While Manchester City at Liverpool FC is the headliner fixture in the Premier League this weekend, as it should be and deservedly so, Aston Villa at Chelsea is an attractive fixture as well.
It’s more than just a “sneaky good” game, it’s a, what’s the cliche “mouth-watering fixture.”
Chelsea FC vs Aston Villa FYIs
Kickoff: Sun. Dec. 1, 1:30pm, Stamford Bridge, London, UK
Preview Material for Both Sides: Team News Starting XI Prediction
PL Position, Form: Chelsea 5th, 22 pts, LWDDW Aston Villa 8th, 19 pts, WDLLD
Google Result Probability: Chelsea 57% Draw 22% Aston Villa 21%
So with that in mind, let’s try and get inside the minds of Enzo Maresca and Unai Emery here, and make predictions about who the two respective managers could select for their first teams here.
Starting XI Predictions
Chelsea
Robert Sanchez; Malo Gusto, Wesley Fofana, Levi Colwill, Marc Cucurella; Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez; Noni Madueke, Cole Palmer, Pedro Neto; Nicolas Jackson
Aston Villa
Emiliano Martinez; Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres, Lucas Digne; Boubacar Kamara, Youri Tielemans; Leon Bailey, John McGinn, Morgan Rogers; Ollie Watkins
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.