England Premier League
Sunday 23rd May 2021
Kick off at 4pm BST
Venue: Villa Park
Match Preview:
Aston Villa could have a say on who finishes in the top four as they take on Chelsea on the final day of the season.
Villa are in 11th place and even if they win this game they will finish in 11th. In some ways it has been a frustrating for the club because the opening few months promised so much. At the same time given that they could have been relegated last season finishing in mid table is no bad thing.
In midweek Dean Smith’s side ended three games without a win by beating Tottenham 2-1 away from home, in a result that few would have seen coming especially given that they were losing that game. The worry for Villa coming into this one is that they have not won at home for the last 4 games with their last match here finishing in a 0-0 draw against Everton.
Chelsea need to win to confirm their top four finish and it isn’t impossible that after all of their efforts that the Blues could still finish in 5th place, that would spell absolute disaster for the club. However they still have the Champions League final to play six days after this game.
Thomas Tuchel’s side are in 3rd place with 67 points and are just 1 point above both Liverpool and Leicester, so even a draw could be fatal for the club. Recent form has been solid with 4 wins from their last five games though they may rue having lost against Arsenal last week. However in midweek Chelsea beat Leicester 2-1 which was a huge win for them against a top four rival. At the end of the day because of that victory their destiny remains in their hands.
Team News:
Aston Villa: Ross Barkley cannot face his parent club and is out. Matthew Cash is out with an hamstring injury. Morgan Sanson is out with fitness issues and Trezeguet also misses out with a knee injury.
Chelsea: Kai Havertz will be assessed after his muscle injury as will N’Golo Kante with the same injury.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea Head to Head:
Last season Chelsea won this fixture 2-1.
There is a 60% chance to see both teams to score.
Chelsea have won 6 of the last seven league meetings.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea Prediction:
Chelsea have the better team and one would believe they can power through. Under Tuchel it’s only 2 league games lost in four months and those defeats both took place at home.
Aston Villa are not to be taken lightly though but we witnessed enough fight and passion in this team in the Leicester game to suggest that they should be fine for this one. But it could be very close and Villa will have the added advantage of having some fans back in attendance too to cheer their team on for the final game of the season.
The one worry is to see Chelsea’s price so short at 1.45, so we will use the "-1 asian handicap" to increase the odds at no extra risk. Villa have nothing to play for, Chelsea have everything to play for, therefore we have to side with the away team.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea Betting Tips:
Asian handicap (-1 Chelsea) at 1.725
Both teams to score at 1.72
© Copyright topfootballtipster.com 2019
