Champions League: Young Boys v Aston Villa preview & betting tips

Ladbrokes shares its preview, betting tips and predictions for Young Boys v Aston Villa on Tuesday evening in the Champions League.

Fresh off beating Everton 3-2 in the Premier League, Aston Villa compete in their first Champions League game since 1983 when they travel to Switzerland to face Young Boys.

Unai Emery has tended to have success with his teams in European competitions, and Villa are a top side on their day, so their UCL campaign should be one to keep an eye out for.

So, without further ado, join Ladbrokes as our team of experts share their preview, betting tips and predictions for the big Young Boys v Aston Villa game in the Champions League.

Villa last competed in the Champions League during the 1982/83 season, the year after they won the European Cup for the first and only time.

The game against Young Boys will actually be Villa's first in the competition since they were knocked out by eventual finalists Juventus in 1983, over 40 years ago.

Villa will fancy their chances of picking up three points in the reformed Champions League group phase, starting off their campaign with a win in Switzerland.

Villa have been in mixed form so far this season, but they've got all the momentum in the world after coming back from 2-0 down against Everton at the weekend to win the game 3-2.

Ollie Watkins also scored his first two goals of the season, with Jhon Duran having started the season in better form that his teammate, with three goals in his first four games.

Young Boys aren't in great form domestically to say the least either, having picked up just three points from their first six league games. The Swiss side are still in search of their first win, and even their most dedicated of fans won't be expecting to pick up three points against the English side.

Emery will be without Leon Bailey and Matty Cash for Tuesday's game against Young Boys, but other than that, the Spanish boss has pretty much a full squad available to chose from for his first game as Villa manager in the Champions League.

Tyrone Mings and Boubacar Kamara, who have both been missing for several months with long-term injuries, are both back in first team training but are unlikely to be able to feature on September 17.

Ian Maatsen and the aforementioned Duran will both be pushing for starts, but Emery may opt for experience in the form of Lucas Digne and Watkins.

As for Young Boys, Silvere Ganvoula is the danger man having scored just shy of half of his side's league goals this season, but his place in the side of no guarantee with stiff competition for places.

Marvin Keller has been deputising for David von Ballmoos in goal for Young Boys, but the first choice goalkeeper has recently returned from injury and is expected to start against Villa.

Possible starting line ups-

Young Boys: Von Ballmoos; Blum, Camara, Zoukrou, Hadjam; Lauper, Niasse; Monteiro, Ugrinic, Colley; Ganvoula

Aston Villa: Martinez; Bogarde, Konsa, Torres, Maatsen; Onana, Tielemans McGinn, Ramsey; Rogers; Watkins

In our gameweek one Champions League acca, we predicted a win for Villa, and we're sticking with that pick in our betting tips and predictions piece.

Villa aren't one of the favourites to win the Champions League come May 2025, but they should start their campaign by picking up three points on September 17, and the bookies' odds most definitely reflect that.

Our team of football experts have singled out Watkins to score a goal as one that could be worth a punt for Tuesday night's game, with the Englishman having scored two against Everton on Saturday.

Watkins didn't start the season off in the best form, having failed to score in his first three games, but he's off the mark now with two against the Toffees and could continue that momentum into his Champions League debut.

View the latest football odds.

All odds and markets are correct as of the date of publication.