Chelsea take on the visitors Aston Villa in the round 1/16-finals of English FA Cup. The match will be played on Friday, January 26th at Stamford Bridge (London).
Chelsea quickly deteriorated under the new owner. Not everyone remembers, but Tuchel won the Champions League with them in 2021. And now there are constant squad changes, with incredible sums being spent – remember the 100+ million for Enzo Fernandes last year and Kai Cedo in the summer. In reality, after finishing 12th in the previous Premier League campaign, the Blues have only marginally improved, which is why Pochettino, who was brought in during the offseason, is constantly under pressure to justify himself. But what's the use if it's already clear after the first round that they won't break into the top 4. And it's not guaranteed at all that they'll make it to the European arena through the Premier League. To appease the fans and the employers, Mauricio needs a trophy. In the League Cup, everything could have ended in the quarterfinals, but Mudrick seized the moment, taking advantage of Trippier's carelessness, and took the match to a penalty shootout, which they won. Against Middlesbrough, the grand lost 0-1 away. At home, however, they fully capitalized on the mistakes of a less-classy opponent and comfortably won with a crushing difference.
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Aston Villa could well sacrifice the tournament. Thanks to Unai Emery's arrival in the autumn of 2022, the Villans managed to rise to 7th place in the Premier League last season. This allowed them to try their hand in the Conference League, and perhaps due to the novelty of the sensations (not long ago, the illustrious club languished in the Championship), the Englishmen are performing well there and, starting with the summer qualifiers, secured an early place in the playoffs by autumn. Despite this additional, unusual burden, they continued to progress to the point that by New Year's, they climbed to second place in the current Premier League table – it's no wonder the Spaniard was named Manager of the Month in December. On the other hand, the Birmingham representative failed to win against Everton and even Sheffield United, and against Man United, leading 2-0, they lost altogether. They want to stay among the leaders, and perhaps the coach will sacrifice other tournaments for this. In the League Cup, the Irises lost 1-2 at home back in September. And they only passed Middlesbrough in the cup thanks to a late goal from Cash. It seems that Emery simply avoided a replay.
In 2023, the clubs played twice in London. And both times Unai and his wards secured dry victories. The Blues are again considered favorites. But they are still unstable, while the opponent is having their best season in a while. Let's bet that the visitors from Birmingham won't lose.
Prediction for the match: Aston Villa not to lose (X2).
