Wednesday night sees a Premier League battle between two contenders in the race for Champions League qualification.
However, both Aston Villa and Chelsea are stuttering as we approach the chequered flag, placing even more emphasis on this Villa Park clash.
The pressure is on for managers Unai Emery and Liam Rosenior, and we have previewed the match in full below.
We have also picked out some more sports betting tips from the latest Premier League odds, some of which can be used in conjunction with the Bet Builder customisation tool.
Where can I watch Aston Villa vs Chelsea in the UK?
Aston Villa vs Chelsea will be broadcast live on TNT Sports 3, with kick-off scheduled for 7:30pm UK time.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea Preview
Recent results
Villa’s 2-0 loss at Wolves last Friday saw them surrender third spot in the table to high-flying Manchester United. Emery’s men have now won just one of the last five in the Premier League, and their record at Villa Park of late has been awful. Back-to-back 1-0 home defeats to Brentford and Everton were followed by a 1-0 win over Brighton, but the Villans could only muster a 1-1 draw vs Leeds last time out in front of their fans.
Sixth-placed Chelsea suffered a 2-1 loss at local rivals Arsenal last Sunday, which means Rosenior’s men are on a three-match winless run in the league following previous home failures vs Leeds (2-2) and Burnley (1-1). The Blues have been better on the road across all competitions in recent weeks, though, winning four of the last six away matches after successes at Hull (0-4), Wolves (1-3) and Crystal Palace (1-3).
Head-to-head record
Villa won the reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge 2-1, which followed last February’s 2-1 home win in the Premier League.
But prior to that, Chelsea were unbeaten in four visits to Villa Park, winning on three of those occasions.
Team news
John McGinn is the closest injured player to returning for Villa, but even he is unlikely to feature. Boubacar Kamara, Youri Tielemans, Harvey Elliott and Andres Garcia are ruled out.
Pedro Neto is suspended following his red card at Arsenal, but Wesley Fofana returns from a one-match ban. Marc Cucurella faces a late fitness test, though Levi Colwill, Jamie Gittens and Estevao remain unavailable.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea Odds
*All odds are subject to change
Chelsea are the slight pre-match favourites here at a price of 2.48. A Villa victory is at odds of 2.65, while the draw is 3.53.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea Betting Tips
Anytime goalscorer – Tammy Abraham @ 3.00
Ollie Watkins has scored just one goal in the last seven top-flight appearances, failing to net in the previous four. So a midweek change up front could be a move Emery looks to make, and Abraham’s past affiliation with Chelsea makes his price here stand out even more. The lanky striker also scored in Villa’s last home match, the 1-1 draw with Leeds.
Both teams to score – Yes @ 1.54
Villa have kept just one clean sheet in the last six matches, and we cannot see them keeping one here against a quality Chelsea attack. But the hosts also have the power to score themselves, with the Blues also tallying just one clean sheet in the previous six matches. So this BTTS selection – which landed in Chelsea’s last six top-flight games – looks perfect as either a single bet, or as part of a combo.
Morgan Rogers to have over 0.5 shots on target @ 1.57
Rogers is struggling to deliver goals and assists at the rate he was earlier in the campaign. However, the England international remains very reliable in the SOT markets, recording at least one shot on target in seven of the last eight Premier League games. Rogers tallied two in four of those appearances, and a brace of SOT here is intriguingly priced at 3.75.
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