Aston Villa vs Chelsea predicted lineups and team news | OneFootball

Aston Villa welcome a struggling Chelsea side to Villa Park on Saturday evening, hoping to end a run of give games without a win.

The Blues aren’t faring much better, with back-to-back defeats across all competitions. This game will kick off at 5:30pm and will be broadcast live in the UK on Sky Sports Premier League.

Aston Villa vs Chelsea predicted lineups

Aston Villa (4-2-3-1): Martinez; Garcia, Konsa, Mings, Digne; McGinn, Tielemans; Rogers, Asensio, Rashford; Watkins

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Jorgensen; James, Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Sancho, Palmer, Neto; Nkunku

Aston Villa vs Chelsea team news

Villa will be without centre-back Axel Disasi with the defender ineligible to face his parent club, on loan from Chelsea until the end of the season.

Luckily for the Villans, Disasi’s forced absence comes at the same time Ezri Konza looks to be returning from injury, meaning he’ll slot in alongside Tyrone Mings.

Further up the pitch, Unai Emery should stick with the same midfield of John McGinn and Youri Tielemans, while he has a decision to make with his attacking front four after seeing Ross Barkley and Leon Bailey return to fitness.

Marcus Rashford should keep his place on the left wing for now, as well as fellow new signing Marco Asensio in the No.10 role, alongside Morgan Rogers and Ollie Watkins.

For Chelsea, they have limited options amid their growing injury crisis. Filip Jorgensen will continue in goal as Enzo Maresca’s new No.1, while Reece James could be slotted in at right-back again — though Malo Gusto is available after injury.

The rest of the back four should stay the same, and the same goes for the central midfield partnership of Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo.

Jadon Sancho will have to come in on the right wing for Madueke after he picked up a hamstring problem against Brighton and Hove Albion, as the only major alteration further up the pitch.

Up front, Maresca appears to have no option but to play Christopher Nkunku without any other option as a recognised No.9. Unless he opts to experiment and play a winger as a makeshift striker.

Chelsea’s drop off

Aston Villa face another tough game against top opposition after holding league leaders Liverpool to a 2-2 draw at home in midweek. But Emery’s men might fancy themselves against a Chelsea side struggling with injuries and short on confidence.

Maresca’s side have lost key forward Nicolas Jackson to injury, while other crucial players like defender Wesley Fofana, midfielder Romeo Lavia and winger Noni Madueke are also unavailable for this game. The Blues were beaten 3-0 by Brighton last week to sum up the difficult spell they are having — having lost to the Seagulls in the prior game too in the FA Cup.

In December, Chelsea looked like the closest challengers to Liverpool in the Premier League title race but a string of poor results since then has seen them win twice in their last nine games. That includes damaging defeats to Ipswich Town and Fulham, the latter coming at home in stoppage time.

Maresca has insisted his side are still on track and that he was not expected to qualify for the Champions League until next season. But now Chelsea face a battle to finish in any of the European spots. The Premier League is likely to get five places in Europe’s elite competition but the Blues are sixth on 43 points, while Newcastle United are seventh with 41.

Aston Villa’s fortunes aren’t much better after a difficult run without a win, stretching back to 15th January. Villa are ninth in the Premier League and have struggled to climb the table. Their last five results have seen them draw to Ipswich, West Ham United and Arsenal, and lose to relegation strugglers Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Villa are fighting on multiple fronts after reaching the fifth round of the FA Cup and the Champions League last 16, so Emery will have to find the right balance to rotate his squad and keep them fresh.

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