Chelsea vs. Aston Villa Betting Tips: Two bets for 5:30pm Premier League game

Following a packed 3pm Premier League slate, televised action takes us to London where European chasers Chelsea seek to build on their recent momentum by overcoming Unai Emery's rejuvenated Aston Villa at 5:30pm on Sky Sports.

Chelsea appear to be in the ascendancy. In the wake of that seemingly damning loss to Tottenham at the end of February, Potter's men have won three of their subsequent four matches, including a significant result where they overturned the first leg deficit against Borussia Dortmund to progress to the UCL quarter-finals.

In the Villa camp, spirits are high. There's a belief that Unai Emery can potentially achieve special things at B6 given the right time and resources. And though outsiders may scoff at the idea, AVFC racking up the third highest points tally in the division since Emery's appointment in October with this current crop is likely to offer a more persuasive argument.

Despite what the bookmakers think, the table doesn't lie. These two are level on points in 10th and 11th respectively, and there's a multitude of reasons why neither is higher up at this stage. Villa have earned three points on one more occasion than Saturday's opponents this term, but have also lost two more games than the Blues.

The hosts can be backed at around the 8/11 mark to win. A draw is priced at 29/10, while Emery's side may make a strong case at 9/2 with multiple betting sites.

Emery and Watkins seem to be a match made in heaven. Villa's off the ball work all starts with their forward and it's exactly how the two of them would like it. Ollie is a relentless runner, so when his teammates aren't creating chances for him, he'll harass and hurry opponents in order to create his own.

This is led to him committing 17 fouls from 26 PL appearances in the 2022/23 campaign, with five of those coming in his last seven. This bet landed two weeks ago when Villa swatted aside Bournemouth, and digging back through his stats presents a pattern.

The former Brentford striker seems to go on foul streaks. On only three occasions this season has he committed a foul in one game and not gone on to to repeat his actions the following week.

Six of the 13 opponents he's been penalised against this term also happen to be teams inside the top 10. Having committed fouls against both Manchester clubs, Liverpool, Arsenal and Newcastle, there's a strong case to be made that Watkins is a man for the big occasion in that regard.

Opportunities may come scarcely in London compared to against an opponent such as Bournemouth which means rival defenders cannot be afforded any extra time or space in possession.

In Emi Buendia's case, there's a reason he's priced much shorter. The Argentine has featured 27 times in claret and blue during the current Premier League season and has only failed to make a single foul in eight; might we add that seven of those were substitute appearances where he played 45 minutes or fewer!

He might not be the first figure you jump to, but Emi is a combative individual with as much silk as he has aggression. That among many other characteristics make him a suitable fit for this Emery team.

If you were to back Buendia in this particular market, you'd have been successful in each of his last five and in 16 of his last 17 appearances, with 2+ fouls landing in 11 of those!

Villa's #11 has divided opinion among the Villa faithful during his time at the club. Nobody discounts his work rate or movement, but some do bemoan his wastefulness in front of goal.

But for where the club have been since regaining promotion, are at currently, and also look to be over the next season or two under Emery's stewardship, you'll struggle to find a better available forward.

In his two previous top flight campaigns, he's scored 14 and 11 goals respectively. He's only a couple shy of last season's tally with 10 games remaining, and a goal on Saturday would see him reach double figures in the league for a third consecutive season.

He's silenced critics lately by netting six times in his last eight, becoming the first ever Aston Villa player to score in five consecutive Premier League games.

He's averaging slightly better than a goal in every three this term which leaves him looking a tad big in the anytime scorer market at 7/2; particularly when you assess his record against the big boys.

In his debut season, Ollie grabbed a hat-trick against Liverpool at Villa Park and left Anfield with a goal. He also scored three against Arsenal, including a Brace at the Emirates. A goal vs Tottenham that same campaign meant he came away quite enjoying his visits to London.

Since then, the forward has bagged vs Man City and Tottenham again last season, before adding more success against Arsenal, Liverpool and City this term.

In what could be quite a close encounter in West London, Ollie Watkins stands as Villa's most obvious goal threat. And we're sure he'd love to add Chelsea to his growing CV.