Chelsea will be looking to avoid a third defeat in a row when they face Aston Villa in the Premier League later today.
It’s not been a great few months for Chelsea, with the Blues having only won three of their last 11 games across all competitions. After being knocked out of the FA Cup following a 2-1 loss to Brighton, Enzo Maresca’s side went on to lose 3-0 to the Seagulls in the Premier League the following week, leaving Chelsea sixth in the Premier League table.
The Blues enter the weekend just one point off the top four, so three points could potentially see them jump back into the Champions League spots this weekend. The last meeting between Chelsea and Villa saw the Blues win 3-0 at Stamford Bridge, with Maresca’s side having won two of the last six meetings against Unai Emery’s team.
So, can Chelsea get back to winning ways when they face Villa later today? Let’s take a look.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea score predicted
To complete this simulation, we used EA FC 25 and updated the squads with the latest injuries and suspensions.
We predict that Villa could set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their line-up as follows: Martinez; Garcia, Konsa, Mings, Digne; McGinn, Tielemans; Rogers, Acensio, Rashford; Watkins.
We predict that the Blues could line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their starting XI as follows: Jorgensen; James, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Enzo; Neto, Palmer, Sancho; Nkunku.
With Nicolas Jackson injured, Christopher Nkunku has been given the green light at striker in his absence, and the Frenchman should’ve put Chelsea ahead early on when he was fed through on goal by Cole Palmer, but one-on-one, he could only curl his effort the wrong side of the far post. Apart from the miss, the Blues were great in the first half, and just before the break, Maresca’s side took the lead.
(Image: EA Sports)
Some neat passing play between Pedro Neto and Reece James set the latter free down the right, and the defender did brilliantly to cut inside and pick out Palmer in the box. Palmer scooped the ball into his path before opening up his body for a shot, and the Englishman fired a quality strike into the far corner to make it 1-0 going into half-time.
Chelsea’s lead didn’t last long after the restart, with Villa drawing level in the 46th minute when Ollie Watkins headed home Morgan Rogers’ low cross at the front post. It was a poor goal to concede from Chelsea’s point of view, and Villa almost took the lead moments later with a copy of the first, but Filip Jorgensen was alert to parry Watkins’ header wide of goal.
The remainder of the game was closely contested at Villa Park, with Chelsea’s best chance falling to substitute Tyrique George in the 87th minute, but the youngster could only find the side netting from a narrow-angle. Neither side could find a winner in the closing stages, with the points being shared in the West Midlands.
EA FC 25 predicted final score: Aston Villa 1-1 Chelsea
What do you think the final score will be? Let us know in the comments!
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