Ollie Watkins Strike Ends Villa's Goalless Start

Ollie Watkins scored the only goal as 10-player Aston Villa defeated 10-player Chelsea to end their scoreless start to the season. While Chelsea did have opportunities, including Mudryk's low shot that forced Emiliano Martinez into an important save, Ollie Watkins' strike secured all three points for Villa.

Pochettino made one change to his Chelsea side, as Moises Caicedo replaced Lesley Ugochukwu.

Aston Villa 2-0 Chelsea

After an uneventful opening quarter, Villa bombarded Chelsea with opportunities, but their ineffective finishing was punished once more by Emiliano Martinez's saves on Raheem Sterling and Nicolas Jackson while Enzo Fernandez misfired from opposite ends of the field.

After halftime, the visitors took control. Moussa Diaby provided McGinn with an unerring finish between Kepa's legs for his side's opener after an immediate counter from Jacob Ramsay teed up McGinn to hit an accurate first-time effort that nestled into the bottom corner.

Chelsea struggled to retake the lead as they attempted to gain momentum. Ross Barkley's shot was deflected over, and Jose Matic miscued while trying to meet a cross from outside. Potter responded by replacing Mudryk and Ugochukwu with Ben Chilwell and Noni Madueke; both efforts missed their mark before Gusto lunged into a challenge on Digne and was sent off, leaving just 10 men for them to defend with.

Goals

Home side have fared much better since being defeated 5-0 against Newcastle, yet crucial rebounds have not fallen their way today.

Starting off slowly in the second half, neither team managed to create any clear chances until Kamara broke free down the left flank with an accurate cross that just missed Diaby at the far post.

Luiz makes a poor decision in trying to tackle Sterling with the ball still on his foot, allowing him to slip past him and elude his marker before passing it off to Darwin Nunez for an attempt that hits both post and Matty Cash and doubles their advantage. For visitors Spurs this defeat left them four points off pace with Bournemouth being next up. Pochettino must address Spurs' poor scoring record as quickly as possible before their next meeting versus them on March 17th.

Talking points

Chelsea remains far behind other Premier League top six clubs when it comes to quality, depth and fitness - an issue which may never be overcome if they continue losing at Stamford Bridge. According to Caesars Sportsbook odds, they may never manage to close this chasm.

Though Mauricio Pochettino's new-look Chelsea made significant steps forward against Liverpool on their opening day, they proved this was no magic bullet when West Ham sent their opponents reeling back with an emphatic victory over them on day two.

While Enzo Fernandez and Raheem Sterling continued their strong performances, there were catastrophic defensive breakdowns resulting in all three goals conceded, leaving Nicolas Jackson isolated up front. One bright spot came through Moises Caicedo who led by example with superb midfield discipline during his debut start - linking well with an invigorated Sterling.

Match report

Ollie Watkins' superb strike helped 10-man Aston Villa beat Chelsea and claim their first home win of the season, even without firing any shots on target themselves. Chelsea were second best throughout and held without scoring.

Nicolas Jackson had an opportunity to give the visitors an early lead, but his fluttering effort went wide of the far post. Enzo Fernandez fired wide from Mykhailo Mudryk's pass on the left side of goal as well.

At the conclusion of the first-half, referee Jarred Gillett signalled for half-time with more than one minute left - sparking loud boos from both teams' supporters as critics lambasted Mauricio Pochettino for his team's defensive frailties in the opening period.

Ollie Watkins, 24, could be an attractive January target for Birmingham Blues. He has impressed in the Championship this season and currently shares top scoring honors with Krzysztof Piatek. Watkins has mostly featured as a central forward and could replace last season's leading scorer Neal Maupay as part of their attack.