West Ham United host Aston Villa this Saturday as the 2024/25 Premier League season gets underway.

Aston Villa were the feel-good story of last season in the English top flight, defying expectations to memorably qualify for the Champions League – the first time they had done so since the competition’s rebranding in 1992.

Their early season form was key to an impressive campaign and Unai Emery will be desperate for his side to make a lightning fast start again this term after significant summer investment.

West Ham bid farewell to David Moyes at the end of last season and replaced him with the more stylish Julen Lopetegui, formerly of Wolverhampton Wanderers, Real Madrid and Spain. The Irons have also been busy in the transfer market but a difficult run of pre-season results may have tempered expectations ahead of Saturday’s opener at the London Stadium.

Here is 90min’s guide to West Ham vs Aston Villa in the capital this weekend.

West Ham vs Aston Villa H2H Record (Last Five Games)

Current Form (all competitions)

West Ham have a number of summer signings in line for debuts this weekend. They include Max Kilman, Luis Guilherme, Crysencio Summerville, Guido Rodriguez, Jean-Clair Todibo and Niclas Fullkrug.

New club captain Jarrod Bowen made his first Hammers appearance of the summer against Celta Vigo in a recent friendly, getting on the scoresheet alongside Lucas Paqueta. Both should feature significantly against Villa.

Edson Alvarez is out with a hamstring injury suffered in the Copa America, while latest recruit Aaron Wan-Bissaka is thought to be carrying a slight knock ahead of the weekend but may well feature.

West Ham predicted lineup vs Aston Villa (4-2-3-1): Areola; Coufal, Mavropanos, Kilman, Emerson; Ward-Prowse, Rodriguez; Bowen, Paqueta, Kudus; Fullkrug.

Aston Villa have just three players missing for Saturday’s trip down south, with Tyrone Mings still sidelined with the long-term knee injury that kept him out for the 2023/24 season. Boubacar Kamara is also missing after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament last term and Robin Olsen may be absent with a knock.

How Emery approaches the horde of new signings available to him remains to be seen but the likes of Amadou Onana, Ian Maatsen and Jaden Philogene could all start. Elsewhere, Ross Barkley, Samuel Iling-Junior and Cameron Archer should feature in some capacity.

Ollie Watkins didn’t turn out in pre-season following his Euro 2024 excursions but is still in line to start at the London Stadium.

Aston Villa predicted lineup vs West Ham (4-4-2): Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Maatsen; Philogene, Onana, Tielemans, McGinn; Rogers, Watkins.

The first weekend of a new Premier League season can throw up some surprises. Aston Villa lost 5-1 to Newcastle United on Matchday 1 of 2023/24 yet enjoyed one of their greatest seasons in modern history.

The London Stadium is likely to be filled with excitement and trepidation from both sets of supporters on Saturday evening, with a similarly chaotic match playing out on the pitch. Both sides have looked open defensively in pre-season despite finding the net fairly frequently, hinting at an end-to-end and high-scoring affair.

Prediction: West Ham 2-2 Aston Villa

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