Chelsea will see a number of players returning from international duty as they travel to the West Midlands on Saturday to face Aston Villa, who will be playing their first game since the departure of manager Remi Garde.
Aston Villa will play their first Premier League game since the departure of manager Remi Garde by mutual consent earlier in the week. Assistant manager Eric Black has taken over the reins at Villa Park and the Scot will look to salvage whatever he can from this season, with his side needing a miracle to avoid relegation. It is understood that Black is to stay caretaker manager till the end of the season or until Villa are able to appoint a new full-time manager.
Chelsea will see the likes of Willian, Cesc Fabregas, Pedro and Gary Cahill among others returning from international duty and will look to hit the ground running following the break.
Since taking over from Jose Mourinho, Guus Hiddink has been able to to provide some much needed stability to what looked like a fast sinking Chelsea ship. However, the Blues sit 10th in the league table, with European competition looking increasingly unlikely next season. As such, Chelsea supporters have been clamouring for the likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Kenedy and Bertrand Traore to get more game time for the rest of the campaign.
Lineups
Aston Villa
Possible starting XI (4-2-3-1): Guzan; Hutton, Clark, Cissokho, Lescott; Westwood, Guey; Gil, Veretout, Ayew; Gestede
Chelsea FC
Possible starting XI (4-2-3-1): Courtois; Terry, Cahill, Ivanovic, Azpilicueta; Mikel, Fabregas; Oscar, Willian, Pedro; Remy
Key Stats
- Chelsea have beaten Aston Villa in 5 of their last 6 appearances.
- The Blues have won once in their last 5 games in all competitions.
- Chelsea are unbeaten in the league since the arrival of Guus Hiddink.
- Aston Villa have scored only 22 goals this season and conceded 58.
- The West Midlands side have received more yellow cards than any other team this season (61).
Prediction
Aston Villa 1 – 3 Chelsea
It should be a comfortable victory for Chelsea if they were to play to their potential and with some endeavour — something that hasn’t been seen too often from the West London outfit this season. Nothing but victory should suffice for Chelsea but with the way things have gone this season, it wouldn’t be too surprising if Villa came away with something from this tie.
Betting Odds (Bet Victor)
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- Aston Villa win: 6/1
- Chelsea win: 4/7
- Draw: 31/10