Aston Villa VS Chelsea FC

Aston Villa VS Chelsea FC
17/10/2009, 19:45

Finally, the English Premier League is back - seems like an eternity! Chelsea's good 2-goal win over Liverpool last time out saw them reclaim top spot, and they now travel to Villa Park to take on Aston Villa hoping to keep up their lead at the top. Chelsea came undone the last time they travelled in the League, going down 1-3 against Wigan at the JJB. Considering their superb away form prior to that defeat, you would think they are more likely than not going to bounce back and land all 3 points here. Problem is, Aston Villa are not too shabby at home. In fact, Chelsea have been finding Villa Park a very difficult place to visit, something I will discuss further in the final paragraph. Aston Villa's last League game was a 1-1 draw with Man City, and I must say even though I fancied City to hold their own, I did not expect Aston Villa to put up such an astute performance. Villa will relish the prospect of playing the leaders on home turf, and having gone 3 home games without defeat in the League, they should be confident of stepping up to the plate today in this early kick-off.

The international break has been gruelling for both teams, and while Villa have less international players and they are more centered around England, Chelsea had players flying all over. Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti saw Yuri Zhirkov injuring his club mate Michael Ballack in the game between Russia and Germany, and it is no surprise that Michael Ballack is out today alongside John Obi Mikel. Jose Bosingwa has a hamstring problem and needs to be assessed. Biggest news for Chelsea? Petr Cech is back in goal, even though Hilario kept a cleansheet against Liverpool last time out. For Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill, he is missing English duo Curtis Davies and Stewart Downing. Luke Young is back in the team but he is likely only going to make the bench. Gabriel Agbonlahor had a starring role in England's 3-0 win over Belarus in midweek, and he should be relied upon yet again. Question is, will his England teammate Emile Heskey be given the green light having fallen out of favour this sooon in his Villa career? Well, I think he is good for a start - but make no mistake about it... if he fails to impress, he may be omitted for a while after mouthing off in the press.

Alright, here it is. Chelsea's 1-0 win over Aston Villa last season at Villa Park was their first win against the Villains away from home in 10 attempts. Yes, you heard me right - Chelsea have won just 1 of their last 10 visits to Villa Park. That is a shocking piece of statistic that cannot just be ignored. If Villa come into this match in poor form, then yes perhaps we might be able to sweep it under the carpet, but we are now talking about a Villa side that put the star-studded Man City to the test, and very nearly won. Chelsea did have a good outing against Liverpool, but with them having lost 1-3 against Wigan on their last Premiership travel, perhaps some doubt still exist in the players' minds. Almost all of Chelsea's likely starting eleven today played in international matches last weekend and last midweek, and I feel tired legs would be an issue. If Villa could keep it tight at the back with the marshalling of Richard Dunne and if Steven Sidwell could assert some authority in midfield against his old side that perhaps, just perhaps, Aston Villa would be able to nick this. If not, a draw is not a bad result as far as we are concerned.

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