Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior leaves out replace goalkeeper Robert Sanchez and replaces him with no2 option Filip Jorgensen.
It follows criticism of his performance against Arsenal on Sunday, with Wesley Fofana returning from suspension to replace Mamadou Sarr but Pedro Neto banned after earning the Blues' ninth red card of the season.
Alejandro Garnacho replaces him on the wing and Malo Gusto comes in for Andrey Santos, with Marc Cucurella only fit enough for the bench after a month out.
You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Brighton v Arsenal" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Newcastle v Man Utd", for instance.
Aston Villa v Chelsea: Key stats and talking pointspublished at 09:03 GMT
09:03 GMT
Noel Sliney BBC Sport senior journalist
Aston Villa equalled their club record of 11 wins in a row in all competitions just after Christmas when they came from behind to beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge courtesy of two second-half goals by Ollie Watkins.
Villa are now looking to complete a first league double over Chelsea since 1989-90 but their recent laboured performances have given the visitors an opportunity to move within striking distance as the race for Champions League qualification intensifies.
Villa feeling the pressure
These are tense times at Villa Park. What started as a wobble has escalated into a collapse of form. Ponderous, passive and profligate, Aston Villa's recent displays have worrying echoes of their early-season malaise when it took them five league games to score and six to win.
Unai Emery's side are perhaps fortunate their current run of two wins, five goals and nine points from eight matches has not been punished more heavily by the chasing pack in the hunt for a Champions League spot.
Nonetheless, Villa had an eight-point cushion in third place early in the year but could find themselves only three points clear of sixth-placed Chelsea by full-time. There were 12 points between the sides seven games ago.
Another failure to qualify for the Champions League would be both a sporting and financial calamity for the Birmingham club. The subdued atmosphere at Villa Park of late is a reflection, in part, of the anxiety felt by supporters who are acutely aware that key players will be sold, with limited scope to reinvest in the squad, if Villa don't return to Europe's premier club competition.
Morgan Rogers, the scorer of Villa's only goal from open play across their past six league and cup matches, admitted after Friday's dismal defeat to bottom side Wolves that the team were feeling the pressure too. "It does weigh on us but it shouldn't," he said. "We deserve to be here and we should not forget that."
Villa need to swiftly remember how to win as their next four matches could be season-defining, with successive league games against Champions League rivals Chelsea and Manchester United and a two-legged Europa League tie against Lille.
Chelsea with issues to address
Chelsea are enduring their own slump in form, albeit not to the extent of Villa's. They won their first four league fixtures under head coach Liam Rosenior but have since drawn at home to promoted pair Leeds and Burnley, despite leading late on in both games, and then paid for errors and ill-discipline away to Arsenal on Sunday.
Pedro Neto's red card during that match was Chelsea's seventh in the Premier League this season – three more than any other club in the division – and their ninth in all competitions. Rosenior subsequently warned his players that he will not pick those he cannot trust to "stay disciplined".
Sunday's defeat highlighted two other areas the head coach must quickly address if he is to guide Chelsea to Champions League qualification through their league placing. Firstly, the Blues conceded two soft goals from corners against Arsenal and have let in seven overall from such situations in Rosenior's 13 matches in charge.
It also means they have only once beaten a current top-six side this season – Liverpool back in October – and have the worst head-to-head record of those teams, with Aston Villa having the best. With four games still to play against sides currently above them, Chelsea's top-five prospects may rest on whether they can significantly improve their results in those fixtures.
Sutton's predictions: Aston Villa v Chelseapublished at 07:32 GMT
07:32 GMT
Aston Villa are on a terrible run and are going to fall out of the top four at this rate.
Chelsea are not exactly flying at the moment either, but their biggest problem is that they can't keep 11 players on the pitch - they probably would have got something against Arsenal on Sunday if not for Pedro Neto's silly red card.
It's hard to back either team to get the win, so I am going to sit on the fence here.
Aston Villa are one of the clubs interested in 28-year-old Wales attacking midfielder Harry Wilson, whose contract at Fulham runs out in the summer. (Fabrizio Romano), external
Emery on striker options, Villa Park atmosphere and recovering formpublished at 14:51 GMT 3 March
14:51 GMT 3 March
Josh Lobley BBC Sport journalist
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has been speaking to the media before Wednesday's Premier League game against Chelsea at Villa Park (kick-off 19:30 GMT).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
Emery was asked about the dilemma of picking between experienced Ollie Watkins or the in-form Tammy Abraham: "Ollie has always had a competitive striker - Danny Ings, Jhon Duran, [Marcus] Rashford and [Donyell] Malen. We need both strikers and we need both playing their best in our structure. Scoring goals is not only their responsibility, it is the team's and my responsibility."
