Statistical Betting Preview: Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace

Hull secured a valuable away point last time out with a 1-1 draw against West Brom at the Hawthorns. A composed finish from Jake Livermore gave City the lead but Steve Bruce’s men were unable to prevent a late equaliser from the Baggies.

Hull’s point, particularly away from home, was helped by their effective disruption of West Brom’s flow and patterns. One player who had a huge hand in this was Maynor Figueroa, who racked up more interceptions than any other player in the league during the last round with 6 according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.

Jake Livermore’s goal was a just reward for some strong form since arriving at Hull on loan from Tottenham. Some of his best work has been done in recovering possession for his side though, rather than in front of goal, Livermore winning an excellent 73.8% of his 42 attempted challenges this term.

Much of the pressure for goals for Hull will continue to fall on the shoulders on Yannick Sagbo, the Ivory Coast international currently possessing the best shot accuracy rate of any player in the Hull squad (77.8% from 9 attempts). Sagbo is 9/2 with 888sport.com to score at any time this weekend.

A convincing 3-1 win over West Ham gave Manchester Utd a fourth win in a row and provided yet more confidence to David Moyes and his side as their recovery in form continues. Three fine goals from Danny Welbeck, Adnan Januzaj and Ashley Young helped the Red Devils to the win and Moyes will be hoping they can continue their momentum this weekend.

It would be incredibly difficult to understate the importance of Wayne Rooney to this current Manchester Utd side, particularly with Robin van Persie struggling to get a run of games due to injury. Not only is he second in the Utd squad for passes completed in the opponent’s half with 386 (Michael Carrick – 405), he has 10 assists to his name this season, the joint highest in the league. Rooney is 5/4 with 888sport.com to score at any time this weekend.

Phil Jones continues to grow into the role of a leader both on and off the pitch for Manchester Utd this season, the former Blackburn man starting to live up to his early promise as a potential future captain of the club. He has the best tackle success rate of any player in the Utd squad to have made more 25 attempted challenges, winning 81.6% of his 38 tackles.

Javier Hernandez doesn’t appear to know the meaning of rustiness, the diminutive Mexican taking his chances with both hands this season. Despite only being on the pitch in the league for 333 minutes this term, he’s still been on target with 80% of his 5 attempts on goal according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.