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Aston Villa and West Brom meet on Saturday afternoon with both teams in desperate need of three points.
The Baggies haven’t won since a 1-0 victory at Norwich back in September, while Villa have only one once in their last six games.
In fact, these two midlands rivals have only secured four victories between them so far this year.
So, although neither of them sit in the bottom three at the moment – Villa are 8th and West Brom 12th – they know that a win would be very welcome indeed.
It is extremely tight in the Premier League of course with just six points between 8th placed Villa and Blackburn who are rock bottom as things stand.
Week on week, a single result can change a teams fortunes. For example, if Villa win on Saturday they could go to up to 5th, while if they lose, it is possible they could fall to 13th.
There is therefore plenty at stake this weekend, not least the local rivalry between these two teams.
History suggests there isn’t going to be too much between them either, with five of the last six meetings finishing with a 2-1 scoreline.
Neither Villa nor West Brom will settle for a point that’s for sure. The Baggies will be boosted by beating their hosts the last time the two teams met as well, even though Villa dominated this fixture in the top flight prior to that.
Despite Villa’s relatively inconsistent form this year, they have actually only lost twice in their last 16 Premier League matches.
Their problem has been drawing games, something they have done no less than five times already in this campaign.
The Villa fans won’t accept a draw in this one though, while West Brom will hope to make the most of a somewhat fragile atmosphere at Villa Park right now.
The home faithful are still not convinced by Alex McLeish and for the former Birmingham manager, three points on Saturday would be a massive boost.
We can see how this one pans out from 3pm on Saturday afternoon.
Match odds
Home advantage and West Brom’s poor form has contributed to Villa being favourites for this one. McLeish’s men are 1.91 (11/10) with Ladbrokes for the win.
If you expect the Baggies to end their recent slump though, an away win is available at 4.00 (3/1), while the draw is around 3.25 (9/4).
Correct score
As mentioned earlier, 2-1 is a common scoreline in this fixture and you can back this to be the case again at 8.00 (7/1) for Villa to nick it and West Brom at 15.00 (14/1) with BetFred.
Other options are to back these teams to cancel each other out with a 0-0 draw available at 11.00 (10/1), while a goal each can be backed at odds of 6.50 (11/2) with SkyBet.
First goalscorer
With there likely to be few goals in this one, the first goalscorer could prove decisive. The favourite to score first is Darren Bent at 5.00 (4/1) with the Villa man followed by the in-form Gabriel Agbonlahor who is available with Ladbrokes at 6.00 (5/1).
For West Brom, Peter Odemwingie – who has scored twice this year – is their most likely man to score first at 8.00 (7/1).
Beyond the group of favourites, you can back Chris Brunt at 12.00 (11/1), Steven Reid at 34.00 (33/1) and Fabian Delph at 26.00 (25/1).
Then, for their to be no goalscorer at all, you can get odds of 12.00 (11/1) with StanJames.
Recommended bets
West Brom to win 2-1 @ 15.00 (14/1)
Peter Odemwingie to score first @ 8.00 (7/1)
