Aston Villa vs Arsenal Prediction & Preview - Premier League

·3 min read·By Denver

Aston Villa host Arsenal at Villa Park on Monday 31 August 2026 in the Premier League - preview, team news and our prediction for the match.

Aston Villa host Arsenal at Villa Park in Birmingham on Monday 31 August 2026, with kick-off at 20:00 BST in the Premier League. Unai Emery's Villa go into the game off the back of a heavy defeat, while Mikel Arteta's Arsenal arrive on the sharper run of form.

  • Fixture: Aston Villa v Arsenal
  • Competition: Premier League
  • Date: Monday 31 August 2026
  • Kick-off: 20:00 BST
  • Venue: Villa Park, Birmingham

Full match details, including how to enter a prediction for the game, are on the Aston Villa vs Arsenal match page.

What time is kick-off for Aston Villa vs Arsenal?

Kick-off is at 20:00 BST on Monday 31 August 2026, at Villa Park. It is the two clubs' only Premier League meeting on the August fixture list.

Have Aston Villa and Arsenal met recently?

The two clubs' most recent meeting in our archive came in May, when Arsenal's women's team beat Aston Villa Women 3-0 in the Women's Super League on 9 May 2026. There is no recorded meeting between the men's sides in the archive ahead of Monday's game.

How have Aston Villa been playing?

Aston Villa were beaten 4-0 away at Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on 23 August 2026. That followed a run of pre-season defeats: 2-1 to Borussia Mönchengladbach, 2-1 to Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup, 1-2 to FC Bayern München, and 2-4 to Real Sociedad. Villa's only win across that spell of matches was 3-1 away to an Indonesia XI on 1 August 2026.

How have Arsenal been playing?

Arsenal beat Coventry City 3-0 on 21 August 2026 and beat Manchester City 3-0 in the Community Shield on 16 August 2026. Their pre-season also included a 7-7 draw with Borussia Dortmund in the Emirates Cup, a 5-4 win over Como, a 1-3 defeat to Real Betis and a 4-1 win away at Girona FC.

Team news for Aston Villa vs Arsenal

Aston Villa are without Amadou Onana, who is out long-term with an ACL injury picked up at the World Cup, and Johan Manzambi, who has yet to feature this season because of his own knee injury from the same tournament. Brian Madjo and Tammy Abraham have also been out injured. Ollie Watkins, who has been the subject of interest from Saudi club Al Hilal, was left out of the squad for the Brighton defeat. Alejandro Garnacho made his Villa debut off the bench in that game.

Arsenal are missing William Saliba, who has a longer-term back injury, and Jurrien Timber, who is working his way back from injury but is not yet available. Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice have both returned from international duty and are available for selection.

Aston Villa vs Arsenal prediction

Arsenal should beat Aston Villa in this Premier League fixture at Villa Park on Monday 31 August 2026. Villa have lost every competitive and warm-up match they have played since the end of July, including a 4-0 defeat at Brighton, and go into this one further stretched by injuries to Onana and Manzambi. Arsenal, by contrast, have won their two most recent competitive outings without conceding, beating Manchester City and Coventry City by the same 3-0 scoreline.

Our prediction: Aston Villa 1-2 Arsenal

Make your prediction

You don't need to back your view with any money to test it. CalledItMate is a free football prediction game, and you can enter your own scoreline for this one on the Aston Villa vs Arsenal match page. Check how to play if you're new to it, and see what's on offer this season on the prizes page - the game is free to enter and correct predictions can win real cash.

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