Barnsley v Aston Villa: Can Bruce’s boys bounce back at Oakwell?

Aston Villa will be looking to return to winning ways on Saturday evening after a pair of 0-0 draws in the last week.

The Villans clocked up a 0-0 draw with Brentford last Saturday and followed that up with another stalemate against Middlesbrough in midweek.

In short, manager Steve Bruce is under pressure.

If three points are not forthcoming at Oakwell, things could start to look bleak for the beleaguered Villa boss.

His charges are 21/20 to save him from further criticism by picking up an away win this weekend, with the Tykes 5/2 for home success, while the draw is handily priced at 12/5.

Given Villa’s recent form it’s the draw that makes most appeal here.

The Midlands club have shared the points in their last three matches.

And on their last visit to Oakwell almost a year ago today the spoils were  split in a 1-1 stalemate.

You can get 11/2 on a repeat of that scoreline this time around.

And given that Barnsley have drawn six of their last nine home games, it might be the way to go.

One thing that is for certain is that both teams like to score and concede in equal measure.

The Tykes have scored and conceded eight apiece so far in the league this season.

Meanwhile, Villa have netted seven and let in nine, with six of those against coming away from home.

That makes the 4/6 on Both Teams to Score look like a banker.

If you want to enhance that price, why not get on the Draw and Under 3.5 Goals at a tastier 7/2?

It’s fair to say that if there’s going to be goals there needs to be goalscorers.

Star striker Jonathan Kodija netted 19 last season and could be in line for a return to the starting line-up after an injury lay-off.

He’s 13/8 to score Anytime. Midfield maestro Conor Hourihane also likes a goal and is competitively priced at 3/1 to get on the scoresheet against his old club.

For the hosts, Ike Ugbo holds the key.

We think the pacy forward will get a lot of joy against Villa’s slow centre-halves. The on-loan Chelsea man is 12/5 to pile the pressure on Steve Bruce with a goal.

Click here for the latest Barnsley v Aston Villa odds.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing