Aston Villa vs Cardiff predictions: Rashford to open account
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- Aston Villa are 10th in the Premier League
- Cardiff are 19th in Championship
- Recommended bet: Marcus Rashford to score at any time
Aston Villa must quickly forget about Tuesday's 4-1 league defeat at Crystal Palace when they host Championship strugglers Cardiff City in the FA Cup fifth round on Friday evening.
Villa's top-four ambitions were hit by a disappointing display at Selhurst Park but they should stay in contention for cup glory by overcoming the Bluebirds at Villa Park.
Cardiff are only six points clear of the relegation zone in the second tier and look set to be in for a difficult evening.
Team news
Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez was taken off at half-time at Palace on Tuesday and is unlikely to feature against Cardiff, with Robin Olsen set to deputise.
Emery could opt to rotate his side with Marcus Rashford, Leon Bailey, Marco Asensio, Ian Maatsen and Donyell Malen among the players hoping for recalls to the starting line-up.
Ross Barkley, Amadou Onana, Boubacar Kamara and Pau Torres are all still on the sidelines, though, for the hosts.
Cardiff keeper Jak Alnwick is set to miss the rest of the season through injury with Ethan Horvath standing in for him. On-loan midfielder Will Alves is also set to be ruled out of the trip to Villa, joining Joe Ralls and David Turnbull in the treatment room.
Jasper Daland and Aaron Ramsey, however, will be assessed in the build-up to the tie and both could feature.
The stats
Villa have beaten West Ham and Tottenham, both 2-1 at home, to reach the FA Cup fifth round.
Cardiff have progressed to this stage thanks to a 1-0 third-round win at Sheffield United and victory over Stoke City away on penalties.
Villa have lost just twice at home in all competitions this season.
Cardiff's only two away victories in their last seven games were their two FA Cup triumphs.
This is the first meeting between the sides since Villa won 1-0 in a Championship clash in April 2018.
Prediction
Villa's away form will be a concern for Unai Emery, but he will be more than satisfied with their performances at Villa Park this season, as only Arsenal in the league and Palace in the Carabao Cup have got the better of them on home turf.
They have already sent Premier League rivals West Ham and Spurs packing in the FA Cup and now have a great chance to make the quarter-finals by overcoming Cardiff.
It would be a huge surprise if the Bluebirds were to progress and this should end up being a routine home success in which January loan signing Rashford will hope to get off the mark for his new club.
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The England international has caught the eye since joining from Manchester United but has yet to score for Villa. Rashford did get two assists in last week's 2-1 win over Chelsea and he has had seven shots in five appearances so far.
After coming on as a second-half substitute on Tuesday, the 27-year-old will hope to start on Friday and he looks solid value at 6/4 to score at any time.
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