Chelsea have the chance to jump to second in the Premier League table this weekend when they welcome Aston Villa to Stamford Bridge later today.
With Man City having lost their last three league games in a row, Chelsea sit just one point behind Pep Guardiola's side in the Premier League table, with their 2-1 win over Leicester City last weekend keeping them hot on their tails. The Blues have a tough test this weekend, however, as they face Aston Villa.
After an impressive start to the season, Villa have struggled in recent weeks, failing to win any of their last seven games across all competitions. But, in recent times, Enzo Maresca's side have struggled against Villa, with Chelsea's last league win against Unai Emery's side coming in 2022.
So, can Chelsea make it three wins on the bounce across all competitions later today? Let's take a look.
We simulated Chelsea vs Aston Villa to get a score prediction
To complete this simulation, we used EA FC 25 and updated the squads with the latest injuries, suspensions and transfers.
We predict that Chelsea could set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their line-up as follows: Sanchez; Gusto, Fofana, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Enzo; Madueke, Palmer, Felix; Jackson.
We predict that Villa could set up in a 4-4-1-1 formation, with their line-up as follows: Martinez; Konsa, Carlos, Torres, Digne; Bailey, Kamara, Tielemans, McGinn; Rogers; Watkins.
Chelsea started on top at Stamford Bridge, and they were almost ahead 11 minutes in when Wesley Fofana headed home at the far post from a corner, but the Frenchman was offside from Nicolas Jackson's flick-on. Moments later, Villa had the ball in the net themselves, but Ollie Watkins was also offside, and the goal was ruled out.
Nothing separated the two sides at half-time, with both failing to create any clear-cut chances bar the two offside goals. Villa were reduced to 10 men in the 59th minute when Youri Tielemans was sent off for a dangerous challenge, and just two minutes after the red card, Chelsea took full advantage to take the lead.
Nicolas Jackson made it 1-0 to Chelsea
Nicolas Jackson made it 1-0 to Chelsea (Image: EA Sports)
As Chelsea camped outside the box looking for a breakthrough, Noni Madueke drifted into the middle to pick up the ball. As the winger received possession, he flicked the ball through a gap in the Villa defence for Jackson, and the striker fired past Emiliano Martinez to make it 1-0.
A goal down, Villa dominated the final 30 minutes at Stamford Bridge, but Robert Sanchez made some great saves in the closing stages to keep his side ahead and guarantee the victory.
EA FC 25 predicted final score: Chelsea 1-0 Aston Villa
What do you think the final score will be? Let us know in the comments!