The Villa curse on Boxing Day against the Blues

Sometimes it’s almost ridiculous to attribute a crisis to a team that hasn’t lost in weeks. Such is currently the case with the Blues from Chelsea. Thomas Tuchel’s team is playing at a consistently high level, but still the English media is currently pouncing on the Champions League winners.

The Blues are currently third in the Premier League table. The gap between them and leaders Manchester City has grown to six points, but with the first half of the season just coming to an end on Boxing Day, the baby is far from in the well ahead of the upcoming clash at Aston Villa.

Things are looking pretty good for the Villans this season. Steven Gerrard’s team is in tenth place in the standings and thus still belongs to the upper half of the table. Neither the international places are really within reach, nor do they have anything to do with relegation. In general, the prediction before the match between Aston Villa and Chelsea is more towards a win for the visitors.

This is the sixth time that this match has been played on Boxing Day. So far, Boxing Day coupled with the Blues has not been a success story for the Villans. The Birmingham side have never won against CFC on Boxing Day.

Aston Villa – Statistics & current form

Steven Gerrard proved at Glasgow Rangers that he has what it takes to become a great coach. Now he is living up to his reputation at Aston Villa. The Liverpool legend returned to the Premier League in mid-November and is doing a fine job. The Villans have won four out of six games under his direction.

Rebound under Gerrard

The only defeats have come against top teams Liverpool and Manchester City. But with Chelsea, the next club in the top 3 is coming to Villa Park. There is a good omen, though, because Aston Villa have won all of their last three matches on Boxing Day. So all in all, it’s understandable if you also take a close look at the odds on a home win between Aston Villa and Chelsea.

You probably don’t need to check the odds on a draw, as Villa haven’t drawn points in 14 games, and haven’t drawn at all under Steven Gerrard. On the penultimate matchday, Aston Villa had to play at the bottom team Norwich. After goals from Jacob Ramsey and Ollie Watkins, the Villans won 2-0.

Last week’s match against Burnley fell victim to the pandemic and had to be cancelled. It is very difficult to say what line-up the Villans will be able to field in the current situation. No team is immune to a quarantine at short notice. However, it is certain that Marvelous Nakamba will be missing due to a knee injury.

Predicted line-up of Aston Villa:
Martinez – Targett, Mings, Konsa, Cash – Ramsey, Douglas Luiz, McGinn – Buendia, Young – Watkins – Coach: Gerrard

Last matches played by Aston Villa:

Premier League
12/14 2021 – Norwich 0 – 2 Aston Villa

12/11 2021 – Liverpool FC 1 – 0 Aston Villa

12/05 2021 – Aston Villa 2 – 1 Leicester

12/01 2021 – Aston Villa 1 – 2 Manchester City

11/27 2021 – Crystal Palace 1 – 2 Aston Villa

Chelsea – Statistics & current form

It’s curious what’s going on in the Premier League at the moment. Numerous games have been cancelled because of too many infected kickers. Chelsea also have many positive cases to complain about, but have to play one English week after the other. This is taking its toll and yet the Blues have still managed to achieve respectable results.

The Blues are running on fumes

There has been only one defeat in the last 18 games. Thomas Tuchel’s team has been completely unbeaten for five games. The only problem is that there have been too many draws recently. Nevertheless, in the duel between Aston Villa and Chelsea, one now has to predict a success for the Londoners, even though there have been defeats on Boxing Day in the last two years.

The Blues were already back in action on Wednesday and had to make an effort in the derby at FC Brentford to enter the semi-finals of the League Cup. In addition to the numerous absences, Tuchel rotated a lot. In the end, a late own goal by the home side and a subsequent goal by Jorginho resulted in a 2-0 victory for the Blues on the scoreboard.

In terms of personnel, there is some light at the end of the tunnel. Romelu Lukaku and Callum Hudson-Odoi should be fit for Boxing Day after negative tests. There was no corresponding news from Timo Werner and Ben Chilwell yet, with the left-back still dealing with a knee injury anyway. Compared to the cup match on Wednesday, the Blues will have numerous changes.

Predicted Chelsea line-up:
Mendy – Rudiger, Chalobah, Azpilicueta – Kovacic, Jorginho, Kante, Pulisic, Mount – Lukaku, Hudson-Odoi – Coach: Tuchel

Last matches played by Chelsea:

Carabao Cup
12/22 2021 – Brentford 0 – 2 Chelsea London

Premier League
12/19 2021 – Wolverhampton 0 – 0 Chelsea London

12/16 2021 – Chelsea London 1 – 1 Everton

12/11 2021 – Chelsea London 3 – 2 Leeds

Champions League Grp. H
12/08 2021 – Zenit St. Petersburg 3 – 3 Chelsea London

Aston Villa – Chelsea Direct Comparison / H2H Balance

Aston Villa and Chelsea have crossed paths 158 times to date. In the direct comparison, things are reasonably close. In terms of victories, the Blues are only just ahead with 64:58. 35 games have ended in a draw. The Villans have won only one of their last nine Premier League matches against the Londoners.

The Blues won the first leg 3-0 at Stamford Bridge in September this season. Romelu Lukaku (2) and Mateo Kovacic were the goalscorers. Therefore, on Boxing Day, the Blues have the opportunity to win both Premier League games against the Villans for the seventh time this season. Only the two Manchester clubs have managed that more often.

Aston Villa – Chelsea Tip

There is a lot of guesswork in the line-ups of both teams. It is possible that there will be PCR tests even over the holidays in order to get some players into the squad in case of a negative test result. The current situation in the Premier League is bordering on distortion of competition.

Nor does the lack of clarity in the line-up make forecasting any easier. But if we just go by the facts, Villa have recently won three in a row on Boxing Day, while the Blues have conceded two Boxing Day defeats. Moreover, the Villans are now much more stable under Steven Gerrard and have won four out of six games. Only against the top teams Liverpool and Manchester City there were defeats. Therefore, between Aston Villa and Chelsea, we rather stick with a tip on an away win.

The Blues are also one of the top teams in the league and have only lost one of their last 18 games, thanks to their solid defence.