Man Utd vs. Aston Villa

Barclays Premier League
Venue: Old Trafford Date: Saturday, 12 December 2009 Kick-off: 1730 GMT
Coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio 5 Live, local radio, Final Score, live on ESPN & highlights on Match of the Day

• TEAM NEWS

Manchester United's injury-hit side should be bolstered by the return of Dimitar Berbatov (knee), Wayne Rooney (hamstring) and Nemanja Vidic (flu).

Ryan Giggs could start after being rested against Wolfsburg, with defender Ritchie de Laet - ineligible in midweek - also available.

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill has no new injury worries.

James Collins is back in training after three weeks out with groin and calf problems and could play some part.

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Man Utd

Suspended: Scholes (one match)

Doubtful: Brown (hamstring), Van der Sar (knee)

Injured: Evans & Ferdinand (both calf), Fabio (groin), Hargreaves (knee), Macheda (unspecified), Neville (groin), O'Shea (thigh), Rafael (leg)

Aston Villa

Doubtful: Gardner (back)

Injured: Bouma (toe), Davies (shoulder)

• MATCH PREVIEW

This is currently the biggest mismatch in the Premier League: since Manchester United's defeat at Villa Park on the opening day of the 1995/96 season, which famously prompted Alan Hansen to declare 'you win nothing with kids', they have gone 27 league games unbeaten in this fixture, and won 12 of the last 13. No other club has ever had such a stranglehold over Villa.

Martin O'Neill's side came within a whisker of breaking that sequence at Old Trafford in April, only for Cristiano Ronaldo and another of Sir Alex Ferguson's 'kids', the then-unknown 17-year-old Federico Macheda, to turn the game on its head.

That result was credited with tipping last season's title race in United's favour, and a similar result on Saturday would be an important step on the road to a fourth successive title.

United go into the game in the midst of an injury crisis, with eight defenders absent from the midweek win over Wolfsburg, and Ferguson may again be forced to name at least two midfielders in his back four.

Villa head into the game riding high in fifth and, with victories over Liverpool and Chelsea already this season, will not be overawed at facing the champions despite that abysmal record. Victory at Old Trafford would see the Midlands club move into the top four, until Sunday at least.

• MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head

• Villa have gone 24 games without a win against Manchester United in all competitions. In league games only, United are unbeaten in their last 27 meetings with Villa (W20, D7). This is currently the longest winless sequence in the league, and the second-longest sequence in top flight history - behind only Tottenham's 32-match streak without a victory over Chelsea from 1990 to 2006.

• Villa's last win over United was 13 October 1999, when they beat the under-strength visitors 3-0 in the League Cup third round.

• The last time Villa avoided defeat at Old Trafford was 1-1 on 26 October 2002. Their last win at the stadium was in 1983.

• Wayne Rooney has scored five goals in his last five Premier League starts against Aston Villa.

Man Utd

• Man Utd are the only team in the Premier League who have not dropped any points from a winning position in the league this season.

• They have lost only one of their last 31 Premier League matches at Old Trafford.

• United have scored 11 goals in their last three league outings.

• Paul Scholes has scored 99 Premier League goals.

Aston Villa

• After drawing a blank against Wigan on the opening day, Villa have found the net in their subsequent 14 Premier League matches.

• Martin O'Neill's side are the only team in the Premier League not to have lost a game against the current top 10 in the table.

• Villa have scored a league-high eight goals from corners.

• The Midlands club have won 99 Premier League games away from home.

• LEADING GOALSCORERS

Man Utd

Rooney: 12 goals (11 league); Owen: 7 (2 league)

Aston Villa

Agbonlahor: 8 goals (7 league); Milner: 5 goals (3 league)

• MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Martin Atkinson

Assistant referees: David Richardson & Phil Sharp

Fourth official: Mike Jones

• LAST LEAGUE MATCH LINE-UPS

Man Utd (W4-0 v West Ham, a): Kuszczak; Fletcher, Neville (Carrick 34), Brown, Evra, Gibson (Berbatov 67), Anderson, Valencia, Scholes, Giggs, Rooney (Owen 72). Subs not used: Foster, Park, Nani, De Laet.

Aston Villa (W3-0 v Hull, h): Friedel; L Young, Dunne, Cuellar, Warnock, A Young, Milner, Petrov, Downing, Agbonlahor, Heskey (Carew 78). Subs not used: Guzan, Sidwell, Delph, Reo-Coker, Beye, Clark.

• MOST RECENT MEETING

Man Utd 3-2 Aston Villa (5 April 2009)

Man Utd scorers: Ronaldo 14, Ronaldo 80, Macheda 90

Aston Villa scorers: Carew 30, Agbonlahor 58

From BBC