A 'singing section' will be in place at Villa Park and Emery was asked about the importance of fan atmosphere: "We have to transmit our energy with our attitude and skills, it starts with us. We need our supporters, especially at Villa Park. Tomorrow [the singing] is not 'Super John McGinn', it's 'Super Aston Villa'."
On the absence of his captain: "We need another leader. He is, of course, very important but he is not available tomorrow. His progress is getting better. We have enough players to keep our consistency and we feel comfortable with the players we have. I believe in them."
When asked how he can recover the players' confidence after a dip in form: "We will recover the confidence. It starts with our demands, being very demanding in our gameplan and each [player] trying their best. Attitude as well - our attitude will be fantastic and I expect it from our players. We then try to identify their strengths, weaknesses and exploit them."
Emery says Wednesday's opponents are a "fantastic test", adding: "It is a tough match. At Villa Park, we are feeling really comfortable and showing consistency, except in the last match we played. We want to recover our good form at home. I think they are very good"
'Evolution, not revolution' required before 'season-defining' Chelsea gamepublished at 15:53 GMT 2 March
15:53 GMT 2 March
Hannah Gowen Fan writer
Image source, Getty Images
Aston Villa have only won two of their past seven games. This is not the form of a team looking to secure Champions League football, nor one sitting third in the league for several months.
The team are looking sluggish, lacking in creativity and struggling to keep a clean sheet. Performances have been underwhelming, which has perhaps been more of a concern than the dwindling points tally.
The fixture against Chelsea at Villa Park on Wednesday is season-defining. A Champions League 'six-pointer' in which Villa could build a nine-point gap on the visitors, or the deficit between fourth and sixth could shrink to three points.
How can Unai Emery turn things around in a period of decline? It's time for something different - a fresh approach that will inject energy into a weary side creaking under the pressure.
The boss will never rip up his tactics sheet and start afresh, particularly in the final run-in of the season. But his team needs an evolution, not a revolution.
The easiest way for Villa to evolve is a change in starting personnel. Tammy Abraham has looked lively since his arrival, but has struggled to seize the shirt from Ollie Watkins. As Villa's record Premier League goalscorer struggles to net, the ex-Chelsea forward should be eyeing a start against his former club as an opportunity to stake his claim.
Meanwhile, youngster Alysson, who has had a stop-start beginning to his journey in claret and blue, has shown promise in his brief cameos so far. An energetic and physical attacker looking to impose himself on the Premier League feels exactly the type of player to fire Villa's frontline.
As the team look to spark the atmosphere at Villa Park, a refreshed performance will be the thing that really reignites belief and excitement among fans, who are longing to see the tide turn in a lengthy history of Villa falling at the final hurdle.
Watch Premier League highlights and analysispublished at 10:41 GMT 1 March
10:41 GMT 1 March
Pundits Alan Shearer and Ashley Williams join host Gabby Logan to bring you the action and talking points from Friday and Saturday's Premier League fixtures.
Ivan: Fantastic result, well deserved. Plus, nobody wants to be known as the worst team ever to play in the Premier League.
George: An excellent all-round performance by Wolves. They hassled every Villa player with the ball and attacked in numbers. Jose Sa was in good form and there when it counted.
Dan: Solid display and a well-deserved win. Every player ran their legs off and tried to the very last minute. Great to see Rob Edwards being so passionate too.
Chris: It's far too late but Wolves have gained some belief that was sadly missing earlier in the season. Take that into the Championship and we'll be back.
Aston Villa fans
Alan: So poor from Villa, who should easily have had enough to beat a very limited Wolves. Ollie Watkins is a passenger and shouldn't be starting, Emi Buendia is short of confidence and Morgan Rogers is trying too hard to compensate for the well-documented loss of our creativity. Top six has to be doubtful.
Ian: If we can't beat bottom of the league our season is falling apart.
Prit: Sorry, Unai Emery, you picked completely the wrong team. Wolves wanted it more and deserved the win. We know we are missing key players but far too many are missing in action for too many games. Villa need to snap out of this malaise or we will miss out on Champions League football next season.
