This game will be Aston Villa's first Saturday 3pm kick-off at home in the Premier League for 371 days.
They were held to a 1-1 draw by Ipswich Town's 10 men back then and are in stuttering form ahead of the visit of Leeds United, who they beat 2-1 in November's reverse fixture thanks to two second-half goals by Morgan Rogers.
Ton up for Emery?
Third-placed Aston Villa have been in mid-table form over their past eight league games, with three wins, three defeats and 11 points during that spell. They've only scored four goals in their six most recent top-flight fixtures, most recently profiting from a late own goal to beat Brighton.
That was followed by last weekend's FA Cup exit to Newcastle – Villa's third home defeat in five matches, as many losses as in their previous 43 fixtures at Villa Park.
Key midfield injuries have inevitably affected performances, but the Villans tend to find a way of engineering results under Unai Emery. The Spaniard, who took over in 2022 with Villa only a point above the relegation zone, has a 56% win percentage – the highest of any permanent manager in the club's history.
Against Leeds, he could become only the fifth manager or de facto manager to reach 100 wins with Villa, doing so in the fewest games.
Under Emery, Villa are unbeaten in all 18 league games against promoted sides, winning 14 and drawing four.
Improved Leeds seek elusive away win
Emery's counterpart Daniel Farke has found an effective gameplan for his Leeds side since a home defeat by Villa in November kept them in the relegation zone. The switch to a back three midway through the next game, away to Manchester City, has provided the platform for sustained improvement.
Leeds have only lost two league matches since the start of December, a record only bettered by the two Manchester clubs. The Whites have registered a league-high seven draws over that 13-match period, including against current top-six sides Manchester United,Chelsea and Liverpool (twice).
"We are on a good path but I am a realistic person," said Farke. "We have to win many more points and for that we will stay with a foot on the gas."
The next step for 15th-placed Leeds is to win away. They've gone 10 top-flight games without doing so and their only Premier League victory on the road this season came in September at bottom side Wolves.
