Real Football Man All of the Football, All of the time
Aston Villa are just two defeats away from Premier League relegation, they are going to have to win every game between here and the end of the season to have any hopes of survival. The two problems with this is that a) it’s a massive ask and b) it’s just simply not going to happen.
It’s not a case of if Aston Villa go down it’s now a case of when, my money is on relegation by April 9th. So defeat this week will give them a stay of execution for 7 days but the more pressing concern around Villa Park is whether or not Remi Garde will keep his job after what has undoubtedly been a season to forget.
Last time out before the International Break, Remi Garde’s side lost a relegation 6 pointer away at Swansea. One that all but meant Swansea had reached their objective of survival while compounding the misery for everyone connected to the Birmingham based club.
The manner in which they conceded the goal pretty much summed up their season, Brad Guzan attempting to cut out a ball in which he got nowhere near to and Federico Fernandez was on hand to poke into an empty net. Remi Garde after the game acknowledged that Villa’s time in the Premier League is now up.
Their opposition today by their own standards certainly haven’t had a good season and it’s only been salvaged slightly by the fact that Guus Hiddink has managed to stop this campaign from being a complete shipwreck
Chelsea currently find themselves 10th in the league and with them out of all the cup competitions it’s fair to say that their season is over by March. These next 7 games may be an opportunity for Hiddink to blood some youth before the next man enters the Stamford Bridge hotseat.
Hiddink is still yet to taste defeat in the Premier League though in his second spell as Chelsea Interim Manager that record was only preserved thanks to a dubious penalty award at home to West Ham before the International Break.
It’s fair to say that West Ham were the better side that day but Cesc Fabregas managed to haul Chelsea back into the game twice albeit with the assistance of the Referee for their second eqauliser. It’s been quite an unbeaten run but if you were to swap the draws for wins in that run then there is no reason why they wouldn’t be fighting for a Europa League place in these last 7 matches.
As for Today well I can’t see this game going any other way than a win for Chelsea. Villa are down and out, it may still be mathematically possible but in footballing terms it’s impossible. I doubt it will be a classic but I reckon it will be an away win.