Tony: All our early excitement has gone. Very little chance of Champions League and not much hope for Europa League glory. The players and management have a lot to answer for to allow a season of great expectation to collapse to a normal, crushing disappointment.
Analysis: Individual form has plummetedpublished at 12:36 GMT 28 February
12:36 GMT 28 February
Nick Mashiter Football reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Aston Villa are fortunate others have stumbled sooner and for longer this season - ensuring they have maintained a decent grip on third place until now.
Chelsea have dropped 17 points from winning positions at Stamford Bridge and 19 points overall in the Premier League this season.
They go to Arsenal on Sunday hoping to capitalise on Villa's latest slip - before travelling to Villa Park on Wednesday for a game which could define both teams' seasons.
Lille, in the Europa League on 12 March, and then a trip to Old Trafford on 15 March, will loom large for Villa.
Individual form has also plummeted, with Ollie Watkins scoring just once in 11 games - reminiscent of the spell where he scored only one goal in the opening 19 matches - while Morgan Rogers is on a similar streak.
The slump was sparked by injuries to Boubacar Kamara, John McGinn and Youri Tielemans last month as Villa's lack of depth was exposed.
Players argued between themselves as Ezri Konsa - who also had a flashpoint with fans at the end - and Amadou Onana urged Emi Buendia to leave the pitch quicker as he was substituted.
The cracks are showing and even the players are admitting to feeling the pressure.
"It does weigh on us but it shouldn't," said Rogers. "We deserve to be here and we should not forget that.
"Our run lately has not been as good as usual but that is the battle of the Premier League. We are going to get back to our good run of wins.
"We set our standards high and we have the ability to win every game. Obviously that is not realistic but we are playing good football as a whole and there is nothing to worry about.
"[The next fixtures] are the games you want to play and, with so much on the line, we need to show why we deserve to be where we are."
Analysis: Awful Villa now looking over their shoulderspublished at 23:08 GMT 27 February
23:08 GMT 27 February
Nick Mashiter Football reporter
Image source, Getty Images
The sight of Ezri Konsa rowing with the travelling Aston Villa fans underlined their current problems.
Frustration is boiling over, with two wins from their past seven Premier League games derailing their quest to return to the Champions League.
Defeat at Wolves will go down as one of their worst performances under Unai Emery.
They have the top four within their grasp and victory over Wolves - before hosting rivals Chelsea on Wednesday - would have edged them closer and kept the chasing pack at bay.
It is a worrying loss of form - sparked by the injuries to Boubacar Kamara, John McGinn and Youri Tielemans - and shows the lack of depth to Villa's squad.
The players were also clearly unhappy with each other, with Konsa and Amadou Onana gesturing to Emi Buendia to leave the pitch quicker when he was substituted.
Emery brought up his winless record at Molineux unprompted on Thursday, a sign it was irritating him, and he was clearly frustrated as he paced his technical area on Friday night.
He will now be fuming over the weekend as he watches powerless as their Champions League rivals try to close the gap.
Wolves 2-0 Aston Villa: What Emery and Rogers saidpublished at 22:47 GMT 27 February
22:47 GMT 27 February
Media caption,
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery, speaking to Sky Sports: "Congratulations to all of the players for the fantastic season we are having. Fantastic first half - we dominated. We created chances and did not concede early on. We deserved more in the first half.
"In the second half, they were winning more balls and they got into our box. When they scored, it was more and more difficult for us. For me, I think we lost more time than seven minutes."
On chances: "We had one chance with Amadou Onana and we did not score. But what a fantastic season we are having. We were tired and played open. But they have good players. After their goal, they were much more competitive.
"Now is the moment to be together and to understand how we are where we are. Today, we did not achieve what we needed, but it is still in our hands to get into a top position."
Aston Villa forward Morgan Rogers, speaking to Sky Sports: "Disappointing. We didn't do anywhere near enough to create chances and score goals. We controlled the game in parts - it was not all doom and gloom - but we did not create enough chances."
On the pressure on Villa: "It does weigh on us, but it shouldn't. We deserve to be here and we should not forget that. Our run lately has not been as good as usual but that is the battle of the Premier League. We are going to get back to our good run of wins."
On injuries in the team: "There are not excuses. We have players who are fit. We strive to win every game but we are still third in the table. This is where we want to be."
On the mood in changing room: "We set our standards high and we have the ability to win every game. Obviously, that is not realistic but we are playing good football as a whole and there is nothing to worry about.
