Premier League: Villa battle Black Cats amid Midlands madness

There’s a feast of football for the Midlands clubs in the Premier League this Saturday with Aston Villa, and Leicester City joining Stoke City and West Bromwich Albion in action for the traditional 3om kick-off slot.

Vila host Sunderland, the Baggies travel to the Britannia and the Foxes embark on a long trip down to their successors as Football League Championship winners, Bournemouth.

Aston Villa v Sunderland
Tim Sherwood made no secret of his excitement at the signing of Barcelona youngster Adama Traore and, after just two appearances for his new club, it is easy to see why the 19-year-old is held in such high regard.

Spanish-born starlet Traore tore Notts County apart during their Capital One Cup clash, netting on his full debut after forcing Crystal Palace defender Pape Souare into an own goal at Selhurst Park when coming off the bench last week. He will thrive against a poor Sunderland defence, and is 15/2 with Coral to score first.

These two sides have struggled at the back so far and conceded three goals each against a League One and League Two team respectively in midweek. The Black Cats defence have already let in eight in Premier League action, so a match total of 3.5 strikes at 13/4 should get some attention.

Stoke v West Brom
Tony Pulis returns to his old stomping ground with his current club 7/2 to grab a win. It’s been a tough start for the Baggies and unlikely to get any easier here. Stoke are odds-on at 20/23 for the three points and have lost at home to Albion just once in 35 years.