Two consecutive victories have lifted Paul Lambert's Aston Villa five points clear of the bottom three and into 13th place. Chelsea are currently in reasonably good form too, though they're still yet to wrap up their Champions League spot. With two games to go they're two points ahead of Arsenal, while Tottenham are a point further back.
Aston Villa vs. Chelsea: Preview and TV schedule
A confident Aston Villa are almost certainly safe from relegation, and will look to damage Chelsea’s Champions League hopes at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
Julian Finney
Villa sparked their two-game winning streak by smashing Sunderland 6-1, and continued it with a 2-1 victory over Norwich City last weekend. However, they've been in good form throughout the last couple of months, and only Manchester City, Liverpool and Manchester United have beaten them since March.
Chelsea, meanwhile, are unbeaten in six, and will be hoping to emulate the 8-0 hammering they delivered when Villa travelled to Stamford Bridge in December. However, they're without Ryan Bertrand through injury, while Eden Hazard and Oriol Romeu are both doubtful.
Villa have long-term absentees Chris Herd and Richard Dunne out, while Gary Gardner, Marc Albrighton and Matt Lowton are all in doubt. Lowton came off with a thigh injury against Norwich City, while Gardner and Albrighton are on their way back from longer-term issues.
Aston Villa injuries and suspensions
Out: Chris Herd (foot), Richard Dunne (groin) In doubt: Gary Gardner (knee), Marc Albrighton (match fitness), Matt Lowton (thigh)
Chelsea injuries and suspensions
Out: Ryan Bertrand (knee) In doubt: Eden Hazard (calf), Oriol Romeu (knee)
Match Date\Time: Saturday, 12:45 p.m. local, 7:45 a.m. ET
Venue: Stamford Bridge, London, England
TV: ESPN2 (U.S. English), ESPN Deportes (U.S. Spanish), Sky Sports 2/HD (U.K.)
Online: ESPN3
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