Aston Villa highlights vs Chelsea: New contract essential but teammate is over-the-hill
Unai Emery’s winning run with Aston Villa extended after a 2-1 victory over Chelsea on Saturday.
Aston Villa travelled to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea, where the Villans dramatically came back from behind to earn three points on the road.
After 10 consecutive wins in a row, Villa were heading into the clash on tremendous form, in fact, the most-inform team in the division.
Emery may have Ollie Watkins to thank, as his second-half heroics kept Aston Villa‘s winning streak alive.
However, there were a few other main talking points to dissect.
Emi Martinez isn’t what he used to be
Emi Martinez has been a phenomenal goalkeeper over the years for Villa, but his age is starting to catch up to him.
The 33-year-old was unable to keep out Chelsea’s opener and failed to command his area appropriately from the corner that resulted in Joao Pedro scoring.
Martinez also showed further signs of a lack of communication at the start of the second half when he and Ian Maatsen had a misunderstanding, almost resulting in Pedro Neto extending the hosts’ lead.
The Argentine will never be forgotten for his contributions at Villa Park over the years, but his best days are well behind him.
It’s a tough conversation to have, but a replacement may be required in January.
Tielemans controlled things for Villa vs Chelsea
There are still concerns over Youri Tielemans’ contract situation and whether the midfielder will extend his stay at B6 beyond 2027.
The Belgian is at the peak of his powers, and many clubs would be interested in having a midfield maestro like Tielemans.
His world-class qualities were once again on show at Stamford Bridge, as the 28-year-old made 15 defensive contributions and provided the winning assist in the match.
Tielemans was a shining light in what was a poor and disappointing performance from the Villans.
Unai Emery got first half setup wrong vs Chelsea
Emery has usually chosen to play with a 4-2-3-1 with season, but he decided to shake things up against the Blues.
Villa seemed to not only attack in a 4-4-2 but also appeared to defend in the same shape.
Emery clearly saw this as an opportunity to soak in Chelsea’s possession and hit Enzo Maresca’s side on the break, but this wasn’t to be the case in the first 45.
The move was far too negative to play away at a side in Chelsea, who are particularly strong at home, and it harmed the Villans’ prospects of winning from the first whistle.
Credit to Emery, though, he spotted the mistake and changed things up in the second half after substitutions, and in the end, the win was fully deserved.
Enjoyed this article? Stay connected with all the latest Aston Villa news, updates, and behind-the-scenes content by following us on our new Instagram account – @villanews247