Preview: Aston Villa vs. Chelsea Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho looks on against Galatasaray during his teams Champions League match on February 26, 2014 Cheltenham punters may want to steer clear of any tips given to them by Jose Mourinho this week. His insistence on league leaders Chelsea remaining the little horse in the Premier League title race suggests that he knows very little about the racing world. The Blues, who hold a seven-point lead over Liverpool at the top of the table, are now odds-on favourites with every major bookmaker to win their first domestic championship since 2010. They have, though, played three games more than Manchester City, who, while nine points back, are reasonably well positioned to mount a late charge and perhaps pip Chelsea at the final fence. Mourinho will be hoping then that Chelsea can leave the pack behind by continuing an unbeaten Premier League run which stretches back 14 games when they travel to Aston Villa on Saturday evening. With Fernando Torres out injured, Samuel Etoo is likely to lead the line despite only being gifted half as many goals as Demba Ba in their 4-0 thrashing of Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge. Both Oscar and Willian could be recalled to the starting XI if Mourinho opts to name a more attacking lineup, with Andre Schurrles place in jeopardy despite his recent hat-trick against Fulham. Ashley Cole is back in the squad following a knee injury, but Cesar Azpilicueta is again expected to be retained at left-back and so Cole could join fellow England international Frank Lampard on the bench. Villa have had a two-week break since their 4-1 Christian Benteke-inspired victory over Paul Lamberts former club Norwich City, which was only their fourth top-flight win on home soil this season. The Scotsman has no new injury concerns, with Libor Kozak, Jores Okore and Charles NZogbia long-term absentees, and therefore could name nearly the same starting XI that beat the Canaries. Andreas Weimann and Gabriel Agbonlahor will likely form part of a forward three alongside Benteke, but Chelsea loanee Ryan Bertrand is ineligible, and so Ciaran Clark could fill in at left-back. Recent form Villa: WLDLLW Chelsea: WWDWLD Possible starting lineups Villa: Guzan; Bacuna, Vlaar, Baker, Clark; El Ahmadi, Westwood, Delph; Weimann, Agbonlahor, Benteke Chelsea: Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Matic, Ramires; Willian, Oscar, Hazard; Etoo Sports Mole says: 0-2
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 17:00:21 +0000
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