Chelsea will hope to make it three wins in a week when they host Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge this afternoon in the Premier League. The Blues’ impressive start to life under Enzo Maresca has continued following the recent international break, with a dominant away win at struggling Leicester followed by 10 more changes in the Conference League as they battled to victory over Heidenheim in Germany on Thursday night.
Maresca will restore his big hitters in west London today as they look to take advantage of an out-of-sorts Villa team who are winless in seven now after a 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace was followed by a Champions League stalemate against Juventus in which they were controversially denied a last-gasp victory. It is their longest such run under Unai Emery, leaving them ninth in a congested table - four places and three points below Chelsea.
However, the Bridge has been a happy hunting ground for Villa in recent seasons as they look for their third consecutive league win on this ground for the first time since the 1930s. The hosts should get Malo Gusto and Pedro Neto back, while Amadou Onana faces a late fitness test for Villa. Follow Chelsea vs Aston Villa live below!
Chelsea vs Aston Villa latest news
Kick-off: 1.30pm GMT | Stamford Bridge
How to watch: Sky Sports
Chelsea team news: Gusto and Neto should return
Live updates
10 minutes ago
Early Aston Villa team news: No Ramsey as Onana faces fitness test
Aston Villa were set to assess £50million midfielder Amadou Onana ahead of today’s trip to Stamford Bridge after he suffered a foot injury while away on international duty with Belgium recently and missed the draws with Crystal Palace and Juventus.
Ezri Konsa was back on the bench this week after a hip issue sustained with England and could start this afternoon, while Boubacar Kamara is fit again after a hamstring problem.
However, Villa will definitely remain without Jacob Ramsey, who is yet to recover from his own hamstring complaint suffered in the 2-0 defeat at Liverpool last month.
AFP via Getty Images
14 minutes ago
Early Chelsea team news: Gusto and Neto should return
Chelsea should be boosted this afternoon by the respective returns to fitness of Malo Gusto and Pedro Neto.
Full-back Gusto missed the win over Leicester through illness, while Neto - who scored that cracking equaliser against Arsenal before the international break - picked up a knock playing for Portugal in the Nations League.
Neither player was involved against Heidenheim in the Conference League on Thursday, but Enzo Maresca expressed confidence ahead of that game that both would be fine to feature against Villa.
Chelsea need Gusto back with no current timeline for captain Reece James’ return from his latest hamstring injury, which reports suggest could keep him out for the rest of December.
Young midfielder Omari Kellyman has been Chelsea’s only other recent injury concern, while all their big hitters - led by Cole Palmer - should return this afternoon after their usual Conference League rest.
Maresca’s biggest selection decision would appear to come in midfield, where Enzo Fernandez provided a goal and an assist against Leicester last weekend but could still lose his starting berth to the fit-again Romeo Lavia.
REUTERS
21 minutes ago
How to watch Chelsea vs Aston Villa
TV channel: Today’s game will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Ultra HDR.
Live stream: Subscribers will also be able to watch on a live stream online via the Sky Go app.
24 minutes ago
Chelsea vs Aston Villa live
Hello and welcome to Standard Sport’s live coverage of Chelsea vs Aston Villa in the Premier League.
After returning from the latest international break with victories over Leicester and Heidenheim, the Blues are looking to make it three in a row today to potentially move as high as third against a struggling Villa team who are now winless in their last seven after frustrating draws with both Crystal Palace and Juventus.
However, Villa have won on their last two top-flight trips to Stamford Bridge without conceding, so will have no fears about what’s in store this afternoon despite their patchy form so far this season.
Kick-off today is at 1:30pm GMT, so keep it right here for all your match build-up, latest team news and live updates, including expert analysis from Standard Sport’s Malik Ouzia at Stamford Bridge.
Getty Images
MORE ABOUT
Aston Villa
Have your say...
VIEW COMMENTS