BBC pundit Chris Sutton has had his say as Chelsea prepare to travel to Villa Park for the Premier League clash with Aston Villa.
Confidence is high in the Chelsea camp right now, with them on a run of four wins in a row under Graham Potter.
This has included a pair of big victories against AC Milan in the Champions League, turning around their fortunes completely in that competition.
The same cannot be said about what’s going on with Aston Villa right now.
Steven Gerrard’s side have just two wins this season, and there are calls for him to be sacked before the situation gets out of control.
This fixture was the Romelu Lukaku show last season, with the Belgian scoring twice in the home game, before returning from injury to inspire a comeback win at Villa Park.
Sutton predicts Chelsea Aston Villa
Sutton has claimed that the pressure on the Villa players to pick up points, particularly at home, will be their downfall this weekend.
He said: “I think the feeling among Aston Villa fans is that the jury is out on Steven Gerrard at the moment.
“It’s as much to do with Villa’s style of play as their results – that’s becoming a problem but he is hardly likely to change and be expansive against Chelsea, because they will be a nightmare to play against.”
“Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is scoring goals and Graham Potter is showing how adaptable he is as a manager.”
“Villa will be under pressure to win at home, and I can see the nerves getting the better of their players.”
A win for the Blues will see them maintain their place in the top four. They will also keep the pressure on Tottenham who sit in third at the moment.
Five wins in a row would be a serious achievement for Potter, who was no doubt under pressure replacing Thomas Tuchel last month.
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