“I can see this Villa side frustrating them” – Michael Owen makes bold prediction about Chelsea versus Aston Villa
Former Premier League striker Michael Owen believes Aston Villa will hold Chelsea when the two sides square off on Sunday, December 26.
The Blues will travel to Villa Park to take on Steven Gerrard’s side on Boxing Day and will hope to bounce back after a poor run of results. Chelsea have drawn their last two games in the Premier League and find themselves six points behind league leaders Manchester City.
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Aston Villa, on the other hand, have done well under Gerrard. Their only two losses under the new manager have come against title contenders Liverpool and Manchester City.
Owen, however, has explained the Villans will frustrate Chelsea on Boxing Day and has predicted a score of 1-1. He wrote in his column for BetVictor (via Mirror):
"Chelsea are in their worst form of the season and possibly since Thomas Tuchel took charge. With just one win in their last four, they find themselves six points off Manchester City, which even at this stage of the season, is a big hurdle."
Owen added:
"More dropped points for Chelsea will make it difficult to win the league. I can see this Villa side frustrating them and getting a point. I fancy a 1-1 draw."
Crunch games ahead of Chelsea in the Premier League
Chelsea have some tough games coming up in the next few weeks that could decide whether or not they will stay in contention for the title.
After the away trip to Aston Villa, Chelsea will face Brighton and then Liverpool in the Premier League. They can ill-afford to drop too many points as Manchester City are showing no signs of slowing down.
The distraction of the FIFA Club World Cup will also come at the wrong time as Thomas Tuchel’s side will do a lot of traveling. At a time like this, they will want to pick up as many wins as possible and stay on the heels of Manchester City in the league table.
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Aston Villa, meanwhile, will hope to pick up a win against Chelsea and climb further up the table. Their form has been good under Gerrard and beating Chelsea will be the biggest result of his young managerial career in the Premier League.