After a humbling defeat against London rivals Arsenal, Chelsea will be looking to return to winning ways when they take on Aston Villa later today.

Just a week after their 6-0 battering of Everton, Chelsea fell to a 5-0 loss away to Arsenal in their last Premier League outing, with the result handing Mauricio Pochettino's side a blow in their chase for European football next season. The Blues do have games in hand on the teams around them in the table, but they need to start picking up the points needed, starting with a trip to Aston Villa.

Three points is just as vital to Villa, with Unai Emery's side looking to finish in the Premier League top-four this season. The last meeting between the two sides saw Chelsea win 3-1 at Villa Park in the FA Cup, with Conor Gallagher, Nicolas Jackson, and Enzo Fernandez getting on the scoresheet.

The latter has been ruled out for the season after undergoing surgery, while Raheem Sterling and Carney Chukwuemeka have both been added to Chelsea's ever-growing injury list. After missing the clash with Arsenal, Cole Palmer will return to the Blues' squad against Villa.

So, could Chelsea pick up a big three points at Villa Park? Let's take a look.

Aston Villa vs Chelsea simulated to get a score prediction

To complete this simulation, we used EA FC 24 and updated the squads with the latest injuries and suspensions.

We predict that Villa could set up in a 4-4-1-1 formation, with their line-up as follows: Martinez; Konsa, Carlos, Torres, Digne; Bailey, McGinn, Luiz, Rogers; Tielemans; Watkins.

We predict that Chelsea could line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their starting XI as follows: Petrovic; Disasi, Chalobah, Silva, Cucurella; Caicedo, Gallagher; Madueke, Palmer, Mudryk; Jackson.

A bright opening 10 minutes saw Chelsea gain some early confidence, with Nicolas Jackson testing Emiliano Martinez three times from close range. But, the wasted chances proved costly, and 26 minutes in, the hosts took the lead after a period of pressure.

After drifting out wide, Douglas Luiz eased past Axel Disasi on the left before sending a deep cross into the box. Thiago Silva wasn't able to clear his lines as he missed his header, and the ball fell to the untracked John McGinn who volleyed into the bottom corner to put Villa ahead.

After going into the break a goal down, Chelsea should've equalised in the 50th minute when Noni Madueke broke through on goal, but the winger could only direct his curling effort wide of the post. The big misses didn't discourage the Blues though, and in the 72nd minute, they found a deserved equaliser.

Playing through the middle, Palmer picked up the ball 40 yards from goal before skipping past two midfielders and surging towards the box. The Englishman played a one-two with Jackson to find some space for a shot, and his effort evaded Martinez as the ball nestled in the far corner to make it 1-1.

Mykhailo Mudryk thought he'd won it for Chelsea in added time when he latched onto Palmer's pass to slide through the legs of the 'keeper, but as the ball crossed the goal line the flag went up, with the Ukrainian offside. Neither side could find a winner, with Pochettino's side heading back to the capital with a hard-earned point.

EA FC 24 predicted final score: Aston Villa 1-1 Chelsea

You can find this story in   My Bookmarks. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.