Competition for place at Chelsea FC is always cut throat, especially so when the team is near full fitness, as they are now. In filling out our starting XI Prediction, for Sunday’s clash at Aston Villa, I left a long list of key match fit names, Those names include: Kai Havertz, Christian Pulisic, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell.
So I know what you might be saying, “if you left all those guys out, then who did you actually include?” Well, funny you should ask that, as we have our Blues first team prediction below.
Chelsea at Aston Villa FYIs
Sun, Oct. 16, Villa Park 4pm
Team News for both sides: go here
Records: Chelsea 5-1-2 Aston Villa 2-3-4
Premier League Form: Chelsea WWWLW Aston Villa DDWDL
After Extra Time Podcast: Spotify Apple Podcasts
Premier League Position: Chelsea 4th, 16 points Aston Villa 16th, 9 points
Google Result Probability: Chelsea 53% Aston Villa 22% Draw 25%
With so many players to choose from, on a roster this deep, there is truly no right or wrong answer when filling out your Chelsea starting XI prediction form. Here we go.
Chelsea FC Starting XI Prediction at Aston Villa
Kepa; Silva, Koulibaly, Chalobah; Azpilicueta, Jorginho, Kovacic, Cucurella; Gallagher, Loftus-Cheek, Sterling
Prediction: Chelsea 2, Aston Villa 0
Will this be the final straw that gets Stevie G. sacked at Villa Park? Maybe? Stay tuned!
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him and the website on Twitter and Instagram.