Chelsea's trophy chase switches to the FA Cup tonight as the Blues host Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge in the fourth round. A place in the last 16 of England's oldest club competition – now in its 143rd year – is at stake.

The game is a rematch of the 2000 final and pits the Premier League squad with the youngest average squad age, Chelsea, against one from Aston Villa which is the top-flight's fifth oldest.

That youthful energy will likely be needed given Mauricio Pochettin's side have had less than 72 hours to prepare for the fixture. Aston Villa, in contrast, have not been in action since January 14 due to the mid-season Premier League break.

Unai Emery's side secured their place in the fourth round by overcoming our Carabao Cup semi-final opponents Middlesbrough. Their victory at the Riverside Stadium was – rather surprisingly – their first in the competition since 2016.

Villa do have an FA Cup pedigree, however. They have lifted the trophy on seven occasions, the sixth of which came at Stamford Bridge on 24 April 1920.

There will be 6,000 visiting supporters in attendance tonight and they will be hoping to claim a third consecutive victory in west London.

That may prove tricky, though, with Pochettino's side unbeaten in their last nine matches at Stamford Bridge in all competitions. The Blues have also come away victorious from our previous eight home matches in the FA Cup.

Reaching round four

Chelsea Team News

Pochettino will want his team to replicate the intensity and efficiency that saw off Middlesbrough in the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg.

On Tuesday night, we regained possession in the final third on 16 occasions, and four of our goals came from pressing Boro into mistakes.

An area to exploit against Aston Villa – although admittedly easier said than done – is the space behind their high backline. The Villans attempt to cut off passing avenues, push their defence up to the halfway line, and use Emi Martinez as a sweeper goalkeeper.

It has proved an effective tactic and Villa's offside trap has snared 106 players this season, 60 per cent more than their closest rival, Tottenham Hotspur (67).

In our September meeting against Villa – which the visitors won 1-0 after a Malo Gusto red card – Ben Chilwell, Raheem Sterling, and Nicolas Jackson sprung the offside trap several times. A finishing touch couldn't be found that day, however.

It was a different story in midweek as Chelsea scored six goals from six shots on target. Pochettino will hope that our clinical edge is maintained.

There will be no Gusto, Trevoh Chalobah, and Christopher Nkunku despite their respective involvements in full team training this week. Chilwell may also not be ready to start twice in three days following his comeback from a three-and-a-half-month lay-off.

There could be a start for Carney Chukwuemeka against his former club and he could help unlock the Villa defence, especially if Emery opts to pay close attention to Cole Palmer, who has passed double figures for goals and weighed in with assists.

The only disappointment in midweek was the spoiling of our clean sheet late on. However, Djordje Petrovic, the Premier League's third-youngest goalkeeper, has the fourth-best save percentage (74 per cent).

Goal contributions 2023/24 (all competitions)

Opposition scout – Aston Villa

All-conquering at home in the Premier League, fourth-placed Villa have conceded first in almost two-thirds of their away trips. Just 35 per cent of their points this season have been collected on the road – and only 33 per cent of their goals have been scored.

Combative, energetic, and comfortable in the roles Emery hands them, the Villans play with a bold and high defensive line, which enables midfielders and forwards to press opponents aggressively.

World Cup-winning goalkeeper Martinez – whose goals against per 90 minutes statistic (1.30) is pipped by Djordje Petrovic (1.18) – is a proactive keeper. The Argentine claims crosses and sweeps behind the Villa defensive line.

Emery’s back four often becomes a back three in possession, and his hardworking four-man midfield relies on Leon Bailey and John McGinn driving forward.

Douglas Luiz has been virtually ever-present and crucial, along with left-back Lucas Digne, to Villa’s great success from set-plays.

Ollie Watkins is the archetypal number nine but also leads in Premier League assists this term (8). He is well supported by Bailey and darting number ten Moussa Diaby and scored on Villa's last visit to Stamford Bridge.

