Arsenal Women sit four points behind Women's Super League leaders Chelsea, and although the Gunners possess a game in hand, they know a win is required on Sunday when they play host to Aston Villa Women.
The visitors, meanwhile, occupy ninth spot in the table, and they can extend their current unbeaten run to four matches with a positive result against Arsenal.
Match preview
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Arsenal know that they need to collect maximum points in their final three matches if they are to stand any chance of winning the league title.
Even nine points may not be enough to secure the WSL crown, but Jonas Eidevall will be challenging his side to do their part as they bid to put pressure on Chelsea.
The Gunners are currently in scintillating form after winning their last five league matches, including a comfortable 3-0 victory away to Everton last weekend.
Caitlin Foord broke the deadlock two minutes before half time to put Arsenal ahead against the Toffees, while Beth Mead and Jordan Nobbs found the net in the second period to wrap up the three points.
Eidevall will be hoping that his side can replicate the 4-0 victory they picked up against Aston Villa in the reverse fixture, and they will certainly be confident of doing so, with Arsenal the current highest scorers in WSL home matches this season.
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Although Aston Villa have won just once in their last six matches, they have managed to avoid defeat in their previous three games.
A 1-1 draw against Reading was followed by a narrow 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur before the Villains held Manchester United to a goalless draw last weekend.
Carla Ward's side know they will face a stiff test on Sunday, but they can take confidence from the fact that 16 of their 25 points this season have been picked up on their travels.
Their recent away form also offers cause for optimism, with three of their last four away matches resulting in victory.
Despite faring well on their travels in recent weeks, the visitors will be mindful that their five matches against teams currently in the WSL top four have resulted in four defeats and one draw.
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Team News
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Arsenal's only known injury concern is Rafaelle, who has missed the last seven matches for the Gunners and the Brazil international remains a doubt for Sunday's contest.
Tobin Heath left the Gunners during the week after her contract - which was due to end in the summer - was terminated by mutual consent, with the 32-year-old returning to the United States to recover from a hamstring problem.
Despite coming off the bench to score against Everton, Nobbs may have to settle for a place among the substitutes on Sunday, with Eidevall expected to name an unchanged lineup.
As for Aston Villa, they are unable to call upon the services of Remi Allen who sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in the goalless draw with Manchester United.
Anna Patten remains sidelined, with the Arsenal loanee set to miss the rest of the season due to glandular fever.
Aston Villa confirmed during the week that Anita Asante will retire from professional football at the end of the season, and Ward has stated that the 36-year-old will captain the side for the final two matches.
Arsenal Women possible starting lineup:
Zinsberger; Maritz, Williamson, Wubben-Moy, Catley; Mead, Little, Walti; Blackstenius, Foord, Miedema
Aston Villa Women possible starting lineup:
Rogers; Mayling, Corsie, Asante, Pacheco; Blindkilde, Littlejohn, Arthur; Lehmann, Petzelberger, Gielnik
We say: Arsenal Women 3-0 Aston Villa Women
Although Aston Villa are unbeaten in their last three matches, we think that they will be unable to trouble the Gunners on Sunday, with Arsenal determined to keep pace with Chelsea at the top of the WSL table.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Arsenal Women win with a probability of 76%. A draw had a probability of 15.2% and a win for Aston Villa Women had a probability of 8.75%.
The most likely scoreline for an Arsenal Women win was 2-0 with a probability of 12.46%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 3-0 (10.35%) and 1-0 (10%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (7.24%), while for an Aston Villa Women win it was 0-1 (2.91%). The actual scoreline of 7-0 was predicted with a 0.5% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Arsenal Women would win this match.
