Chelsea come back from the international break with their 2015-16 chances running slim ahead of a clash with Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge tonight.
A dreadful eight points from the opening eight games have all but ended hopes of defending the Premier League crown and leaves the Blues in 16th on the table, although they are now somewhat comfortably away from the drop zone. The lack of confidence currently among the side was typified against Southampton two weeks ago, as Mourinho’s men were outclassed by the Saints, who took advantage of all the weak points that the squad has shown since the beginning of the campaign.
There is not much better to be said about the Villans, hanging among the relegation spots by four points at 17th with just one win so far. Entering the international break on the back of four-straight defeats, the pressure is nearly becoming insurmountable for Tim Sherwood as rumours that he is only a couple of bad results away from becoming the next managerial casualty of the season were confirmed during the week.
Key Battle – Diego Costa vs Micah Richards
Stamford Bridge will be echoing with one name again whenever the ball is around the opposition goal, as star striker Diego Costa makes his Premier League return, missing three-games due to suspension from the win over Arsenal early in the campaign. The blue strikeforce has undoubtedly been lacking so far with seven less goals on the board than leaders Manchester City, but in his appearances on the field the infamous Spaniard has been seeking dangerous space and is fighting for 50/50 situations with much more determination than last season. With his hamstring issues looking put be having minimal effect, Costa will want to explode back onto the league to keep pace in the Golden Boot race with Sergio Aguero.
The central-defender who will be spending the most ‘quality time’ with the Chelsea hitman tonight will likely be Micah Richards, who has been a standout among the poor Aston Villa squad. The 27-year-old has started every match of the season so far, providing as much consistency as a team in their situation can hope for at the back, while also creating some decent attacking play. Against Stoke before the break he completed seven take-ons and had two shots on goal in the match prior at Liverpool.
We have come to learn that anything can happen when Costa comes-up against a defender with the right nerves, but Richards has shown all the composure needed over the past few outings to make this a very interesting duel.
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Team News
After persisting with the same defensive setup through weeks of harsh results, Jose Mourinho will be forced to go into tonight’s match with one change at least. Branislav Ivanovic’s woes have exacerbated after injuring his hamstring during the international fixtures, likely to be sidelined until the end of the month. The easy fix is to bring Kurt Zouma across with John Terry in the centre, although many fans will be crying out for the Premier League debut of Baba Rahman. While Costa returns, screener Nemanja Matic may still be stuck on the sidelines which could hand Reuben Loftus-Cheek an opportunity.
Injuries have also been a detriment to Aston Villa’s run in the early campaign. After coming off the bench during the game against the Potters, Tim Sherwood will be hoping Jack Grealish and Charles Gil are ready to start this match, while Adama Traore and Gabby Agbonlahor are both slight possibilities as well.
Head-to-head
Villa has faced-off against the Blues 143 times before, with the history of this fixture producing a very competitive record. Chelsea has won 58 of the games compared to 53, with 33 draws and 433 goals scored.
Previous Meeting
Mourinho’s side were in the definitive stages of their 2014-15 success when they claimed a 2-1 victory over the Villans back in Febuary. Ivanovic was the man to seal the three points, after Jores Okore replied to Eden Hazard’s early opener.
Prediction
The Chelsea faithful will be optimistic of being able to generate some positivity in this fixture, playing one of the few teams who are in worse form and arguably lower on confidence. More than anything this will be a battle between two managers who may just be at the bottom-points of their respective careers and need to make something happen before facing disaster. Expect Chelsea’s home advantage and the return of Diego Costa to get them over the line.
Chelsea 2 Aston Villa 0
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