Emery's side return to top-flight action on Tuesday night against Newcastle United, but a strong Villa side is expected to be named. Tyrone Mings and Emi Buendia are long-term absentees while Digne, Pau Torres, and midfielder Jacob Ramsey are not quite ready.

Former Blue Bertrand Traore remains with Burkina Faso at the African Cup of Nations.

FA Cup – 2023/24 regulations

Should tonight's game finish level, there will be a replay at Villa Park. The last time Chelsea required a rematch in this competition was against Norwich City in 2018. We progressed after extra time and a penalty shoot-out at the Bridge on that occasion.

Five substitutions, plus concussion replacements, are allowed, and VAR will be in operation at Premier League stadiums that host matches, such as this evening's.

Accumulating two yellow cards results in a one-match suspension in the FA Cup; only red cards are transferable to other domestic competitions. All cards are wiped after the quarter-finals. No Chelsea player was cautioned in the win against Preston.

Should the Blues make it to the fifth round, ties are due to be played in midweek around 28 February.

The quarter-finals are scheduled over the weekend of 16/17 March, the semi-finals will be played over the weekend of 20/21 April, and the final will take place on Saturday 25 May at Wembley Stadium.

When is the FA Cup fifth round draw?

The draw for round five of the FA Cup will be broadcast live on ITV and BBC channels from around 2.10pm on Sunday 28 January.

Chelsea vs Villa: FA Cup history

Aston Villa had the early edge in FA Cup meetings between the two sides, winning each of our first five encounters, including a semi-final at Bramall Lane in 1920.

In the modern era, it is the Blues that have claimed the spoils, though it took a replay to deliver our first-ever victory over the Villans in round three of this competition in January 1987.

The original game at Villa Park was a classic – an eventful 2-2 draw – and the decisive replay went ahead only after an inspection of the icebound Stamford Bridge pitch.

Chelsea still looked frozen when Steve Hunt broke the deadlock with a half-volley from a corner, but a string of quick breakaways finally bore fruit seven minutes before time: David Speedie putting Gordon Durie in for the equaliser.

Extra time saw more chances go begging for the Londoners with keeper Nigel Spink equal to everything.

Eventually, in the second additional period, Evans felled ‘Jukebox’ in the area and the referee pointed to the spot. Substitute Mickey Hazard’s penalty just evaded Spink’s grasp to send Chelsea through.  

Our two most recent encounters were the 2000 final, which the Blues won after Robbie Di Matteo swept in a loose ball from Gianfranco Zola’s free kick, and a semi-final ten years later.

Second-half goals from Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda, and Frank Lampard eased Carlo Ancelotti’s eventual Double-winners into the final, where we defeated Portsmouth.    

Why Friday?

Why is this FA Cup clash scheduled for an unusual Friday evening kick-off despite not being selected for live TV?

The key factor is that Fulham were also drawn at home (to Newcastle United) and our two stadiums cannot stage matches on the same day. The Cottagers also played in their Carabao Cup semi-final second leg on Wednesday, so they could not move their FA Cup tie.

And the fact Aston Villa take on Newcastle in the Premier League on Tuesday (30 January) left Friday at the Bridge as the only option.

Semi-final fallout

The Carabao Cup final will be Chelsea’s 35th in a major competition and our tenth in the EFL League Cup, a record only bettered by fellow finalists Liverpool (14).

It is our 18th domestic final since 2000, six more than any other of the traditional ‘big six’ club, and the Londoners’ 30th match at the new Wembley – a stadium record.

With Tuesday’s 6-1 win, Chelsea became only the second side in League Cup history – after Villa in 2010 – to strike six times in a semi-final second leg. It also set a club record score for that stage of the competition (previously 4-0 versus Wycombe Wanderers).

It was also our biggest win against Boro in all competitions (previously 5-0, three times).

The Blues have now notched more across all competitions in 2023/24 (51 goals in 28 games) than over the whole of last season (50 in 50).