Aston Villa vs. Chelsea – English Premier League, May 23, 2021

Chelsea needs a win here on Sunday to make sure of a top-four finish. A draw could be enough, but Thomas Tuchel will not want to rely on the fortunes of other clubs.

Villa will have to be content with a mid-table finish, but that should please Dean Smith after a season in which COVID and a spate of injuries have severely tested his club.

Chelsea has everything to play for – and has the better squad on paper – but I am surprised how confident BetOnline is of the away win here.

Villa has tested the very best in the EPL this season and, although I’m not entirely sure that it can beat the London side on Sunday, the odds for the draw and the home win are enticing.

Aston Villa came back from a goal down on Wednesday to beat a very lackluster Tottenham side to secure an 11^th place finish in the league this season. After missing Jack Grealish for a large section of the second half of the season, that has to be considered a job well done.

After last season’s relegation fears, it was too soon to expect Villa to push for Europe this year – but with some clever transfer dealing in the summer, Dean Smith might be able to get his team to improve next season.

Still, he has a few real stars in his team that could disappoint the Stamford Bridge club.

Chelsea also has the Champions League final against Manchester City coming up at the end of the season. So it would not be a surprise if the players already had one eye on that game. That’s why Tuchel needs to retain concentration levels in his squad – as this league campaign is not over yet.

If Chelsea gets everything wrong in its two remaining games, it might have to make do with the Europa League next season – and that would be a real shame after how it has improved after sacking Frank Lampard in January. Tuchel has no real injury worries, so he should be confident of getting the win he needs.

The odds for the home win here are very tempting, considering Villa’s firepower and creativity in its squad. Yet, I expect Chelsea to play as it did against Leicester in the league win on Tuesday, rather than the performance against the same opponent in the cup final last weekend.

I’m going to go with the less attractive away win here.