Villa Can Keep Defying The Odds

Even if you factor in a response from Chelsea to 3 defeats in 4, we’re almost obliged to back Aston Villa at the prices available. We’re taking Dean Smith’s high-flyers to win with both teams to score at best odds of 13/2 with BetFair.

Villa are looking like the real deal. 10pts from their last 4 matches puts them right in the mix, with clean sheets in all of those clashes. That particular run may be ended here with Mings suspended and Chelsea adept at scoring at home (17 goals in 7 matches).

And yet, Villa look plenty capable of outscoring their big-spending hosts. Astonishingly, they rank 1st for average attempted shots per game (16.5), even outshining Liverpool and Man City. That suggests they are contenders on merit, and we should expect the fairytale to continue a while longer, at least.