Chelsea vs Aston Villa LIVE commentary: Blues out to continue impressive form in FA Cup fourth round – kick-off time, team news and talkSPORT coverage

8 months ago 50

ARTICLE AD

Chelsea will be aiming to keep up their impressive form when they host Aston Villa in the FA Cup fourth round on Friday night, live on talkSPORT 2.

The Blues have struggled under Mauricio Pochettino this campaign but things are starting to look up at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea are in their best form of the seasonCredit: Getty

Pochettino’s side have won five of their last six games and booked their place in the Carabao Cup final in style on Tuesday, beating Middlesbrough 6-1.

They now take on Villa who are enjoying an incredible season in the Premier League and beat Boro to reach this round of the FA Cup earlier this month.

Chelsea vs Aston Villa: Up for the cup

Chelsea head into this game only 72 hours after a special night at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues secured a trip to Wembley after coming from 1-0 down in the tie to convincingly beat Middlesbrough 6-2 on aggregate in the Carabao Cup.

It was a record-breaking evening for Pochettino’s men who pulled off the biggest semi-final win in the competition since 2001.

This win will serve as the perfect motivation for another cup competition this week.

Chelsea have won the FA Cup eight times in their history, putting them fourth in the all-time list of winners.

A win over Villa will take them one step closer to glory and Pochettino will be desperate for the much-needed positivity at the club to continue.

Cole Palmer starred in Chelsea's Carabao Cup semi-final winCredit: Rex Chelsea were eliminated in their first four FA Cup ties against Aston Villa but have since won their last three, with two of those coming at Wembley (1-0 in 1999-00 final, 3-0 in 2009-10 semi-final). Aston Villa have won their last two matches against Chelsea, both away from home. They haven’t won three in a row against them in all competitions since a run of four between 1978 and 1984, while they last registered three in a row against them at Stamford Bridge between January 1959 and December 1960.

Chelsea vs Aston Villa: Team news

Ben Chilwell started and captained Chelsea on Tuesday evening after returning from his long-term injury.

The left-back could start again while Carney Chukwuemeka could come into the line-up after completing his injury recovery.

Christopher Nkunku is still out alongside Reece James, Robert Sanchez, Wesley Fofana, Marc Cucurella and Trevoh Chalobah.

As for Villa, Jacob Ramsey remains a doubt after missing the last game with a hamstring issue.

Pau Torres is close to full fitness and could start but Lucas Digne is expected to stay in the treatment room with Tyrone Mings and Emi Buendia.

Unai Emery may be missing Ramsey for the clashCredit: Getty Chelsea have won 40 of their last 47 FA Cup matches at Stamford Bridge (D5 L2) and have won each of their last eight in a row by an aggregate score of 24-3 since a 2-0 defeat to Man Utd in February 2019. Aston Villa ended a run of eight consecutive FA Cup defeats with a 1-0 win at Championship side Middlesbrough in this season’s third round. They have, however, lost their last seven away FA Cup matches against Premier League teams, with their last such win coming at Everton in the 1999-00 quarter-final.

Chelsea vs Aston Villa: What has been said?

Pochettino spoke of his desire to win some silverware with Chelsea this season after reaching the Carabao Cup final.

He said: “That job is done but now it’s about winning the final. I am so happy.

“But on the other side it looks like it is not so important when Chelsea are out of the Champions League and the Premier League title race.

“It’s important for the club, it’s important for us and important for this process to build a new team.

“It’s an important step for us for the confidence and belief in ourselves.

“That’s going to help because of the motivation and players who are close to returning to the team, they are going to want to come back to training tomorrow because of the final!

“I am desperate to win a title here. We won three trophies in Paris and we want to win one here. I am desperate to win trophies, of course.”

Pochettino wants to win a trophy this campaignCredit: Getty Raheem Sterling has been directly involved in 19 goals in his last 20 starts in the FA Cup (10 goals, 9 assists), scoring and assisting in Chelsea’s 4-0 win over Preston in the third round. He also scored in his last appearance against Aston Villa in the competition in a 4-0 win for Man City in January 2016.