When Aston Villa takes on Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, they will be looking to set a new Premier League club record.
Following a seventh-place finish last season, Villa has collected 25 points from 12 games in 2023-24 to sit in fifth place in the standings this time around.
Despite Unai Emery’s team suffering a surprise 2-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest on November 5, there is now a four-point gap between them and sixth place.
Villa are only three points off the top spot, and with Manchester City and Liverpool meeting this weekend, there is still time for Villa to climb the table.
Villa will also move ahead of Tottenham Hotspur, who are one point ahead of them, if they win their match at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Emery will be focused on achieving that goal, despite Villa being underdogs heading into the game in North London, having lost three of their six away games in the Premier League this season.
Nonetheless, if Villa defeat Ange Postecoglou’s team, they will set a new club record for the number of Premier League wins in a calendar year.
That was equaled before the November international break, with Villa winning 3-1 at home against Fulham for their 21st Premier League victory of 2023.
While Villa have a perfect home record, they have only seven points from six games on the road, despite being unbeaten in five matches in London since Emery’s arrival just over a year ago.
Furthermore, Emery has not lost a single Premier League game against Spurs since taking over as Arsenal manager in May 2018 until November 2019.
Spurs have not lost consecutive home league matches against Villa since the beginning of the 1995-96 season.
When these two teams met on New Year’s Day last season, Villa won 2-0, with Emiliano Buendia and Douglas Luiz scoring in the second half.
