Chelsea have been dealt a double injury boost ahead of today’s daunting visit from Aston Villa, the Premier League’s in-form side.
Unai Emery’s side have won seven straight league matches and, sitting just three points behind Arsenal, are slowly turning themselves into genuine title contenders.
Chelsea, by contrast, looked to be potential title chasers after an impressive performance against Arsenal last month, but their momentum has faded with just one league win in their last five matches.
Enzo Maresca’s side fought back well away from home last weekend against Newcastle to earn a 2-2 draw, and the Blues have more bodies back for this evening’s game at Stamford Bridge.
Estevao missed the away trips to Cardiff and Newcastle with a small muscular injury, but the Brazilian winger is back and available for the weekend’s fixture.
Get personalised updates on Aston Villa every day
Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro’s Football Newsletter.
Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link we’ll send you so we can get football news tailored to you.
And Liam Delap is also fully fit once again after a shoulder injury forced him off against Bournemouth at the start of December.
Both are unlikely to come straight back into the starting lineup, particularly Delap, who has endured a torrid time with injuries since moving from Ipswich Town in the summer.
There was further good news in the form of Cole Palmer, who Maresca confirmed is now finally ready to play a full 90 minutes after his return from a lengthy injury.
The talismanic midfielder has been carefully managed through his four appearances since returning from a groin injury, and is now appears back to full match sharpness.
Elsewhere, central midfielders Romeo Lavia and Dario Essugo remain absent with their respective thigh injuries.
And in defence, Levi Colwill remains sidelined with the serious knee injury he picked up before the start of the season.
Chelsea XI to face Aston Villa– Metro prediction
Alejandro Garnacho and Pedro Neto appear to be Maresca’s first-choice wingers at present, although the Italian could deploy Neto as a makeshift striker instead of Joao Pedro to make room for Estevao.
Enzo Fernandez was benched following Moises Caicedo’s return from suspension, but another superb performance from the Chelsea skipper may tempt Maresca to keep the same midfield partnership.
Should Maresca opt to play Fernandez, James could revert to his traditional right-back role, with Malo Gusto dropping to the bench.
Regardless, the Chelsea boss will surely want all his big-hitters on the pitch for most of the game against Saturday’s tough opponents.
Chelsea vs Aston Villa kick-off time, TV channel and live stream
Chelsea vs Aston Villa kicks off today (Saturday 27 December) at 5.30pm.
You can watch the match live on Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Main Event with streaming also available through the Sky Go app and NOW TV for subscribers.
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
