Graham Potter has been told what to do in order to make Villa Park 'toxic' as Chelsea travel to the midlands.
His side are currently five unbeaten since changing manager in early September and have turned their fortunes around with four wins on the bounce, including back-to-back victories against AC Milan to transform the state of their Champions League hopes.
The trip to Villa Park poses a different question again though as Chelsea have to juggle injuries, a midweek match against Brentford on the horizon and taking advantage of a side that are out of form.
It's nothing that shakes the expectancy of Potter's side, but it could massively impact the atmosphere that the Blues are playing in. Former Villa forward Gabby Agbonlahor thinks that Potter's side are a worst case scenario for Villa, and believes things could turn sour quickly.
"There’s no team worse than Chelsea to be playing next," Agbonlahor told Football Insider. "Villa Park will be toxic if Villa concede first on Sunday.
"These players better get prepared for some atmosphere on Sunday because the fans are fed up with these lacklustre performances."
Villa have only won two of their last 13, losing six. The home form has been slightly better, with just one loss in six and a draw against Manchester City, but failing to beat Nottingham Forest or Leeds, and only scoring seven goals so far this campaign hasn't helped.
Unsurprisingly, the forward is expecting Chelsea to win the game and doesn't have much hope in his former team. He added: "You can say there are some winnable games before the World Cup but we struggle with Brentford at home, Fulham away is not going to be easy, they are bang at it at home. I don’t think there are any games out of the next six that I back us to win.
"We have played poor teams and not put them away, it’s tough to see where Villa’s next win comes from. It’s just a shame because I love Steven Gerrard but when these Villa fans turn it’s very hard to get them back on side.
"I look at these six games and I don’t see Aston Villa getting enough points to push up the table. Chelsea is going to be a tough, tough game. I don’t enjoy watching Villa anymore and I won’t go watch them play.
"I got offered to go to Villa Park this Sunday and I won’t go because it’s not entertaining football, we don’t look like we’re going to beat teams. It’s a shame because I want to go see my team play but I wouldn’t waste two hours watching them now."
Villa have a poor record against Chelsea too, though matches are often tougher than the results suggest. Chelsea have won nine of the last 11 meetings, only losing in 2021 on the final day of the season. Potter's first away match as manager was at Selhurst Park, a ground with similar expectations to Villa and one that could foster an atmosphere equivalent of Steven Gerrard's home ground.
The trip to San Siro could also have helped as Chelsea bypass intimidating venues early on. That will all be background noise for Potter though, who will be focused on once again allowing his team's football doing the talking.
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