We were by far the stronger side in the opening period and fashioned several opportunities to break the deadlock. Disappointingly – and ultimately tellingly – only one was taken as Joao Pedro got the final touch on a corner from Reece James.

A Villa response was expected and, following a triple change which included the introduction of Watkins, it arrived. The striker levelled, somewhat fortuitously, with an effort that struck Sanchez and rebounded off the striker and into the net.

With six minutes to play, Watkins added a second as he rose highest to head home a Youri Tielemans corner. It was a late blow that we couldn't recover from, and Villa extended their winning run to eleven matches in all competitions.

Strong start

Maresca opted to make two changes to his starting XI. Enzo Fernandez replaced Malo Gusto in an alteration that saw James move into right-back, and Benoit Badiashile came into the back four in place of Wesley Fofana.

Having won ten consecutive matches in all competitions, Villa arrived at Stamford Bridge with confidence. A strong start was needed from the Blues and we fashioned an early opportunity.

The ball was fed to Moises Caicedo 30 yards from goal and produced a deft, first-time pass over the head of Tielemans to find Cole Palmer. Our No.10 controlled expertly and fired toward goal but his attempt skewed wide of Emiliano Martínez's post.

Building pressure

The contest soon fell into a pattern. Chelsea controlled possession and probed the Villa backline. If an attack broke down, the visitors looked to break at pace and release either Morgan Rodgers or Donyell Malen. However, the combination of Trevoh Chalobah and Badiashile meant Robert Sanchez was untroubled in the opening period.

Chances were fashioned at the other end. Neat work between Palmer and Alejandro Garnacho enabled Fernandez a shot at goal from the edge of the area, but the Argentine guided his effort narrowly beyond the post.

Joao Pedro was then denied from close range; the Brazilian got a touch on a low cross from Pedro Neto, only for the ball to strike the face of Martinez and bounce clear. James then rattled a shot wide after a clearance had fallen to him 20 yards from goal. The pressure was building.

Going ahead

Seven minutes before the interval, our efforts were rewarded. There was nothing pretty about the goal but few could argue it was deserved. Marc Cucurella earned a corner that was swung into the six-yard box by James and the ball ended up in the back of the net.

The majority of those in blue ran over to celebrate with James, but Joao Pedro wheeled away in the opposite direction and replays showed the ball had brushed the Brazilian on its way into the net. It was his goal but, more importantly, we were in front.

We pushed for a second before the interval, as a Victor Lindelof clearance fell to Palmer and he rasped a shot at goal that Martinez saved well. It proved to be the last opportunity of a half that the Blues had controlled.

Neither head coach opted to make alterations at the break, and the first attack of the second period led to a penalty appeal for the Blues after a Garnacho cross struck the arm of Ian Maatsen. A corner was awarded and no further action was taken.

Villa's first genuine effort on goal – a Rodgers' shot that was deflected wide – led to the Blues coming inches away from doubling our lead. Sanchez claimed the Villa corner and quickly distributed to Palmer, who exchanged passes with Joao Pedro and slid a pass across the penalty area.

Garnacho was arriving and ready to finish the move, but John McGinn stretched full length to get a boot on the ball and divert it just beyond the far post.

We continued to threaten the Villa goal and Martinez was soon forced to produce a reaction stop to claw out a cross-cum-shot from James that threatened to loop over the Argentine stopper.

Villa respond

On the hour mark, Unai Emery introduced Amadou Onana, Jadon Sancho and Ollie Watkins. They were changes that quickly paid off.

After Sanchez had done excellently to deny Boubacar Kamara, the Blues goalkeeper was unfortunate on the Villa goal. He raced off his line to block a shot from Watkins, only for the ball to ricochet back off the striker and into the net via the post.

With momentum now with the visitors, Villa looked for a quick second. Sanchez had to be alert to beat away a powerful near-post effort from Maatsen and then reacted excellently to get down and deny a low drive from Watkins.

A late blow

Maresca looked to halt the Villa pressure with changes of our own. Gusto replaced Cucurella; Palmer stepped off for Estevao Willian; Joao Pedro came off for Liam Delap.

The two sides then traded a pair of free-kicks: Rodgers whipped an attempt onto the roof of the Chelsea net before James saw an effort from the edge of the box blocked.

Neither team appeared ready to settle for a point and the game was on a knife-edge heading into the final ten minutes. Unfortunately, it then tipped the way of Villa as Tielemans swung a corner into the Chelsea area and Watkins was left free to plant a header into the far corner.

We had five minutes, plus an additional five, to respond. Yet it was Villa who came close to scoring the game's fourth goal as Sanchez had to deny Sancho and then Lucas Digne.

The Blues pushed in the time that remained, but Villa repelled our attacks to record another victory and move three points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal.

What it means...

Defeat leaves us fifth in the table, three points behind Liverpool in fourth.

What comes next...

It is a quick turnaround for the Blues as we host Bournemouth on Tuesday in what is our final game of 2025.

The teams

Chelsea: Sanchez; James (c), Chalobah, Badiashile, Cucurella (Gusto 69); Caicedo, Fernandez; Neto, Palmer (Estevao Willian 72), Garnacho (Gittens 69); Joao Pedro (Delap 69)
Chelsea substitutes: Jorgensen, Acheampong, Tosin, Fofana, Andrey SantosGoalscorers: Joao Pedro 37,
Booked: James 57, Chalobah 68, Caicedo 71, Delap 71, Fernandez 90+4

Aston Villa: Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Lindelof, Maatsen; Buendia (Watkins 59), Tielemans, Kamara, McGinn (Onana 59); Rodgers, Malen (Sancho 59)
Aston Villa substitutes: Bizot, Garcia, Bogarde, Digne, Jimoh-Aloba, Hemmings
Goalscorers: Watkins 63
Booked: Cash 30, Rodgers 57

Attendance: 39,765