Chelsea v Aston Villa Pre-Match Thread

[Legion]

[Damo70]

I reckon this will be Mournho's first home defeat....lol....2-1 to the Villa

UTV

I've gone for a win too. I think Mourinho will lose his unbeaten home record soon and it won't be to one of their  title rivals as they will be well up for those games. So it might as well be us on Wednesday.

[Meanwood Villa]

Going to Chelsea on the back of a morale boosting and surprising 3-1 away win. What could possibly go wrong?

[Rudy65]

Anyone know where to park at Chelsea? No doubt any spaces wll cost a small fortune

[Legion]

Anyone know where to park at Chelsea? No doubt any spaces wll cost a small fortune

Away Guide

[l_mckay]

Think they will beat us 3-1

[LeeS]

Just bought 2 tickets for me and Mrs S.

Our 2nd ever date was an away trip to Crystal Palace in 2010. On Valentines Day. My mates said I was mad for suggesting that but she really enjoyed it, especially when we all went mental at the late Stan equaliser. We got married last month and I think it is high time she came to another game.

Prediction 2-2 - just like her first game.

[Villafirst]

Any word on Sylla being available for Wednesday night? I remember his man-of-the-match display in the 2-1 loss at home at the end of last season. I remember us getting in their faces from the off and they struggled to cope with the tempo. Sylla also set CB for that great opening goal. Pity CB got sent-off through Terry's cheating as we would surely have won with 11 on the pitch?

[eastie]

If sylla was fit i might be tempted to bring him in for Weimann and go with a stronger midfield and gabby and benteke up top.

[Monty]

If it weren't for Mourinho I'd be getting very foolishly excited about this game, but the way they beat Hull was ominously familiar: they played brilliantly well in the first half, the movement and the pace were excellent, and then, once 2-0 up, won 2-0 without any great effort in the second half.

[Concrete John]

If sylla was fit i might be tempted to bring him in for Weimann and go with a stronger midfield and gabby and benteke up top.

That would badly effect the system we play.  I have no issues with playing Sylla, but it should be a straight swap for KEA and keep the shape we know and do well with.

[eastie]

If sylla was fit i might be tempted to bring him in for Weimann and go with a stronger midfield and gabby and benteke up top.

That would badly effect the system we play.  I have no issues with playing Sylla, but it should be a straight swap for KEA and keep the shape we know and do well with.

Maybe , but Chelsea's strength is their midfield , we must make sure we don't get overrun in that area and playing three attack minded players may leave us vulnerable - i am suggesting the possibility specifically with this game in mind - i agree the system we have been playing is the way to go in most games - but in the games we have lost since Xmas mostly against the top teams we have been overrun in midfield.

Weimann played the full 90 last weds and looked a bit tired on Saturday , with Liverpool in mind i might be tempted to rest him .
If sylla is unfit which I expect he will be then maybe tonev would be an option .

[Concrete John]

I think that going 4-4-2 would negate us as an attacking force, given we don't get much creativity or goals from the midfield.  It might stifle them a little, but they are good enough to adjust, especially if we aren't troubling them up front.  Lambert's style and way of thinking is very attacking, so I can't see him making such a defensive change.  We'll need Gabby and Weimann to do more work than we'd like going the other way, which helps out the midfield and hopefully stops us being overrun, but we should just go with what we do best and if the billionaire's toy is better than us, then so be it.   

[Monty]

By replacing TSM with Lambo we ended the era where Villa go away to anyone, even Chelsea, purely to exercise damage limitation tactics. It bit us in the arse in this fixture last season, but it bit Arse in the arse on Saturday, so we know it gives us a chance if nothing else.

[UK Redsox]

Anyone know where to park at Chelsea? No doubt any spaces wll cost a small fortune

Kings Mall Shopping Centre, Hammersmith. Then either walk all the way Stamford Bridge or get the tube to West Ken / Earls Court and walk down from there.