"We need to show why we deserve to be where we are."
Did you know?
Aston Villa lost a Premier League match to the team starting the day bottom of the league for the first time since August 2022, when they lost 1-0 to West Ham under Steven Gerrard.
Ezri Konsa started his 220th Premier League match for Villa, moving him one clear of Ugo Ehiogu into sixth for most starts for the club in the competition, with only Gareth Barry (353), Gabriel Agbonlahor (292), Alan Wright (255), Steve Staunton (233) and Olof Mellberg (231) ahead of him.
Wolves v Aston Villa: Team newspublished at 18:53 GMT 27 February
18:53 GMT 27 February
Toti Gomes and Joao Gomes start for Wolves as boss Rob Edwards makes two changes.
Ladislav Krejci is suspended after his red card in the late 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace while striker Tolu Arokodare drops to the bench, having missed a penalty at Selhurst Park.
Wolves XI: Sa, Tchatchoua, Mosquera, S Bueno, Toti, H Bueno, Andre, Bellegarde, J Gomes, Mane, Armstrong.
Subs: Johnstone, Doherty, Wolfe, Arokodare, Lima, R Gomes, A Gomes, Edoze, Olagunju.
Ollie Watkins gets the nod to start up front for Aston Villa ahead of Tammy Abraham.
The England striker has one goal in his last 10 games, while Abraham has netted two in his last two games since his January arrival from Besiktas.
Pau Torres and Lucas Digne return in defence while Jadon Sancho replaces Leon Bailey from the 1-1 draw with Leeds.
Aston Villa XI: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne, Onana, Luiz, Sancho, Buendia, Rogers, Watkins.
Will Martinez deliver more Lille antics?published at 14:35 GMT 27 February
14:35 GMT 27 February
Nick Mashiter Football reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Aston Villa renew hostilities with Lille as they look to end their 30-year trophy drought.
The clubs will meet in the last 16 of the Europa League next month - a repeat of their Europa Conference League quarter-final tie two years ago, which Villa won on penalties.
It is perhaps most remembered for Emi Martinez being shown two yellow cards and remaining on the pitch.
The second came during the shoot out, after he gestured to the home fans, but he stayed on given yellow cards do not carry over from the game after the end of extra-time.
The goalkeeper will look to be the hero again when Villa travel to France on 12 March, before the return leg at Villa Park a week later.
Former Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud, Ethan Mbappe - brother of Real Madrid striker Kylian - will be looking to end Villa's European dreams.
Lille, who last won the title in 2020–21, are fifth in Ligue 1 - 17 points behind leaders Paris St Germain.
Villa remain favourites for the Europa League, finishing second in the league phase behind Lyon, and their path to the final is now laid out.
Bologna or Roma wait in the quarter finals while Stuttgart, Porto, Nottingham Forest or Midtjylland are potential opponents in the last four.
Villa and Forest learn Europa League last 16 opponentspublished at 12:43 GMT 27 February
12:43 GMT 27 February
Image source, Getty Images
The draw for the Europa League last 16 has been completed with English sides Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest learning their opponents.
Villa will face Ligue 1 side Lille, playing the first leg in France, while Forest will play Danish side Midtjylland with the first leg at the City Ground.
It is the second time Forest will face Midtjylland this season after losing 3-2 at home in the league phase during the short-lived Ange Postecoglou era.
Villa faced Lille two years ago in a two-legged quarter-final in the Conference League, eventually progressing on penalties after some memorable antics from Emi Martinez.
The first legs will be played on Thursday, 12 March, with the second legs a week later.
If Forest win they would face Stuttgart or Porto in the quarter-finals.
Villa would come up against Bologna or Roma at that stage if they progress.
Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa could meet in the semis, as their ties are on the same half of the draw.
Wolves v Aston Villa: Key stats and talking pointspublished at 11:03 GMT 27 February
11:03 GMT 27 February
Noel Sliney BBC Sport senior journalist
Friday night's West Midlands derby between bottom-of-the-table Wolves and third-placed Aston Villa is unlikely to be the mismatch which those respective league positions suggest.
The hosts can take confidence from holding league leaders Arsenal to a draw in the previous game at Molineux, as well as the fact this fixture – against out-of-sorts neighbours – has brought them unrivalled success at home in recent years.
Wolves' favourite fixture
Wolves have suffered 20 league defeats after 28 games of a season for the first time in their history as a result of Crystal Palace's last-minute winner last weekend by Evann Guessand, a player on loan from Aston Villa.
