Noni Madueke and Moises Caicedo were both crucial in Chelsea's comeback against Aston Villa on Saturday evening at Villa Park. Unai Emery's side dominated the first half with an early own goal from Marc Cucurella and strike from Morgan Rogers putting the hosts in complete control.

Nicolas Jackson thought he had equalised before Villa's second but VAR deemed him to be offside after he latched onto a ball over the top from Caicedo and finished with aplomb. As the second half elapsed, the Blues continued pushing for a route back into the game and were eventually rewarded when Gallagher won possession back high up the pitch before finding Madueke who guided an effort into the far corner.

After playing a huge role Chelsea pulling one back, Gallagher then bagged the equaliser himself with a superb curling effort from distance with nine minutes of normal time to play. Cole Palmer, who had endured a quiet night, was handed a great chance to win the game, however he was denied by Robert Olsen.

Substitute Axel Disasi thought he had won the game in the final seconds when he powered home Benoit Badiashile's lofted ball back into the box, however VAR had other ideas. An on-pitch review was recommended to Craig Pawson and upon further viewing he decided to disallow the goal which left numerous Chelsea players fuming.

While Chelsea would have undoubtedly been disappointed they were unable to claim all three points, the fight and character shown in the second half was telling. In the absence of Enzo Fernandez and on a night where Palmer struggled, three other Chelsea stars stepped up.

Gallagher and Madueke as the goal-scorers will get the praise however Caicedo was arguably the best player on the pitch. The Ecuador international has been somewhat recognised for his display at Villa Park with Madueke sharing a post that made his thoughts on Caicedo perfectly clear.

In the wake of the draw, via Instagram stories, Madueke reposted a graphic from Sofascore of his stats from the evening with Caicedo's alongside which show just how good he was against Villa.

Chelsea are back in Premier League action next Thursday evening when they face Tottenham in a London derby at Stamford Bridge. The likes of Gallagher, Caicedo and Madueke repeating their second half performances from the weekend will be vital if the Blues are to take anything from the game, and subsequently from the 2023/24 season.

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