Aston Villa vs Zrinjski Mostar Predictions

• Aston Villa have led at HT and FT in three of their five home games this season
• Zrinjski were 3-0 down at HT against AZ on matchday one
• Nemanja Bilbija has scored four goals in his last eight European games, including both home and away against LASK

Villa set for another European thriller?

Aston Villa will look to get their first points on the board when they host Zrinjski Mostar in the Europa Conference League group stage on Thursday.

Last month’s shock 3-2 loss to Legia in Warsaw has left Unai Emery’s team playing catch up with Zrinjski one of the teams they need to haul after the visitors’ stunning 4-3 win over AZ.

Down three goals at the break, the Nobles never gave up the ghost in front of their own fans. Through a combination of deadly finishing and ordinary goalkeeping, they fought back to get the win which puts them top of Group E.

Fast start from Emery’s side can catch Zrinjski cold again

A full-strength Villa side should cruise to victory, but Emery is likely to make a raft of changes — as he did in Poland — with Sunday’s trip to Molineux in mind. Jhon Duran, Youri Tielemans and Jacob Ramsey will freshen them up going forward, but recalls for Calum Chambers and Clement Lenglet at the back could make them vulnerable to conceding again.

Villa have kept only one clean sheet in the last six games and may be unable to bank their visiting opponents, who scored in both legs of their Europa League play-off round defeat to LASK.

The ability to make fast starts in games, that we saw so often last season, remains and it should be worth taking the hosts to be ahead at the break and the final whistle in order to secure a fourfold boost in the odds from their 1/9 match quote.