The end of the beginning: Manchester City v Aston Villa match preview and team news

There is sand between my toes.

There are some football supporters for whom it’s all so very serious that they could never countenance their team finding an acceptable way to lose a match. I am not one of those football supporters.

Aston Villa have done what they needed to do in the 2025/26. All of it. Be drunk if you want; you’ve earned it. Be hungover on a matchday. Show up at Manchester City on Sunday with your bucket and spade. I do not care.

There was a world in which this match at the Etihad could have meant nothing to Villa and everything to Man City. There might have been a few more supporters who’d have some expectation on the team to at least take the game seriously to protect the competitive integrity of the Premier League, such as it is.

I am not one of those supporters either. Villa won the Europa League and can’t finish outside the top five. They would have owed Arsenal absolutely nothing.

They’ve done their job for the season and made themselves legends to boot. I don’t care about this game. I don’t care about it even slightly. I don’t care about finishing above Liverpool.