Aston Villa host Sunderland on Sunday (14:00 BST) as both sides approach the closing weeks of the Premier League season with clear ambitions. Villa are aiming to protect a strong position in the quest for Champions League qualification, while Sunderland have momentum and want to keep their dream of European football alive.Will Villa hold their nerve?With six games remaining, Aston Villa remain well placed to secure Champions League qualification, holding a seven-point cushion prior to the weekend. Having missed out on a top-five finish on goal difference last season, there is added incentive not to surrender their place so late on this time.Recent form, however, explains why the race is not yet settled.

After being eight points clear of fourth and 11 ahead of sixth after 21 matches, Villa have taken just 12 points from their last 11 league games, the fifth-worst return in the division over that period.But the issue seems to have been game management rather than control. Since the start of February, only Newcastle have dropped more points from winning positions than the seven by Villa, who have won just two of their last five matches after taking the lead.Unai Emery's record against promoted sides provides reassurance. Villa have never lost a Premier League match to a promoted team under him (W14, D5), with their last such defeat coming against Fulham in Steven Gerrard's last game in charge in October 2022.Yet Sunderland offer a note of caution, being one of only three Premier League opponents the Spaniard has faced without recording a league win.

They drew in the reverse fixture early this season.[BBC]Villa stalwarts making their markStriker Ollie Watkins' form has been up and down but he scored for the fourth time in as many games on Thursday night as Villa reached the Europa League semi-finals. In doing so, he became the club's first centurion since Peter McParland in the early 1960s.John McGinn is another player whose importance to Villa is immense. Their reliance on the Scot is stark: a 56% win rate with him involved this season, compared to 28.6% without him.History on the line for SunderlandSunderland are buoyant, sitting two points outside the Europa League places after collecting 46 points, already their best top-flight return at this stage since 2010–11.

Victory would lift Régis Le Bris' side to 49 points, their highest since 2000–01, and solidify genuine European belief.[BBC]The Black Cats have won their last two matches and are chasing three consecutive Premier League wins for the first time in more than a decade. Although winless in their last six away league games in the West Midlands, the stakes are high on Sunday as Sunderland chase only their second European campaign, after the 1973–74 Cup Winners' Cup.