It leaves Wolves a point adrift of the Premier League's all-time lowest tally of 11 in a season, set by Derby County in 2007-08.
Unlike that Derby side, who "threw the towel in" according to then player Andy Todd, Wolves aren't going down with a whimper. Eight of their 10 points this season have been earned over the past 10 matches, with their four defeats during that period only one more than Villa.
No home fixture has been as fruitful for Wolves in recent years than this one, either. They've taken 19 points from the past eight Premier League and Championship meetings with Aston Villa at Molineux, with their only defeat during that period coming during a Covid-19 lockdown in December 2020. Wolves haven't lost at home to Villa with fans in attendance since 2012.
Can Abraham lift Villa?
Aston Villa's poor record at Molineux, allied to their recent sharp dip in performances, has added to the jeopardy for the visitors as they seek a first ever Premier League away win on a Friday night - their record so far is two draws and four defeats.
Ending that barren streak would give Unai Emery a 100th Villa victory in 179 games, the quickest of any manager to reach that milestone with the club. More importantly, it would ensure Villa stay ahead of the teams chasing them down. After Friday, they have successive league matches against two of those sides: Chelsea and Manchester United.
While Villa are holding up defensively, conceding just four goals during their current run of two wins in seven top-flight fixtures, they've only scored five times across that period. Three of those have come after the 85th minute, most recently from Tammy Abraham to earn a point at home to Leeds last Saturday.
The £18.25m January signing has scored in successive games with his only two shots on target but awaits a first league start since facing Brentford at the beginning of the month, when his would-be equaliser was controversially ruled out by VAR.
With Villa struggling in front of goal, Emery could do worse than pay heed to Abraham's record versus Wolves – he has scored six times in his three starts against them, latterly a Premier League hat-trick for Chelsea in September 2019.
Ticket revenue continues to soar in Premier Leaguepublished at 09:58 GMT 27 February
09:58 GMT 27 February
Daniel Austin BBC Sport senior journalist
Image source, Getty Images
Fans of the Premier League's six wealthiest clubs are paying an average of £74 per ticket for each match they attend, while ticket revenues are soaring, according to data from a new report.
The Uefa European club finance and investment landscape report shows that Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham earned an average of 19% more money from selling tickets for home matches in 2025 than in 2024.
Among Premier League clubs, Arsenal made the most per fan, per match, earning an average of £89 per ticket.
The biggest increase in ticket income was earned by Liverpool, who made 27% more than the previous year, for a total of £120m.
The figures include matches in all European and domestic competitions and comprise the average price for general admission and hospitality tickets.
The data shows all 20 Premier League clubs made a combined total of £920m from ticket sales last year - an increase of £90m from the previous year.
That total is almost double the total of £514m in ticket income earned by Spanish clubs.
Nine Premier League clubs feature in Europe's top 25 for gate revenue, with the wealthiest six all in the top 11.
The report shows the 20 Premier League clubs are well ahead of their European rivals when it comes to overall revenue, earning a combined total of £6.5bn.
That is almost double the revenue of the next highest division, Germany's Bundesliga, whose 18 clubs made a total of £3.4bn.
Of the 25 clubs who generated the most revenue, 11 were English.
But those revenues did not mean the Premier League clubs turned a collective profit, as only five made a profit while 15 made losses and across the division, there was a combined pre-tax loss of £559m.
Chelsea - with £355m - made the second-highest loss in European football history while Spurs (£129m) were the the third-biggest losers in 2025, with Aston Villa fifth (£85m).
Sutton's predictions: Wolves v Aston Villapublished at 08:09 GMT 27 February
08:09 GMT 27 February
I keep hearing people say that, mathematically, Wolves still have a chance of staying up, but let me just tell them straight - there is no chance of that happening.
There is no doubt Wolves have improved under Rob Edwards, but this is still a game I'd expect Aston Villa to win.
Unai Emery's side have slipped up a few times in recent weeks, however, and it has cost them.
They have only won one of their past four league games and I am a bit gutted they haven't managed a couple more wins to really be in the title race.
Emery has always talked down their title hopes anyhow, and I understand why - he obviously doesn't truly believe they can do it - but until this blip in form they were in with a real shout.
I still think they will have too much for Wolves, but they are going to have to work hard for the points. Villa won 1-0 at Villa Park earlier in the season, so I am going for the same scoreline here.
