Chelsea come back to dent Villa's top-four hopes

Last updated on .From the section Premier League

Axel Disasi had a stoppage-time winner disallowed but Chelsea came from two goals down to dent Aston Villa's top-four hopes in Birmingham.

Chelsea's players were incensed and crowded Pawson at the full-time whistle, while manager Mauricio Pochettino had a passionate discussion with Villa defender Ezri Konsa.

Villa, whose top-four hopes are now not in their hands as a result of the dropped points, had taken an early lead after John McGinn's miscued effort deflected off Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella and into the bottom corner.

The visitors responded well with Nicolas Jackson having an effort disallowed by the video assistant referee for offside, before the Senegal international planted a header against the base of the post.

Morgan Rogers doubled the home side's lead after finding space on the left and tucking the ball into the near post through the legs of Trevoh Chalobah.

Chelsea found a route back into the game after catching Villa in possession high up the pitch, with Noni Madueke sliding a clever finish into the far corner.

The visitors pressed for an equaliser without creating too many opportunities, until Gallagher worked a shooting opportunity on his left foot and curled into the top corner from the edge of the area.

Both sides had chances to win the game before the disallowed goal, with Ollie Watkins slicing a cutback over the bar and Cole Palmer having a shot saved when dribbling through one-on-one.

Unai Emery's side are seven points clear of fifth-placed Tottenham, but Ange Postecoglu's side have three games in hand, starting with Sunday's north London derby against Arsenal.

There was further concern for Villa too, with goalkeeper Emi Martinez withdrawn at half-time after appearing to struggle with a thigh injury in the first period, and any period of absence could damage them with their Europa Conference League semi-final this week.
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This was a positive result for Chelsea, especially after going two goals down, and they showed an abundance of character and resolve in the second half.

It was a vast improvement from being called "so soft" by Pochettino after their 5-0 defeat by Arsenal on Tuesday.

There were familiar issues in the first half though as Villa scored two soft goals, and Chelsea have now gone 14 games on their travels without a clean sheet.

Jackson should have scored the header that hit the woodwork, and while the finish was taken beautifully, he should have timed his run better with the speed he possesses.

They had more than 70% possession in the second half and had 13 efforts to Villa's four.

Madueke is continuing to grow as a player and has scored three goals in the past six away games, while Gallagher has been one of Chelsea's more impressive players this season.

They were furious with the disallowed goal but should gain belief that they were able to fight back at a side that occupy a Champions League spot and have the fifth-best home record in the league.

It is hard to know how this result will affect Villa's top-four hopes, but with a home game against Liverpool sandwiched between trips to Brighton and Crystal Palace it may be damaging.

They were unusually soft in the second half, and failed to really lay a glove on Chelsea, apart from Watkins' late effort.

The loss of Martinez was a blow, with his presence huge for Villa.

Emery will look at positives though, and Rogers is undoubtedly one of those.

They had to be patient to get his signature in January but were persistent, with Emery a huge fan of the 21-year-old.

The former Manchester City man has now scored in his past three games at Villa Park, and has an assist in the past five games too, having failed to register any goal involvements in his first five appearances.

His finish was superb, taken quickly and placed brilliantly in the bottom corner, out of reach of a fully-stretched Djordje Petrovic.