'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Chelsea secured a 2-1 win over Aston Villa at Villa Park on Sunday to strengthen their position in the Premier League top four.
The Blues now have 51 points from 30 matches and occupy 4th position in the league standings. Meanwhile, Aston Villa remain in 19th position with 26 points from the same number of matches.
It would take a Herculean effort from the Villans to stay in the top flight as they squandered a golden opportunity by throwing away a one-goal lead against Chelsea. Kortney Hause netted the first goal of the match in the 43rd minute before Christian Pulisic and Olivier Giroud scored in the second half to seal a memorable win for the Blues.
On that note, here are three key observations from the match:
#1 Chelsea suffered in the first half because of their poor quality of crosses
Chelsea dominated the first half in terms of ball possession (75%) and also won a number of corners. However, they could not convert their dominance into goals and suffered because of their profligacy in the final third.
The lack of quality in their crossing was quite evident as their fullbacks, Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcus Alonso, could not send out quality crosses despite being on the ball frequently. Alonso, in particular, got hold of the ball in the final third many times but his crosses either went astray or were met by the Villa defenders.
Willian, who started as the right-winger, also tried to play some crosses but most of his deliveries went straight to the Villa goalkeeper. Mason Mount moved to the right wing at times and one of his crosses had almost broken the deadlock for Chelsea. However, a diving Loftus-Cheek, who was inches away from the Villa goal, could not set his foot on it.
#2 Villa defended dourly as Hause was the stand-out performer
Aston Villa are currently fighting it out in the relegation zone and their intent was evident from their forceful defensive display against a formidable Chelsea attack. Their centre-back Hause was superb in the first half and demonstrated his aerial prowess by keeping out the opposition's crosses. He also led the defence commendably as Villa did not allow the Blues forwards any shooting space in the final third.
Hause also managed to score from a melee inside the Chelsea penalty box. It was his first goal for Villa from 4 matches and marked a complete performance from the young English defender.
Chelsea played with a high defensive line for the majority of the match and put most of their players in the Villa half. The hosts, however, rose to the challenge and defended deep to keep the Blues at bay. They also managed to stop the opposing full-backs from delivering crosses at ease and prevented the visitors from going ahead in the first half.
#3 Chelsea came back into the match strongly as their crossing improved
The second half witnessed a resurgence on Chelsea’s part, as they scored two goals in the space of two minutes. Both the crosses for the goals were delivered by Azpilicueta, who made amends for his first-half profligacies.
The Spaniard first delivered an inch-perfect cross from the right flank to Christian Pulisic, who headed in to equalise for the Blues. The American had replaced a largely ineffective Loftus-Cheek just minutes before.
Azpilicueta then moved to the left flank and delivered a low cross to Olivier Giroud, who received the ball and finished brilliantly to score his 7th goal of the season for Chelsea.
