In-form Ollie Watkins was on target and John McGinn struck a screamer as Aston Villa leapfrogged Chelsea into the top half of the Premier League table thanks to a hard-fought 2-0 victory at Stamford Bridge.
Unai Emery’s Villans grabbed the lead on 18 minutes when Watkins latched on to Marc Cucurella’s howler of a header to coolly lob over the advancing Kepa.
It saw the 27-year-old England international become the first ever Villa player to net in five Premier League matches in a row away from home and set the platform for another impressive, well organised showing under their Spanish coach.
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The opener arrived just a moment after McGinn had thumped the crossbar with a first-time strike, but for the large part the away side were on the back foot.
Mykhailo Mudryk and Joao Felix both blew big chances to level while Ben Chilwell’s hooked cross-shot from a narrow angle came crashing back off the near post.
Chelsea continued to huff and puff following the break but once again it was Villa who made it count when McGinn guided a low 25-yard shot beyond Kepa on 56 minutes.
The home side introduced N’Golo Kante from the bench following seven months out injured but he could not inspire a recovery and even dragged a good chance wide.
The result means Villa climb up to ninth place in the table, just two points shy of the European places. Chelsea are three points further back and drop to 11th.
Next up, the under-pressure Graham Potter and his Blues host Liverpool on Tuesday evening while Villa visit Leicester City.
Talking point
The rise and rise of Villa under Emery. There will no doubt be more murmurs about Potter’s position as coach and the under-achievements of Chelsea, but that’s pretty much inevitable given the Blues’ current circumstances – and has all been said before – so let’s shine a spotlight on the positives for Villa.
Ahead of the contest, Emery had spoken about an exciting opportunity to climb into the top-flight’s top 10 and his side responded by doing just that. Of course, they should have even loftier hopes given they are now close to the Europa League places. It says much about Emery’s impact that they have gone from looking nervously at the Premier League trapdoor to assessing how many teams they could reel in on their rise up the table.
The Villans have now gone five league matches without defeat for the first time since December 2020 and have taken an impressive 16 points from a possible 21 in away games under their new manager. Indeed, only Arsenal, Manchester City and Manchester United can boast to have a similar overall tally of top-flight points as Villa since Emery’s arrival.
There’s a confidence, belief and organisation in what they are doing and with such inconsistency across so many teams in the league this term, if Villa can continue their momentum then a first top-half finish since returning to the top-flight in 2019 looks very much on the cards.
Player of the match
John McGinn (Aston Villa). Not a bad week’s work for the Scotland midfielder. Not only did he help his side secure two victories in their Euro qualifiers, including a famous one over Spain, but he capped a fine overall showing for Villa by netting his first club goal in 16 months.
Player Ratings
CHELSEA: Kepa 6, James 6, Koulibaly 6, Cucurella 5, Chilwell 7, Fernandez 7, Loftus-Cheek 7, Kovacic 7, Felix 6, Havertz 6, Mudryk 5. Subs: Kante 6, Madueke 6, Gallagher n/a, Pulisic n/a.
ASTON VILLA: Martinez 8, A.Young 7, Konsa 8, Mings 8, Moreno 7, Kamara 6, Luiz 7, McGinn 8, Buendia 7, Watkins 8, Ramsey 8. Subs: Chambers 7, Bailey 6, Dendoncker n/a, Digne n/a.
Match Highlights
06’ CHELSEA CHANCE! Mudryk seizes upon a casual pass to the edge of his own area by Martinez but the Villa stopper makes amends with a big save to deny the Blues forward.
17’ – ASTON VILLA CHANCE! Ramsey and Buendia combine down the left to tee up McGinn who flashes a first-time effort from the edge of the box against the crossbar.
18’ – GOAL! – Chelsea 0-1 Aston Villa. Watkins is ice cool as he saunters on to a howler of a defensive header from Cucurella to race free and lob the advancing Kepa.
32’ CHELSEA CHANCE! Mudryk is sent clear on goal but his tame low shot is easy for Martinez to drop on. That should have been 1-1.
37’ CHELSEA CHANCE! James fizzes a half-cleared corner back into the middle. Havertz tries a back-heel flick, it pinballs around before Felix drags wide at the far post.
56’ – GOAL! – Chelsea 0-2 Aston Villa. McGinn guides a sweet, low shot from 25 yards into the far corner after Chelsea failed to deal with a left-wing corner.
66’ CHELSEA CHANCE! Kante almost comes back from his injury lay-off with a bang but he drags his low shot wide after nice work down the right by Madueke.
Key Stats
Aston Villa have scored in all 15 Premier League games under Emery, their longest run since a 17-match streak from August to December 2009.
Watkins is one of only three players to have hit double figures for goals in each of the last three Premier League seasons (10 in 2022-23), along with Harry Kane and Mohamed Salah.
McGinn scored his first PL goal of the season with his 29th shot – before today only Mohamed Elyounoussi (30) had more shots without scoring in the PL this season.
Since Unai Emery’s first game in charge of Aston Villa on November 6th, only Arsenal (13) and Manchester City (10) have more Premier League wins than the Villans (9).
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