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By LEWIS BROWNING, SPORTS REPORTER and MATT BARLOW, FOOTBALL WRITER Updated: 00: 00 AEDT, 20 October 2025 9 View comments Follow Daily Mail Sport's live blog for the latest score, teams news and updates as Tottenham play host to Aston Villa at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the Premier League, with Matt Barlow reporting from the ground. Right then, here we go! The teams are on their ways out in north London and kick off is now moments away. A good atmosphere inside the ground, especially compared to when I was last there this season. Kick off is on the way! Unai Emery has confirmed on Sky that Ollie Watkins has come back to camp injured after England duty. But he has been out there getting warm in north London, and the players need to do just that - it's freezing. Maybe that played a part in Romero's injury. My trusty Apple weather app says it's 15 degrees Celcius, but feels like 11. I'm not buying it. Shay Given, former Newcastle goalkeeper, BBC 5 Live: Well, this is a worry for Spurs. Captain Cristian Romero has picked up an injury in the warm-up and won't play this afternoon. Kevin Danso comes in, with Micky van De Ven captain. They will hope that's not serious. Our friends at Squawka have given us a stats pack ahead of today's game, and it makes for interesting reading! Mental that the chances created per 90 are the exact same. But Villa are well ahead in terms of actual goals scored. And goals against! Maccabi Tel Aviv fans have been banned from attending from their side's match against Aston Villa on November 6. Ministers are exploring what extra support West Midlands Police needs to allow fans from both sides into the Europa League game, with a revised decision expected soon. This is very political, but has a human side to it too. I'll attach some extra reading here. Worth remembering that Tottenham have a large Jewish following, which increases the significance of the decision ahead of today. Harry Redknapp, former Tottenham manager, speaking to Bet Victor: Thomas Frank, Tottenham manager: Fabio Paratici is back at Tottenham after a 30-month ban imposed by the Italian FA and extended worldwide by FIFA for his part in the 'Plusvalenza' scandal that rocked Juventus. He'll be working as sporting director, though some argue he never left. I'll be honest, there's so much to this saga, and no one better to explain it in full than Matt. So click here or below to read his take. Here's what our friends at Sky Bet say about the chances of both sides today: Not too much to separate them, but Spurs the clear favourites! There are two games today. First up we have this game, Tottenham vs Aston Villa, but there's the small matter of Liverpool vs Manchester United from Anfield later. Liverpool are in dire form, losing three games in a row, and will be desperate to lose their fourth against their archest rivals. United aren't exactly in fantastic form either. But they did win last time out! Cannot wait for this one. We'll have full coverage on the site, but, for now, here's a story to whet your appetite ahead of the game: a combined XI by the stats boffins! You can read it by clicking here or below. Plenty of goals yesterday, perhaps none moreso than in the early kick off, which saw Ange Postecolgou lose his job at Nottingham Forest after a 3-0 defeat by Chelsea. Here's a full rundown: Let's hope today follows suit! Unai Emery, Aston Villa manager: Thomas Frank, Tottenham manager: Here's the top 13 of the Premier League table going into today. 13 may seem random, but I needed to include Villa. It’s not good reading for Spurs fans. Not necessarily because of their own team, but because Arsenal are comfortably top. Sorry. Anyway, Spurs are fifth, which is good - particularly compared to last year. Win today, and they will in fact go second and could finish the day there too. Maybe I’m not giving them enough credit. Villa are 13th, but will go ninth with a win. They’re getting there. And here's the team Thomas Frank has gone with today. Richarlison is on the bench, with Xavi Simons and Mathys Tel starting. Mohammed Kudus starts, with Djed Spence getting the nod at left back. Here's the XI Unai Emery has picked for today. Ollie Watkins is on the bench. Whether that is tactical or as a result of his injury on England duty, I'm not sure. Elsewhere, Ezri Konsa starts his 200th Premier League game for Aston Villa. Jadon Sancho is also on the bench. It was a really awkward start to the season for Aston Villa, who didn’t score a goal for about 85 years and appeared to be on the ropes. But, just like that, they turned it around. Unai Emery’s men have now won their last four matches in all competitions, including their last two league matches. Before the international break, they beat Burnley 2-1 at home thanks to a Donyell Malen brace. They will be hoping to continue that run in the capital today. I think the best way to describe Tottenham under  Thomas Frank so far this season would be ‘fine’. Or maybe ‘vulnerable’. Like, they’re alright, but do have some issues. Scoring goals has been one, and their players have been pretty hit or miss so far. A disappointing draw against Wolves came before another game draw in the Champions League against Bodo/Glimt, but they did beat Leeds at Elland Road before the break. Tough one for them today. This won’t be easy. Good afternoon everyone and welcome to Daily Mail Sport’s live coverage of Aston Villa vs Tottenham in the Premier League today! Yesterday was an absolute cracker. Some shocking results, some thrillers, and a sacking… Let’s hope today can live up to it. We have a big, biiiiig game later on, but first is Tottenham vs Aston Villa from north London. Kick off is at 2pm, but we’ll have all the build up, coverage and news before then. So strap in, and stay tuned! Villa fans have some nerve turning up.

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