Thanks to substitute Ollie Watkins, Aston Villa turned the top match at Chelsea FC around after a weak first half and remains close on the heels of ManCity and leaders Arsenal. It is the Villans’ eleventh (!) competitive win in a row.
Villa had won ten competitive games in a row before Christmas (seven of them in the league). Coach Unai Emery made two changes after the 2-1 win over Manchester United, bringing in former Bundesliga pros Malen and Buendia for Onana and Watkins (both on the bench) in the starting lineup.
Enzo Maresca also made two changes: Compared to the 2-2 draw at Newcastle, Fernandez and Badiashile replaced Gusto and Fofana on the bench.
Set piece leads to long-awaited opening goal
The hosts dominated the opening minutes, with Palmer having the first big chance (3′). Villa could hardly get out of their own half and had little more than a quarter of possession. After a brief, somewhat quieter phase of play, the lead was in the air in the 18th minute: Garnacho passed to Fernandez, who curled the ball just wide of the right post.
The passive Villans continued to struggle to get out of their own half, and Chelsea were unable to capitalize on their clear superiority despite some good chances. Martinez was on hand to deny Joao Pedro at the near post (25′), and a few minutes later James fired the ball just wide of the left post after a header from Pedro Neto (34′).
So it took a set piece to give Chelsea the deserved lead. James lifted the ball sharply in front of goal, and Joao Pedro deflected the cross slightly with his right calf (37′). Shortly afterwards, Palmer failed to beat Martinez from distance (42′), and the Blues went into the break with a narrow but thoroughly deserved 1-0 lead and 10-0 shots on goal.
Villa turns it around after triple substitution
After the break, Emery made no changes despite his team’s poor performance, and the picture remained unchanged at first. Maatsen was lucky that referee Attwell did not award a penalty after his clear handball (47′). A 2-0 lead was in the air at this point, but first McGinn saved from Garnacho, who was ready to shoot (53′), before Martinez was alert against James (55′).
However, Emery’s triple substitution after almost an hour turned the tide. Out of nowhere, Kamara almost equalized, but two minutes later, substitute Watkins scored with a bit of luck (63′).
The momentum was clearly with the visitors after that, and Chelsea had Sanchez to thank for not suddenly finding themselves behind. The goalkeeper was first on hand against Maatsen (67′) and then against Watkins (70′). Rogers also missed the chance to make it 2-1 (74′).
Watkins scores twice
Shortly afterwards, the Villans turned the game around – thanks to Watkins, of course. The Englishman rose higher than Gusto to meet Tielemans’ corner and headed home to make it 2-1 (84′). The Blues had defended the corner poorly. In the closing stages, the hosts threw everything forward, but it remained the Villans’ eleventh competitive win in a row, keeping them hot on the heels of Man City and leaders Arsenal. Chelsea, on the other hand, slipped out of the Champions League places as a result of the defeat.
Both teams have one more game to play this year. The Blues play Bournemouth on Tuesday (8:30 p.m.). Aston Villa are away to another top London team on the same day (9:15 p.m.), this time Arsenal.
