Benitez: Eight goal rout won't help Chelsea
Chelsea's 8-0 thrashing of Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge in December will have no bearing on Saturday's Premier League return fixture, the London club's interim manager Rafael Benitez said on Thursday.
![](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/A9GZcDgbgThoGMv6PB9hpE.jpg)
Victory will all but clinch Chelsea's place in next season's Champions League but Benitez believes improving Villa will provide a stern test especially as the home team's relegation fears have not yet been completely dispelled.
"I don't think it matters what happened in the game at Stamford Bridge," the Spaniard told a news conference. "They want to win, they need to win.
"We've seen their last few games, they are doing well and it will be tough because they want to stay in the Premier League."
Chelsea are third in the table, two points in front of Arsenal and three ahead of fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur with two games to go.
The top three qualify automatically for the Champions League and the team in fourth goes through to the preliminary round.
Benitez rested Frank Lampard for Wednesday's 2-2 draw with Tottenham and said the England midfielder would definitely return against 13th-placed Villa who are five points clear of the drop zone.
The European champions, though, have injury concerns about wingers Eden Hazard and Victor Moses.
Get FourFourTwo Newsletter
The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.
Benitez wants three points from Saturday's lunchtime kick-off so that the belief of his players is strong going into Wednesday's Europa League final against Benfica in Amsterdam.
"If we can win against Villa it will be easier to approach the final with confidence," he explained.
![LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 5: Arne Slot Manager of Liverpool congratulates Mohamed Salah of Liverpool after the 4-0 victory during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD4 match between Liverpool FC and Bayer 04 Leverkusen at Anfield on November 5, 2024 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Crystal Pix/MB Media/Getty Images)](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/q3ie7X2vDDiU7X6C9HVRK7-840-80.jpg)
‘The pure simplicity of the way Slot has managed the squad is probably the biggest thing I could say about him. It’s not broken, so let’s get on with it’: Liverpool legend full of admiration for Jurgen Klopp's successor at Anfield
![CARDIFF, UNITED KINGDOM - JUNE 02: Wales captain Ryan Giggs shakes the hand of manager John Toshack after being substituted on his last International appearance for his country during the Euro 2008 Group D Qualifying Match between Wales and Czech Republic at the Millennium Stadium on June 2, 2007 in Cardiff, Wales. Photo by (Stu Forster/Getty Images)](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ooQ9oNmgvfUUG8TBUhn6BK-840-80.jpg)
‘I trained at Spurs and thought they’d give me a chance. But I received a letter thanking me but saying they didn’t think I was good enough – I was gutted’: How Tottenham missed out on signing Wales legend John Toshack