Aston Villa vs Chelsea LIVE: Premier League result, final score and reaction tonight
Follow all the fallout from Villa Park
Follow all the action as Aston Villa host Chelsea in the Premier League this Boxing Day.
Steven Gerrard will be forced to watch from afar after Aston Villa’s head coach tested positive for Covid-19. Villa will hope his absence doesn’t detract from their momentum, having won four of their six games since Gerrard took charge, with their only two defeats coming against Manchester City and Liverpool. That upturn in form has seen Villa return to the top half of the table and they will hope to take advantage of Chelsea’s recent inconsistency this afternoon.
After such a brilliant start to the season, Thomas Tuchel’s side have faltered in recent weeks due to a combination of attacking absences and wasteful finishing. Back-to-back draws against Everton and Wolves have left the Blues six points adrift of Manchester City in the title race, although a 2-0 victory over Brentford in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals helped to regain some of their momentum. Follow all the latest updates below:
Chelsea come from behind to beat Aston Villa and stay in title hunt as returning Romelu Lukaku shines
Aston Villa vs Chelsea result and five things we learned as Romelu Lukaku fires Blues to crucial win 
Man City extinguish Leicester fightback to go six points clear with thrilling Premier League victory
Man City extinguish Leicester fightback to go six points clear with thrilling Premier League victory
That Manchester City spent the final few minutes searching for a sixth goal to secure the three points – and eventually found it – just about sums this game up.
This 6-3 victory was the highest-scoring Boxing Day game in the English top flight for 30 years and, hence, the most gluttonous of the Premier League era. A depleted Leicester City were first obliterated, then revived themselves, only to be obliterated all over again.
Man City extinguish Leicester fightback to go six points clear with thrilling win
Manchester City 6-3 Leicester: The visitors dragged themselves into the game after going 4-0 down but could not pull off an improbable comeback
Aston Villa vs Chelsea: Struggling Villa
Aston Villa have won three successive Boxing Day fixtures, their longest run since five victories in a row between 1908 and 1913.
But they have lost 20 Premier League fixtures in 2021. Only Newcastle United and Southampton, with 21 defeats each, have fared worse.
They have lost all five games this season versus teams in the top five of the table.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea: Stumbling Blues need a win
Chelsea could go three league games without a win for the first time under head coach Thomas Tuchel. They have won just twice in six Premier League fixtures, with three draws and one defeat, and are now nine points behind leaders Manchester City.
If they lose today the Blues will have lost three successive Boxing Day fixtures for the first time since 1914.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea: Villa improving under Gerrard
Aston Villa have amassed 12 points in six matches under head coach Steven Gerrard - two more than in their opening 11 league games under Dean Smith.
But Gerrard will miss Villa’s next two games after testing positive for Covid-19. It is the second time this season the Villa boss has been sidelined by the virus after he was forced to isolate earlier in the year whilst at Rangers.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea: Head-to-head
Aston Villa can win back-to-back home league games against Chelsea for the first time in 17 years following their 2-1 triumph last season. However, that is Villa’s only victory in the last nine Premier League meetings between the teams.
Chelsea have won on five of their last seven league visits to Villa Park and are unbeaten in all five league meetings on Boxing Day, most recently drawing 4-4 at Stamford Bridge in 2007.
Aston Villa vs Chelsea
More reaction to come from the Etihad Stadium but now the focus moves to Villa Park where Aston Villa are preparing to host Chelsea. Kick off for this game is at 5:30pm so here’s a reminder of how both sides line up:
Aston Villa XI: Martínez, Cash, Targett, Konsa, Mings, Luiz, Sanson, Buendia, Watkins, Ings, Ramsey
Chelsea XI: Mendy, Rudiger, Alonso, Jorginho, Silva, Kante, Pulisic, Chalobah, Mount, Hudson-Odoi, James
Aston Villa make two changes with Danny Ings making his first start in over a month and Morgan Sanson coming in. Ashley Young and John McGinn are both absent.
Chelsea also make two changes from the side that began their 0-0 Premier League draw at Wolves on 19th December. Jorginho and Callum Hudson-Odoi both start in place of Hakim Ziyech and Cesar Azpilicueta, who drop to the bench.
Reaction from Sterling
Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling scored twice in a man of the match performance to lead his side to a 6-3 victory over Leicester. Sterling says the result is good but the performance from City was disappointing after conceding three goals at home. Sterling said:
The manager warned us at half-time. Leicester conceded four in the first half but every time they attacked, they created chances.
“It’s disappointing. We just had to control the game. It was slick football. At 4-0 up you have to kill the game. Leicester have some really good players. They didn’t get disheartened and kept going. Credit to them.”
Man City 6 - 3 Leicester
Five goals in the second half at the Etihad Stadium. Trailing 4-0 at half-time Leicester fought their way back to 4-3 but Aymeric Laporte and Raheem Sterling added to City’s tally and secured the points.
Full-time: Man City 6 - 3 Leicester
90+3 mins: There’s the whistle. What a game that was! Manchester City score six past Leicester but concede three themselves. City move six points clear at the top of the Premier League table after a tough match against the Foxes who almost put together a miraculous comeback in the second half before Aymeric Laporte and Raheem Sterling took the match away from them.
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