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ASTON VILLA VS. CHELSEA: PREMIER LEAGUE | MATCH PREDICTION AND FANTASY FOOTBALL TIPS

On the exciting final day of the season, Aston Villa are set to host 3rd-placed Chelsea at Villa Park in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

Chelsea bounced back from their defeat in the FA Cup final over Leicester with a crucial 2-1 victory against the same opponents in the league. Antonio Rudiger and Jorginho were on the scoresheet in front of the home fans. Another victory puts them in a favorable position of finishing in the Champions League spots this season. The 3 points achieved from here will be enough to see Thomas Tuchel’s side finish in 3rd place without worrying about the results of the other concerned teams.

However, the hosts will be looking to play spoilers as they did in midweek after beating Tottenham 1-2 away. It ended their 3-game-long winless streak, thanks to an own goal from Sergio Reguilon and a goal from striker Ollie Watkins. Dean Smith’s side have struggled at home in the recent weeks and have not won any of their last four league matches at Villa Park. Hopefully, the presence of supporters will give the home players a significant boost in this match. 

In 156 head-to-head meetings between these two teams, Chelsea have claimed 64 wins as compared to Villa’s 57 wins. The remaining 35 games have been drawn.

The previous meeting between the two teams took place in December last year and ended in a 1-1 draw at Chelsea. Oliver Giroud and Anwar El Ghazi scored for their respective teams to take one point each. 

Rivalry Stats

  • Aston Villa have lost 10 of their last 12 Premier League meetings with Chelsea (W1, D1), though they did get a draw in the reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge earlier in the season.
  • Aston Villa have not won their final league game in any of the last nine seasons since beating Liverpool 1-0 in 2010-11. However, they are unbeaten when facing Chelsea in their last game (W3, D1), most recently winning 3-1 at Stamford Bridge on the final day of the 2001-02 season.
  • Chelsea have won their last 3 Premier League away games against Aston Villa, last winning 4 in a row at Villa Park between 1995 and 1999.
  • Chelsea have lost their final league game in just 1 of the last 9 seasons (W6, D2), losing 0-3 at Newcastle in 2017-18.
  • Ollie Watkins has scored 14 Premier League goals for Aston Villa this season. The last English player to score more in a single top-division campaign for Villa was David Platt in 1990-91 (19).
  • Jorginho is Chelsea’s top league goalscorer this season with 7 goals, all of which came from the penalty spot. The last top-flight season in which the Blues had such a low-scoring top goalscorer was in 1974-75.
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Match Details

  • Match: Aston Villa vs. Chelsea
  • Venue: Villa Park, Birmingham
  • Date & Time: May 23, 2021 at 8:30 PM IST 

Team News

Aston Villa

  • Injured: Matty Cash, Dominic Revan, Trezeguet, Morgan Sanson
  • Doubtful: None
  • Unavailable: Ross Barkley

Chelsea

  • Injured: None
  • Doubtful: Ngolo Kante, Kai Havertz, Andreas Christensen
  • Unavailable: None

Predicted Starting XI

Aston Villa (4-2-3-1)

Emiliano Martinez (GK); Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Kourtney Hause, Matt Targett; Marvelous Nakamba, John McGinn; Bertrand Traore, Jack Grealish, Anwar El Ghazi; Ollie Watkins

Chelsea (3-4-2-1)

Edouard Mendy (GK); Antonio Rudiger, Thiago Silva, Cesar Azpilicueta; Ben Chilwell, Mateo Kovacic, Jorginho, Reece James; Mason Mount, Christian Pulisic; Timo Werner 

  • Aston Villa form guide: W-L-D-L-W
  • Chelsea form guide: W-L-L-W-W

Match Prediction

For Chelsea, the importance of this fixture is significant and they are yet to lose away from home in the Premier League under their new manager. The Blues’ head coach will be able to tinker with his starting XI for this match, given the depth of the squad.

Although this has been a good season overall for Villa, with more than 50 points and a mid-table finish, getting something out of this match looks less likely. The team will be a little fatigued after putting in a big effort against Tottenham. Therefore, expect an away win here for the Blues.

Howzat Dream Team

  • Goalkeeper: E Martinez
  • Defenders: M Targett, A Rudiger, C Azpilicueta  
  • Midfielders: A El Ghazi, J Grealish, M Mount, Jorginho
  • Forwards: O Watkins, B Traore, T Werner
  • Captain: Jorginho/T Werner
  • Vice Captain: O Watkins/J Grealish

NOTE: The Howzat dream team above is just a suggestion. You can select your own fantasy 11 by using your knowledge and fantasy premier league tips. Also, don’t forget to make any necessary changes to your team once the actual starting 11 is announced by each team (60 minutes before the start of the match) as some players you have selected might not be part of the fantasy 11.

Select your own team and play fantasy football on your favorite fantasy football app, Howzat!

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