Saturday’s Premier League action draws to a close at 8 pm BST as Aston Villa welcome Chelsea to Villa Park.
Aston Villa head into the game as the bookies’ favourites to secure a win at odds of 23/20, while Chelsea can be backed at 2/1 to come away with three points.
Ahead of the weekend’s action, Aston Villa are looking to take one step closer to securing a top-four finish. Chelsea, meanwhile, are eyeing up a top-six spot.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea
Aston Villa have been the surprise package of 2023/24. The Villans were expected to do well in the Europa Conference League given Unai Emery’s pedigree in lower-tier European competitions, but few expected the Midlands outfit to be so impressive domestically.
A sensational home record this term, combined with a 3-1 win over Bournemouth last time out and a huge 2-0 win over league-leaders Arsenal the gameweek prior means Aston Villa sit 4th in the division with four games to play. 5th-place Tottenham will go level on points with Emery and co. if they win their games in hand, but Villa’s superior goal difference (+21 versus +16) makes them the favourites to nab that final Champions League place.
Premier League Top Four finish: Current Standings
- 4th - Aston Villa Pld 34 - Pts 66
- 5th - Tottenham Pld 32 - Pts 60
- 6th - Manchester United Pld 33 - Pts 53
Chelsea, meanwhile, are on their own hunt for European football but unlike Aston Villa, they are not guaranteed anything just yet. The Blues have been plagued by inconsistency this season, with a nine-game unbeaten run in the league ended on Monday thanks to a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Arsenal.
Despite losing to the Gunners, Chelsea’s games in hand mean they are still firmly in the race for a top six finish come May, but they really need to pick up a win this weekend to keep the pressure on Manchester United and Newcastle.
Premier League Top Six finish: Current Standings
- 6th - Manchester United Pld 33 - Pts 53
- 7th - Newcastle United Pld 33 - Pts 50
- 8th - West Ham Pld 34 - Pts 48
- 9th - Chelsea Pld 32 - Pts 47
- 10th - Bournemouth Pld 34 - Pts 45
Aston Villa vs Chelsea betting stats
Here are some key Aston Villa and Chelsea stats to keep in mind as you prepare to make your selections ahead of the game:
- Aston Villa are looking to complete their first league double over Chelsea since 1989/90, when the Blues were a newly promoted side and the Villans eventually finished in second place.
- Chelsea won 3-1 against Aston Villa at Villa Park in the FA Cup this season – the last team to beat the Villans twice on the road in the same campaign were Tottenham in 2013/14.
- Having lost his first Premier League meeting with Chelsea in just his second game in charge in the competition in August 2018, Villa boss Unai Emery has won his past three against the Blues without conceding a goal.
- Chelsea have won just one of their past eight Premier League games outside of London, with that victory coming at Luton Town in December.
- Ollie Watkins has scored in his past two league games against Chelsea. No Aston Villa player has scored in three in a row against the Blues in the competition.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea Top Tip
- Versus Everton on April 15, Cole Palmer (21y 345d) became the fifth youngest player to score 4+ goals in a single Premier League game and the first Blues player to net 4+ times in a single league match since Frank Lampard against Aston Villa in March 2010.
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