Ladbrokes Festive Countdown Day 21 - Man United to take points

• Day 21 of the Ladbrokes Festive Countdown sees another 'double chance' tip, this time for Man United against Aston Villa, with both teams scoring.

• Ruben Amorim won his first and only game against Villa in the Premier League, a 2-0 win in May 2025.

• System's with wide wing-backs, like Amorim's, have tended to cause issues for Unai Emery due to his very narrow formation.

For day 21 of the Festive Countdown, Ladbrokes is tipping Man United to turn up to Villa Park later on today and either draw with or beat Aston Villa in the Premier League, with both teams scoring in the process.

After a hectic Saturday in the Premier League, which saw Tottenham lose to Liverpool, Arsenal beat Everton and Erling Haaland guide Man City to victory against West Ham, Aston Villa hosting Man United is Sunday's only match.

It's one that certainly won't disappoint too, with Unai Emery's side aiming to capitalise on Chelsea's dropping points at Newcastle by widening their gap in third to seven points.

On the other hand, Liverpool's win yesterday means that Man United find themselves in seventh place in the Premier League, three points behind the reigning champions. They too will be eager for a win.

Both sides are in pretty good form right now, but the league table doesn't lie, so Villa will consider themselves favourites heading into the 16:30 GMT kickoff.

However, that isn't how we think things are going to go, so we're tipping Ruben Amorim's side to walk away from Villa Park with either a win, or at least a draw.

While United may be without both Amad Diallo and Bryan Mbeumo due to AFCON, they possess enough quality through the likes of Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes and Mason Mount to get at least a point.

That's not all, as the main reason we're tipping a United result is because of the wide system they play, with attacking wing-backs, and how that's something that Emery has struggled with for a while.

Villa's formation is a very narrow one, with their wingers often playing more as centre-midfielders or number 10s. That means that, when teams play with wing-back who don't invert and simply want to get down the line, Emery's system becomes stretched.

That was on full display earlier on in the season, when Oliver Glasner's wide three-back system presented problems for Villa, resulting in a 3-0 loss for Emery's side.

In fact, Villa have lost each of their last three games in all competitions against Palace, showing just how much they struggle against this particular system.

Perhaps Emery will have learned his lesson and Villa get a result this weekend, but our team of experts are of the belief that United's player quality and specific system give them a good chance at walking away with at least one point today.

As for the Both Teams to Score element of the bet, while that would have only come in twice over the last five Premier League games between the two sides, Man United have looked shaky defensively as of late, conceding four goals earlier on in the week to an off-colour Bournemouth.

Villa have scored a goal in each of their last 16 games in all competitions, including against league leaders Arsenal, while Man United have only been prevented from scoring twice in the Premier League so far this season.

With odds of 6/4, a small punt on Man United to either draw or beat Aston Villa, and both teams scoring in the match, represents decent value.

Ladbrokes Festive Countdown History

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 1 - Aaron Ramsdale to feature in England's 2026 World Cup squad.

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 2 - Fulham to draw in their match with Manchester City.

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 3 - Arsenal to win a quadruple this season

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 4 - Man United to win their next two games

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 5 - Lando Norris to win the F1 World Championship

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 6 - Hugo Ekitike to score for Liverpool vs Leeds

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 7 - Angry Ginge to win I'm a Celebrity 2025

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 8 - Karen Carney to win Strictly Come Dancing 2025

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 9 - Dominik Szoboszlai to register a shot on target vs Inter Milan

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 10 - Manchester City to beat Real Madrid

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 11 - Donyell Malen to score for Aston Villa vs Basel

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 12 - Sheffield United to win or draw against West Brom

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 13 - Mohamed Salah to have two shots on target vs Brighton

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 14 - Two cards for each team in Sunderland vs Newcastle

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 15 - Bruno Fernandes to commit a foul, take two shots and make one tackle vs Bournemouth

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 16 - Estevao to have two shots on target vs Cardiff

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 17 - Newcastle to beat Fulham in the Carabao Cup

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 18 - Eddie Nketiah to have two shots on target vs KuPS

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 19 - Wrexham to win or draw against Swansea

• Ladbrokes Festive Countdown - Day 20 - Chelsea to beat Newcastle and both teams to score

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All odds and markets are correct as of the date of publication.