Aston Villa v Chelsea: Preview and Betting Tips | EPL 2025

The Blues have won on six of their last eight trips to Villa Park. The hosts are not in great form but they face a Chelsea side who are winless in five away EPL matches.

Match: Aston Villa v Chelsea
When: Saturday, 22 February 2025, 19:30
Where: Villa Park

Aston Villa Form

Villa’s last 18 league matches have produced just five wins. They’re currently five league games without a victory and they’ve conceded in 11 of their last 12 EPL matches. They fought back well from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at Arsenal. A 1-0 loss at Monaco in the Champions League and an uninspiring 1-1 home draw vs West Ham followed.

A 4-2 home victory over Celtic was a good result but their league form has not recovered. A 2-0 loss at Wolves and a 1-1 home draw vs Ipswich (vs ten men for the entire second half) came either side of a 2-1 FA Cup win over Tottenham. In midweek, they played well in a 2-2 home draw vs Liverpool.

Aston Villa Team News

Unai Emery is without Pau Torres at the back for this match as well as the ineligible Axel Disasi. Ezri Konsa could be rushed back to start whilst Matty Cash is available again.

Boubacar Kamara was covering at the back but is out injured for this one. Ross Barkley, Andre Onana and Leon Bailey join him on the injury table.

Aston Villa Motivation

Villa’s form is not great right now. They need a win to get some momentum going.

Emery’s side were quite attacking against Liverpool and may use the same style here. They will feel they can get joy against a leaky Blues backline.

Chelsea Form

Chelsea’s form is terrible right now. They’re struggling on the road and it’s two wins in nine league matches as their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League diminish quickly. A 2-0 defeat at relegation-threatened Ipswich showed their lack of confidence before a 1-1 home draw vs Crystal Palace.

A 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge followed vs Bournemouth. They won 3-1 at Wolves before losing 3-1 to Man City. A 2-1 home victory over West Ham preceded successive away losses at Brighton, 2-1 in the FA Cup and 3-0 in the league in a truly awful display with no shots on target.

Chelsea Team News

Enzo Maresca is expected to recall Reece James in defence. The match comes too soon after defenders Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile and perpetually injured midfielder Romeo Lavia.

Nicolas Jackson’s injury is a massive blow and Cole Palmer struggled as a false nine at Brighton. Noni Madueke is out with a hamstring injury so Jadon Sancho could return to the XI.

Chelsea Motivation

Chelsea’s hopes of a top-five finish are diminishing by the week. They need to get something from this match, even if it’s just a draw.

Enzo Maresca’s style of play has been found out and he may be best suited to setting up pragmatically and playing on the counter.

Key Stats

Aston Villa have lost 6 of their last 8 home matches vs Chelsea

Villa have won just 5 of their last 18 EPL matches (winless in 5 right now)

Chelsea are winless in 5 away league matches (3 losses, 2 draws)

Chelsea have kept just 1 clean sheet in their last 12 league matches

Verdict

Despite the Blues’ record at Villa Park, it’s hard to see anything except a home win here.

Best Bet: Aston Villa win at 2.65 (Enhanced Price)
Alternate Bet: Aston Villa win and Over 2.5 goals at 3.50
Anytime Goalscorer Tips: Watkins at 2.60 or Rashford at 3.25