Chelsea, four points shy of third but with a game in hand, are straight back in action with the first Premier League game outside London since August. The hectic schedule takes Graham Potter’s men from Milan, once ribboned with canals, to Aston Villa, biggest club in Birmingham, the ‘Venice of the Midlands’. As on Tuesday against the Rossoneri, it will surely not be plain sailing for the world champions, despite the Villans’ perilous current position.

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The Sunday kick-off evokes memories of Easter Sunday 1999, when the then vicar of Aston, Reverend Keith Sinclair, rang church bells in protest at the disruption to holy day worship as Chelsea moved in mysterious ways to win 3-0 at the Villa ground next door.

This is the Blues’ first trip to Peaky Blinders territory since an eventful 3-1 victory on Boxing Day, in which Reece James inadvertently opened the scoring for the hosts.

A brace of Jorginho penalties and Romelu Lukaku’s first league strike in three months then completely rescripted the narrative. Four of the past five meetings at Villa Park have ended in three points for the Londoners.

Chelsea team news

The Milan result was almost but not quite a third successive 3-0 (for the first time in the club’s history), but goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga has at least racked up three clean sheets in a row for the first time since April 2019.

Graham Potter’s methods appear to be working at both ends of the field. The most Blues attempts on goal this season came against Wolves last time out in the Premier League. Some of this can be ascribed to the coach’s midfield strategies, which aim to stifle opponents’ plans and release Chelsea’s creativity. This approach has increased our capacity for game-management, restricting opposition attempts on goal, and committing more players to the box in the final third when needed.

The world champions are credited with 60 per cent average possession so far, the third highest in the Champions League. Control of the ball with purpose is the point, though, and following his clinical finish after an eye-catching move at San Siro, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored three goals from just four shots on target this season.

Even before setting up the Gabonese striker, Player of the Match Mason Mount had earned the penalty dispatched by Jorginho, and was taken off at half-time to ensure he could not receive a second booking on a night of nine cautions and a dismissal.

News is awaited on Reece James' injury but he may not be risked even if available. If the right-back is absent this weekend it means Cesar Azpilicueta could pick up where he left off as a sub on Tuesday, or a wide attacking player may play in a wing-back role.

Wesley Fofana must sit out a few more weeks, and it remains to be seen whether N’Golo Kante is ready to play any part. Attacking midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka returns to the club for whom he turned out more than a dozen times last season.

Combined goals and assists in all competitions 2022/23

Feeling Peaky

Steven Gerrard is enduring the third sticky sequence of his 11-month tenure. Despite changes of formation and two decent wins, Aston Villa have been dragged down by three draws and four losses.

Villa are now winless in four matches and were short on goalmouth action in Monday’s draw at Nottingham Forest. The former Rangers coach will be boosted by the quality of Ashley Young’s equaliser at the City Ground, but there were two shots on target in return for 60 per cent territorial advantage.

Dean Smith’s successor has urged attacking players such as Emiliano Buendia, Philippe Coutinho, Douglas Luiz and Ollie Watkins to summon the quality and magic he expects. Quicksilver Jamaica winger Leon Bailey looks likely to be fit again, but at the other end of the field signature signing Diego Carlos’s injury has hit Gerrard’s plans hard. The manager took the captaincy from Tyrone Mings after signing the Brazil-born Sevilla centre-back, but has reinstated the England defender as Ezri Konsa’s partner in the heart of defence.

Guarding against conceding has meant full-backs Young and Matty Cash have been less attack-minded than previously, but John McGinn is as forceful as ever in the engine room. They have a reliable goalkeeper in Emi Martinez, who will be looking to improve on two clean sheets this season.

Villa have often started matches well but each of the three goals they have conceded at Villa Park have come in the second half. Contrastingly, three of Chelsea’s four scored on the road have arrived before the break.

Five alive

Chelsea have found the net 13 times in the Premier League campaign so far, including eight after the break. Interestingly, five of those strikes came in the final quarter-hour and, of those, four were scored by substitutes – including Conor Gallagher at Palace and Armando Broja against Wolves.

In another season, it is uncertain whether either Cobham crew member would have made it off the bench, but the five substitutes rule reintroduced last summer has given coaches greater flexibility, and youngsters are clearly among the beneficiaries.

Midlands bunch

Aston Villa’s 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest last time out means the four Midlands clubs are clustered together in the bottom five, with each of the Villans’ eastern neighbours occupying a relegation berth. There is, of course, plenty of time for a turnaround, but historically the region was one of the hotbeds of football. It has more European Cups to its credit than London.

The last time a trio from the heart of the country suffered the drop from the top tier was 1983/84, when Birmingham, Notts County and Wolverhampton did the dishonours. Of the current quartet, Forest were promoted last summer, Villa in 2018/19, Wolves 2017/18, and Leicester 2013/14.

Home and away

After several seasons where many teams performed better away from their own stadium, we seem to have reverted to there being no place like home for most. Everton are the only team gaining more points on the road, while Brighton have the same record wherever they play.

Until Monday’s away point, Aston Villa were one of the most extreme home-bias performers. They had gathered seven of their eight points (88 per cent) from home games. Only Leeds, with 89 per cent, showed more liking for the comforts of home, while Liverpool have gained eight of their 10 points at Anfield.

Matchweek 11 Premier League fixtures

Friday 14 October fixture

• Brentford v Brighton 8pm (Sky Sports)

Saturday 15 October fixture

• Leicester v Crystal Palace 12.30pm (BT Sport)

• Fulham v Bournemouth 3pm

• Wolves v Nottingham Forest 3pm

• Tottenham v Everton 5.30pm (Sky Sports)

Sunday 16 October

• Aston Villa v Chelsea 2pm (Sky Sports)

• Leeds v Arsenal 2pm

• Man Utd v Newcastle 2pm

• Southampton v West Ham 2pm

• Liverpool v Man City 4.30pm (Sky Sports)