The team has been updated.

Match Details: 

Tournament: Premier League 2020/21
Venue: Villa Park, Birmingham
Date: Sunday, 23^rd May 2021
Time: 8:30 PM IST

Preview:

Chelsea look to book their spot in the Champions League for next season as they take on Aston Villa here. The Blues picked up a big win over Leicester City last time around to ensure that their top 4 hopes would be in their own hands and another win here will get the job done. Villa, meanwhile, have nothing to play for as they will finish 11^th regardless of the result here and come into this one after an impressive win over Tottenham. The reverse fixture ended in a 1-1 draw and Chelsea would be hoping to avoid a repeat here.

Probable starting XI: 

Aston Villa

Emiliano Martinez (gk), Matt Targett, Tyrone Mings, Ezri Konsa, Kortney Hause, Marvelous Nakamba, John McGinn, Jack Grealish, Ollie Watkins, Anwar El Ghazi, Bertrand Traore.

Chelsea

Edouard Mendy (gk), Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva, Antonio Rudiger, Reece James, Marcos Alonso, Mateo Kovacic, Jorginho, Mason Mount, Christian Pulisic, Timo Werner.

Fantasy breakdown:

Aston Villa

Ollie Watkins presents the best forward option in this game with the Englishman leading Aston Villa in goals with 14 and he also has 4 assists to his name in 36 league outings.

Jack Grealish made his first start since February last time around. The influential midfielder has scored 6 goals in the league and also leads the team in assists with 10. He averages 1.2 tackles, 2 shots, and 3.2 key passes per game as well.

Matt Targett has assisted once from the left-back slot this season and he also averages 2.2 tackles, 1.4 interceptions, and 1 key pass per game, making him a good defensive pick.

Chelsea

Timo Werner has the most goal involvements for Chelsea in the league with 14, in the form of 6 goals and a team-leading mark of 8 assists. The German also averages 2.2 shots to go with 1 key pass per game.

Mason Mount heads up the midfield options here and the youngster has 6 goals to go with 5 assists in the league in 35 appearances. He and Jorginho who is their leading scorer with 7 goals (all penalties) are excellent picks.

Cesar Azpilicueta has impressed this season both at center back and right-back. The Spaniard has a goal and two assists to his name while also averaging 2 tackles, 1 interception, and 1 key pass per game.

Top picks

Must-haves:

• Ollie Watkins
• Jack Grealish
• Timo Werner
• Mason Mount
• Cesar Azpilicueta

Worth a shot:

• Matt Targett
• John McGinn
• Jorginho
• Antonio Rudiger

Captaincy options:

1. Mason Mount: Mount is a reliable option for the armband here thanks to his all-round play. He leads the team in shots (2.2) and key passes (2.4) per game while also averaging 2.1 tackles and 0.9 interceptions. He has scored and assisted once in his last 5 games in all competitions.
2. Ollie Watkins: Watkins has been in fine form off late, scoring or assisting in 7 of his last 9 games for club and country for a total of 5 goals to go with 2 assists in that time.  He also averages 2.7 shots and 1.2 key passes per game.

*Statistics are collected from whoscored.com.

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are of the author and are not a reflection of the actual points you might earn.