and "a physical attack on his cultural identity".

"We will not stand for this kind of behaviour," Arsenal said., external

The incident has been reported to the Metropolitan Police.

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Villa’s fast-paced, free-flowing style has been incredibly pleasing on the eye of late, but their inconsistency will be a source of frustration for manager Steven Gerrard.

Sunday’s defeat at West Ham ended a three-game winning run in the league, with Gerrard suggesting afterwards that his side lacked a physical presence in midfield to compliment the guile of Philippe Coutinho and Jacob Ramsey.

"Looking at both teams, there's a few areas where I thought West Ham had a bit more on than us," Gerrard said. "I don't think they did technically, in possession or creativity, but in terms of stature."

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Former Premier League defender Jonathan Woodgate doesn't expect Arsenal's loss to Liverpool to derail their season.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily: "If you look at the form and how well they are playing, this was their first defeat in a while. They have won their last five games and have been playing really well.

"Mikel Arteta has had to pick this club up and go with it and do what he believes in. He’s made huge decisions with big players and he’s starting to see the benefit of that but it will take a few more years and cycles before this team comes to the fore."

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When Arsenal slumped to the bottom of the Premier League after being outplayed by Manchester City in their third game of the season, few would have backed them to feature among the top-four hopefuls come early spring. How the tables have turned.

Fast-forward six months and the Gunners know a Champions League place is theirs to lose after a five-year absence.

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Aston Villa make three changes from last weekend’s defeat at West Ham. Ashley Young comes in for the injured Lucas Digne, while Ezri Konsa and Emiliano Buendia replace Calum Chambers and Danny Ings, who drop to the bench.

Aston Villa XI: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Mings, Young, McGinn, Douglas Luiz, J Ramsey, Coutinho, Buendia, Watkins.

Subs: Olsen, Sanson, Traore, Chambers, Ings, Bailey, Chukwuemeka, Iroegbunam, O'Reilly.

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Arsenal make two changes from the side beaten at home by Liverpool in midweek.

Goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale is out with a hip injury while forward Gabriel Martinelli is ill. Bernd Leno and Emile Smith Rowe replace them in the starting XI.

Arsenal XI: Leno, Cedric, White, Gabriel, Tierney, Partey, Xhaka, Saka, Odegaard, Smith Rowe, Lacazette.

Subs: Okonkwo, Holding, Pepe, Tavares, Lokonga, Elneny, Nketiah, Swanson, Hutchinson.

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Just the one Premier League game to bring you today, but don’t let that put you off. It’s a tasty one.

Victory for Arsenal would lift Mikel Arteta’s team four points clear of the chasing pack for a coveted top-four spot, but standing in the Gunners’ way are an upwardly mobile Aston Villa side aiming to consolidate their place in the top half of the table under Steven Gerrard.

Let's get to it.