Weimann primed for first Aston Villa start against Chelsea

Alex McLeish as indicated that Andreas Weimann is pushing for a first Premier League start and it is 10/1 that the youngster marks the occasion with the opening goal as Aston Villa prepare to host Chelsea.

Weimann made his big breakthrough in the club’s last Premier League encounter at Villa Park, stepping off the bench to grab an injury-time winner in a 1-0 success over Fulham.

Having initially been limited to sporadic minutes previously, Weimann has been receiving more playing time of late and he looked bright again when being introduced just passed the hour in the latest defeat at Arsenal.

With Darren Bent injured, Villa’s attacking options are limited, but manager McLeish has indicated that he may be willing to pick two forwards against Chelsea, which could be a result of the club’s fans getting on his back about negative tactics.

This could mean Weimann being picked alongside Gabby Agbonlahor, with Aston Villa hoping to follow up on their shock 3-1 success over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge earlier in the campaign.

Villa’s injury troubles in midfield are another reason why Weimann may start, with Charles N’Zogbia and Stiliyan Petrov both struggling to prove their fitness.

There is still a chance that Weimann will continue to be reduced to a bit-part role and punters wanting to hedge their bets can get 7/2 that he finds the target at any point inside the 90 minutes.

Meanwhile, those convinced he will be on the bench again may want to take advantage of the 10/1 that he repeats his Fulham exploits and scores the last goal of the game.

Alongside Weimann, Eric Lichaj is also in line to make what will be a rare Aston Villa start with Alan Hutton unlikely to be fit.

However, McLeish has to decide whether to side with the American or move Chris Herd back from midfield to fill a position that he has played for Villa in the past.

Aston Villa’s odds are 3/1 to beat Chelsea.